Be Afraid, Be Very Afraid

What is worse, the fact that this flu-that-shall-remain-nameless-because-H1N1- is-a-ridiculous-name has become such a media frenzy, causing seemingly otherwise rational people to not want to leave their homes or if they must, to wear a surgical mask OR that the W.H.O. (who?) has gotten in on this flu-naming act and says no to swine and yes to H1N1? They could have at least made it into a acronym that can be easily pronounced by the mask wearers (mentioned above.) Like, high-nigh or perhaps high-nee. These are terrible suggestions of course, but what of the alternative? 

My favorite highlight from yesterday, besides Joe Biden confessing he wants to tunnel down into a bunker until this flu clears, was also from The Today Show.  Dr. Nancy Snyderman, the doctor who is on that show every day for so many segments a day, that it makes me wonder when she actually, well, treats patients?   In an effort to show viewers that they cannot get the-virus-formerly-known-as-swine-flu from eating pork, she went up to a street vendor and ordered a gyro or some such pork sandwich.  I don't know about you, but it is not the flu that I'm afraid of contracting when I dine at such establishments.  Hopefully the street meat lobby did not hear that.  

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Just Don't Call It Swine Flu

During a press briefing yesterday, the Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack was imploring the media to stop calling this new potential pandemic virus swine flu.

"Q What is the point of monitoring the swine population? If you can't get this
flu from swine, why check swine at all?
SEC. VILSACK: Because it could impact and affect the
industry itself. This is more about the economics of it rather than the human
side and human illness side of it.
Q Is it because of the name "swine flu"?
I mean, you're not looking at horses or cows or anything else.
SEC. VILSACK: Just -- which is
precisely the reason why we have asked, and there has been a response to change
the name of this. This really isn't swine flu. It's H1N1 virus. That's very,
very important. And it is significant, because there are a lot of hardworking
families whose livelihood depends on us conveying this message of safety."

You can read the full transcript here.

Sec. Vilsack's message has already taken hold. This morning on both NY1 and The Today Show

(before the story of the woman who was chased by a bear and hit by a car) the anchors were calling this flu "H1N1" or, referring to it first as "Swine Flu" and then following it up with the preferred "H1N1." Perhaps this is an instance where getting control of the media message is actually serving people. This flu does not come from eating pork. If people think it does, they will stop buying pork and more economic fallout will ensue.

I can't help but be reminded of of the lawsuit the cattle industry brought against Oprah after she said she would never eat another burger and the price of beef fell . Is the person who started using the term swine flu afraid of similar litigation? The point of this story may be that when government, media and heavily lobbied industry get together the results are powerful. Still, with 91 people confirmed to have this flu the U.S. and one person dead, what's in a name?