# Basic facts on ebola we need to know **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 17, 2014, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599 "2014-10-17T18:00:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/21 "2014-10-19T11:24:51Z")
The thing is, disaster is _always_ about to hit. It’s a dangerous universe. I completely understand that Ebola _could_ be an epidemic, even a pandemic… but so could a lot of other diseases. One reason we pay more attention to Ebola is that it is frequently lethal and kills in a spectacular manner. We didn’t pay as much attention to the spread of West Nile Virus, even with some deaths, because MOST people never became sick from the virus (only about 1 in 100 or 1 in 200 ever show symptoms) and those that did, even those that died, weren’t doing oogy horror-show things like bleeding out. A total of five people having or having had Ebola in a nation of 300 million is NOT an epidemic. Not even close. Granted, two of those five were infected here, but if three infections only generate an additional two infections it’s not a growing problem. If we can keep that up (and there’s no reason we shouldn’t) then even if another person wanders in carrying the virus we’ll be able to keep it confined and it’s not going to turn into an epidemic. Now, yes, there is a non-zero chance circumstances could change and we could get some sort of wider outbreak. There’s a non-zero chance a rock could fall out of space and land on my head tomorrow, too, but I don’t worry about it much, if at all. We can identify the disease. We know how it spreads. That alone should allow for effective quarantines to reduce any spread, and once you keep an illness from spreading eventually everyone in the quarantine zone is either deceased, recovered, or managed to avoid getting infected and life goes back to normal. The biggest danger is, yes, complacency, but that’s complacency while, for instance, screening people with high fevers seeking medical help, or failure to check people at international borders, and things like taking body temperature can be done without actual contact with the people being screened, or monitoring agencies failing to track various diseases. That’s different than the average person who stops worrying about it because they aren’t traveling to/from an area with an outbreak, they aren’t having any contact with people fitting that description, and are unlikely to run into someone of that description. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/22 "2014-10-19T13:28:02Z")
I’d be curious to know whether you ever saw the film Outbreak? It was not a particularly great film. But a small part of that film showed the way the disease spread as well as its effects. I don’t think I will ever ever be able to forget any of that. It was just a stark terror. It terrified me right down to my boots. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/23 "2014-10-19T13:43:50Z")
> [@Charlie\_Wayne](#): > > I’d be curious to know whether you ever saw the film Outbreak? > > It was not a particularly great film. But a small part of that film showed the way the disease spread as well as its effects. I don’t think I will ever ever be able to forget any of that. It was just a stark terror. It terrified me right down to my boots. Are you seriously taking your education from _Hollywood_? ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/24 "2014-10-19T13:56:11Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Are you seriously taking your education from _Hollywood_? Well Coach, I never said that. But if there is any truth to the way that film portrayed the effects of Ebola or the way in which it spread, I don’t mind telling you that I sure do want to pay a lot of attention to that. You are, of course, correct in that it would be a mistake to base my understanding of the disease on the contents of that film. But, do you think there is any truth to that film? And if so, what parts are true? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/25 "2014-10-19T14:48:07Z")
If you want to look to Hollywood, the film _[Contagion](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contagion_%28film%29)_ was perhaps a more realistic view of a pandemic. ---
**Author:** ![Ramira](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ramira/32/344_2.png) [@Ramira](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ramira)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/26 "2014-10-19T15:32:10Z")
The movie is not about the Ebola, it is a fictional disease. It is a very bad idea to think you get information from such movies not written by scientists. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/27 "2014-10-19T15:37:26Z")
Really? And here I thought that Hollywood makes only documentaries. Next you’re going to tell me that Luke Skywalker didn’t really blow up the Death Star. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/28 "2014-10-19T15:40:08Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Really? And here I thought that Hollywood makes only documentaries. Next you’re going to tell me that Luke Skywalker didn’t really blow up the Death Star. This is not the scientific accuracy you were looking for. ---
**Author:** ![Ramira](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ramira/32/344_2.png) [@Ramira](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ramira)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/29 "2014-10-19T15:40:35Z")
It is Charlie Wayne strangely referring to movies for information not me. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/30 "2014-10-19T16:28:17Z")
