editorials

A couple of years back owatonnabill was having a conversation about the efficacy of flu shots with one of The-Sky-Is-Falling crowd who happened to be a co-worker. Owatonnabill made the facetious remark "I only hope I live long enough to die of something". Co-worker nodded her head and said very seriously "I know exactly what you mean". Scary.

The flu vaccine has the potential to save more lives than have been lost in all the wars humanity has ever waged against each other.

Excellent editorial. We can't be lulled into a false sense of security on this issue. 60% effectiveness of present vaccines is a serious problem when you consider how quickly new strains of the flu can get out ahead of developing new vaccines. The 1918 flu tore through the world killing an estimated 50 million people in just a few short months in 1918. In the United States the 1918 Flu Influenza Pandemic in WW I infected 1 million of the 4.8 million armed forces and killed more servicemen (52,199) than combat (50,280)...60% of these soldiers and sailors died in the US, not in France, due to the flu. On the home front 25 Million of a 105 million U.S. population were infected and 675,000 Americans died in three months of 1918. Worldwide, an estimated 50 Million people died. The scary thing is it can happen again if we are not vigilant and develop better vaccines to deal with a deadly disease that killed more Americans than all the wars America was involved in since the beginning of the 20th Century.