Swine Flu – Obama’s Grand Slam/ Update: WHO raises pandemic threat level
It’s not even an epidemic yet and the Left has already come out swinging at Republicans, laying the blame for what, according to their President, is an emergency but not reason for alarm. It would seem that by removing $900 million in pandemic preparedness from the stimulus bill last year, Republicans are responsible for every victim of this not yet epidemic. Whatever. Any monkey could argue that pandemic preparedness is not economic stimulus, but you’d just be called bananas – there is no common sense left anywhere on the Left. They don’t want to hear it.
(Wait – breaking news as I write – Earthquake in Mexico City? Good Lord, what did the Mexicans do to tick off God? Yikes! Anyone remember the Mexico City Policy?)
Anyway, as Wrench and I were having lunch, we were musing what the extent of the “Crisis Exploitation Management Team” will come up with. Our guess:
- All borders will be opened immediately as the USA and Mexico merge into a new nation, Meximerica, making the amnesty issue moot.
- Immediately institute Universal Health Care and nationalize all health care facilities and providers therein to ensure appropriate care for all residents.
- Monitor and “sanitize” all internet content as the Conficker worm has been linked to the Swine Flu.
- Continue to beat the “it’s all Bush’s fault” drum.
Now, I’m going to go out on a limb here and point out the obvious. With all the positive outcomes the Obama administration has to gain from this crisis – Universal Health Care, elimination of the “Mexico” issue, shut down of those pesky right wing conspiracy blogs and keeping the Left wing nuts on topic – am I crazy to wonder if they created the whole thing? Now, if he can get all this accomplished in the next 36 hours, despite the lack of panic occurring nationwide, imagine his “100 Day” infomercial.
Update 4:20 pm 4/27
The WHO has raised the pandemic threat level, indicating they have confirmed human to human transfer of the virus. This is not good news for the development-challenged Mexico. And not good for us, as their closest neighbor. It is time to officially shut the door. Start calling your representatives now. If earlier to day is any indication, they won’t hear this news for another day or two unless we inform them ourselves.
And in case you haven’t already done so, go stock up on necessities – masks, water, canned goods, maybe even a roll of duct tape and plastic sheeting. Well, that is unless you saw this. If you did, you already went shopping.
H/T – Michelle Malkin, Fox News
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This is different from 9/11 conspiracy theorists how, exactly?
OMG, ATG, you were first. You win, Wrench. I do dishes tonight.
Now, read carefully –
The operative word is crazy. But thank you for a good chuckle. Now we’ll just have to wait and see how bad it gets and see how Rahm, Gibsy and The One will use it to their advantage.
Hahahahaha! Still chuckling. You are so predictable.
I’m predictable? You’re the one who turns a US outbreak caused by spring breakers coming back from Mexico into an excuse to rant against immigrants.
While it is true that there is not an immediate link between measures taken to prepare for a pandemic and economic recovery (i.e. an increase in general production of a nation), it is definitely arguable as something that should be accounted for in any budget. Just a quick google search will reveal the cost from simple pandemics like the flu. People dying from a pandemic completely removes them from the workforce meaning a strong loss economically speaking in addition to whatever costs go into treating them. Additionally, the quicker a response can be given to a pandemic, the less impact it may have. So a certain amount of funding may drastically increase the responsiveness and capabilities to address any such events. If this can not be contained and it does spread, then it will appear to have been incredibly foolish not to take out an insurance policy against this by appropriating some money to protecting against it.
And as it grows, businesses may have to shut down, municipalities must divert funds, and in general life must come to address something which if more money had been spent (at most $3 per American) there may be more money lost in the economy as the result of production halting. Think about how much companies spend each second of a business day, if that’s interrupted for even a day, millions even billions of dollars may be lost. Therefore, if we’re measuring the success or failure of policy on economic terms, this would appear to be a relatively sound one. And this money is not simply burned once it goes to the government. Spending is injected into an economy through purchases, wages, overtime, etc…. “Wasteful” spending, economically speaking, is when this spending results in a negative GDP effect of producing less increase than the amount removed. In this case, it would appear that as any good insurance policy does, that the net effect would be positive. Let’s look at these matters pragmatically and see that not all government spending is immediately wasteful.