FACT: More Americans have been married to Kim Kardashian than have died from Ebola. > [@a friend](#): > > Both are a deadly virus infecting America. Both are also partial to Black men. Coincidence?? I think not. ---
**Author:** ![iljitsch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/77aa72/32.png) [@iljitsch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iljitsch)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/31 "2014-10-19T16:31:29Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > The biggest danger is, yes, complacency I agree that complacency is a big danger, but I’d say that the biggest danger is panic and irrational behavior. Even in Africa things would have been much better if people had followed basic advice such as avoiding contact with deceased victims. And, you know, not murder the few healthcare workers available. So on the one hand, it’s important to not overreact. We’re not talking about the flu here, as long as your job doesn’t involve contact with bodily fluids and you are even a little careful, the chance of catching ebola _assuming you’re around infected people in the first place_ approaches zero. On the other hand, even in Europe and North America nurses got infected when treating known victims. But what if hundreds or thousands of cases happen outside Africa? There would be large scale quarantine and even more people would lock themselves up in their homes or get away from affected areas. That would be a huge hit to the economy; compared to that the banking crisis would be the good old times. Two things that we can all start practicing right now: washing our hands and avoiding touching our faces. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/32 "2014-10-19T16:54:25Z")
The biggest danger is the Jewish Liberation Front! ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/33 "2014-10-19T17:00:18Z")
I had sex with a nurse from Dallas. When I woke up the next morning, she was gone, and on my mirror was written: “Now you have Ebola” ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/34 "2014-10-19T17:05:39Z")
> [@AncientHumanoid](#): > > I had sex with a nurse from Dallas. > > When I woke up the next morning, she was gone, and on my mirror was written: > > “Now you have Ebola” That’s why you wear a rubber…suit. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/35 "2014-10-19T17:16:29Z")
> [@AncientHumanoid](#): > > The biggest danger is the Jewish Liberation Front! NO - It’s the Judean People’s Front. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/36 "2014-10-19T18:43:05Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > The thing is, disaster is _always_ about to hit. It’s a dangerous universe. > > I completely understand that Ebola _could_ be an epidemic, even a pandemic… but so could a lot of other diseases. One reason we pay more attention to Ebola is that it is frequently lethal and kills in a spectacular manner. We didn’t pay as much attention to the spread of West Nile Virus, even with some deaths, because MOST people never became sick from the virus (only about 1 in 100 or 1 in 200 ever show symptoms) and those that did, even those that died, weren’t doing oogy horror-show things like bleeding out… This prompted me to look up [West Nile Virus news](http://www.click2houston.com/news/harris-county-has-record-high-of-west-nile-virus/27907040)for my area. We had a rainy summer & the mosquitoes loved it. > [@](#): > > Harris County mosquito control says this is the worst year on record for the West Nile virus and they’re working overtime to keep citizens safe. > > Out of 268 spots tested throughout Harris County, only 32 had no mosquitoes carrying the potentially deadly West Nile virus. Quite a few humans in the area were diagnosed with WNV–but there was only one fatality. This was surely on the news but I don’t remember any screaming talking heads. Mosquito Control kept spraying. The weather is finally cooling down. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/37 "2014-10-19T19:17:25Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > NO - It’s the Judean People’s Front. Splitters! ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/38 "2014-10-19T19:42:20Z")
> [@iljitsch](#): > > Two things that we can all start practicing right now: washing our hands and avoiding touching our faces. Those are two most excellent points and well worth practicing. I can’t imagine anyone making a more valuable contribution than that. Thank you ever so much! ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/39 "2014-10-19T19:42:57Z")
We have the usual thread shitters doing comedy hour, why am I not surprised? ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599/40 "2014-10-19T22:23:14Z")
If someone is REALLY concerned then they could have sufficient supplies on hand to live in their home for about a month. That’s food, water, medicine, toilet paper… don’t forget some entertainment, too. That would not only cover a 21 day Ebola quarantine but also serve post-earthquake, power failures, blizzards… In other words, it would work for a variety of potential emergencies. I wouldn’t really recommend more than that, unless prepping is your hobby. A month is probably an overkill even so but hey, it strikes me as a reasonable compromise between “totally unprepared” and “nutjob”. Just a bit of trivia: Mr. Duncan’s girlfriend and family’s Ebola quarantine ends at midnight tonight. None of them show any sign of the disease despite living in close proximity to a definitely ill Mr. Duncan. Personally, I view this as a positive. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/basic-facts-on-ebola-we-need-to-know/701599.md?page=3)