Summer Vacation Goes to the Pigs

The World Health Organization is likely to raise the flu alert to full-blown pandemic soon, according to its chief Margaret Chan. Chan also tackled avian flu and SARS in Hong Kong prior to taking on her role as the WHO chief.

"Level 6 does not mean, in any way, that we are facing the end of the world. It is important to make this clear because (otherwise) when we announce level 6 it will cause an unnecessary panic," she told Spanish newspaper El Pais. "Flu viruses are very unpredictable, very deceptive ... We should not be over-confident. One must not give H1N1 the opportunity to mix with other viruses. That is why we are on alert."

This announcement comes after Mexico lowers the alert level, allowing the reopening of cafes, museums, and libraries. However, this has caused the international audience to be worried of the country lowering its guard and then becoming susceptible to an even worse outbreak. Such a contradiction between WHO and Mexico's government worries me; how can we fight this disease when we have such inconsistencies between the 'head' health organization here on Earth and the country that has suffered the most deaths as a result of H1N1?

The WHO has also officially stopped using the term "swine flu" to refer to the illness. The organization has chosen the technical scientific name H1N1 influenza type A when referring the to this flu. This sudden name change came amidst fears of slaughtering of pigs for no good reason worldwide. It is apparent most people, especially farmers, are still ignorant as to how this flu is transmitted. The name change seems a little late; many pigs have already been killed off. How would that impact their local community and economy? With the economy a little rough these days, farmers will have to take an extra blow because of the WHO's slow actions in combating the name change issue. At least the pigs will know who to take revenge on if they ever plot their revenge in piggie heaven/hell.


Prior to the name change, Vice President Joe Biden told NBC's "Today" show last week he will not go anywhere in confined spaces because of the formerly-named swine flu, a different statement from what the White House Press has been endorsing.

“It’s not that it’s going to Mexico. It’s [that] you’re in a confined aircraft. When one person sneezes, it goes all the way through the aircraft. That’s me. … So, from my perspective, what it relates to is mitigation. If you’re out in the middle of a field when someone sneezes, that’s one thing. If you’re in a closed aircraft or closed container or closed car or closed classroom, it’s a different thing.”

Biden quickly released a statement through a spokesperson after the interview. Taking the White House stance once more, Biden clarified that he meant Americans should avoid unnecessary travel to Mexico and to stay home if they are sick. If Biden had not released the clarification statement, Americans would take the advice to mean all mass transportation should be avoided, from airplanes to subways and buses.

Mass transit is almost impossible to avoid for residents of major metropolitan areas such as New York City and especially for the working class from coast to coast. Houstonians will know: it's nearly impossible to avoid the Metro if you have to go downtown. Who wants to be stuck in traffic on Highway 59 when you can take the Metro Park and Ride? Some Houstonians might be willing to risk the H1N1 just to avoid Texas traffic jams.

If airplanes should be avoided as well, where does that leave students who are about to go on summer vacation? Many students have already purchased their airfare for late May or early June to go overseas. More than ever, this seems like the perfect time to leave the country; after all, who would like to be exposed to the swine flu after it has hit so close to home?

Despite that, with border patrols in various countries setting up precautions against the potential of swine flu invading into their respective countries, many governments are taking extra restrictions against American and Mexican travelers already. Biden's comments remind me how annoying it already is to go through at least three to four checkpoints at every airport I lay over. On top of that, I now must also prepare myself for questioning going through customs in Hong Kong. For once, I will be slightly uneasy exclaiming where I began my trip: Houston, Texas. About a week ago, a toddler passed away from the swine flu at Texas Children's Hospital in downtown Houston. The toddler actually could not receive any more Brownsville and is not even from Houston, and yet that death will still attach itself to the Bayou City.

Going back to the mass transit avoidance proposed by Biden, Houston is the headquarters for Continental Airlines, which is located at Bush Intercontinental Airport. If citizens all over the country refrain from air travel due to the swine flu, where does that leave the airline industry? Airlines across the board have already suffered shares losses due to swine flu fears. Continental Airline recently reported a poor first quarter due to the economic recession and air travelers opting out of first class services to save a few bucks. Many analysts are worried the swine flu will already hinder the nation's efforts to pull out of the ongoing recession. To discourage air travel and mass transit will deal a further blow to the economic ordeal. For a public figure to say such things is counterproductive. The media already nitpicks at every word our public figures say. Vice President Biden should be more careful with his words.

I must admit: for a second, I got excited over Biden's comments. Is our vice president encouraging us to not go to class when final exams are right around the corner? That is, until I realized something: if final exams are then pushed as a result of some crazy government interference (after all, I AM at a public university), I have a possibility of missing my flight to Asia. I wouldn't want to miss being questioned by customs, right? They're oh so pleasant as always...