Friday, May 1, 2009

Vexing virus vendetta

I'm gratified that health and government officials are staying on top of the new strain of flu virus that's creating national and international concern. There's no such thing as a "garden variety" flu when you are the one burning a fever that could roast a small animal.

I just wish that we can keep it all in perspective. While a pandemic is certainly possible, it isn't probable. And, in my own circumstance, I probably have more strains of bacteria inside my hockey gloves that could cause me as much or more harm.

Our national and local news media seems to have caught a virus that is creating an electronic anxiety attack. Each outlet has to outdo the other one better.

They're all doing a decent job under the competitive pressures, but unfortunately are sometimes aren't letting the facts get in the way of a good story. The count of confirmed flu cases doesn't seem proportional to the amount of air time or column inches devoted to this public health question.

Are we making the important interesting or the interesting important? Only time will tell.

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