James, Your point is taken but still not applicable. The stimulus was pushed through as an emergency measure. And government spending in a disaster is also pushed through as an emergency measure – as in hurricanes, tornadoes, etc. Actually, we have President Bush to thank for the large amount of anti-virals stocked around the country – he pushed for this during the Bird Flu panic. And let us not forget that Sen. Schumer referred tot he pandemic earmark as just another “porky amendment.
The stimulus was billed as “here and now” economic stimulus but we all know it is chock full of earmarks that have nothing to do with stimulus. Don’t insult our intelligence by suggesting otherwise, especially when the deletion of this particular earmark, a deletion supported by Dems, could prove to be politically unwise.
“…rant against immigrants.”
I had to go back and read it twice to figure out where this rant was. And I never found it.
I see it as a rant against the current regime in Washington.
And I see it pointing out several problems, *ILLEGAL* immigration being one of them.
My wife is an immigrant… a LEGAL one who went through the proper process and we spent our $2,000 on fees, etc. to do it. I have no problem with LEGAL immigrants.
I have a problem with CRIMMIGRANTS… but then this wasn’t about immigration, was it? Well it really wasn’t until ATG brought it up.
Nice move, ATG. Did you get that from the Dumbocrat playbook directly, or did you come up with it on your own?
Maybe you should go to work for CNN…?
Anyway, I am concerned about this outbreak, and I am preparing for all contingencies, including it being a pandemic or even an excuse for the government to declare a “state of emergency” and “martial law” or some such.
Oh Patriot, pay no attention to the squawking from the Left. As I stated, logic has no place in their minds.
By the time these idiots figure out that all those Mexican mommies will be scrambling for the border as soon as their children get sick, for all the free (but mysteriously unavailable) health care we have here in the USA, it will be too late. They’ll probably feel a sense of solidarity with their illegal comrades when they find themselves crammed into hospital wards together – some sort of “street cred” to get the virus, no doubt.
But the border should be closed immediately. It appears as if the mortality rate of this virus is 1% – very dangerous. It could be higher but Mexico is incapable of even counting – so many have no access to any health care provider there is no way to know how many are sick and or dead yet. The Feds would be reckless and irresponsible on a criminal level to not defend and protect us from this. Bad Case Scenario – It will move north and eventually we will see infected people walking across the border to find treatment or escape the break-out. Worst Case Scenario – They already are. Even our new best buddies, the Europeans, are warning of travel – not only to Mexico but also to the US.
But if ATG will sleep better knowing the guy that killed him by transporting the virus north was simply searching for a better life for his family, no worries. It’s funny how nature works.
Morbid, and surprisingly tasteless. You’ve reached new lows, Mom.
Not surprisingly.
I don’t get it, ATG. You always shoot the messenger.
Have you seen the new reports this AM? Are you sure no Americans will die from this? (Although based on your immigration position, all Mexicans are Americans and they are already dying.) Are you willing to put your life on the line? Do you have children? Where do you live? I live outside Boston and come into contact with illegals (almost) daily. The Prez keeps saying this is not a cause for alarm – you actually believe that? I’m not saying lock yourself in your house, I’m saying take reasonable measures to protect yourself, just as our all powerful, all beneficent, all knowing Prez should be protecting us. It’s tough being a citizen of the world all of a sudden, isn’t it? As a strong supporter of the crap bag in chief, you should be urging him to be more conservative about this break-out – it will kill his presidency if Americans die.
This is not a “I hate the illegals/Mexicans” thing – it’s a “keep it contained” thing. If you are truly too thick to see the difference then it will most likely take the death of yourself or someone close to you to understand the irresponsibility of a government that “strongly urges against travel to Mexico” while at the same time refusing to enforce and monitor the border we share with the nation where this deadly disease is running rampant. Even the Mexican government is taking stronger measures to protect its population.
You are truly unaware, uninformed and in serious denial – all to be expected from a Liberal who wants nothing more than for the government to make all the difficult decisions for him.
“It is time to officially shut the door. Start calling your representatives now.”
Hey, if shutting down the border saves just one life, isn’t it worth it?
Couldn’t you say the same thing about totalitarianism or the stimulus?
Um , no I could not. Maybe you could provide us with some details?
But I was being sarcastic – I guess you didn’t get the nuance.