# It's official: Obama isn't taking the ebola threat seriously. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 17, 2014, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589 "2014-10-17T15:35:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/21 "2014-10-17T17:49:17Z")
This is obviously a purely political move to address criticism, which the OP proves is useless anyway. And shouldn’t there first be a cancer czar and a heart disease czar? You know, the stuff that’s already killing millions of Americans? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/22 "2014-10-17T17:52:17Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > This is obviously a purely political move to address criticism, which the OP proves is useless anyway. > > And shouldn’t there first be a cancer czar and a heart disease czar? You know, the stuff that’s already killing millions of Americans? Cancer and heart disease? Those are American diseases! Diseases are fine as long as they’re not those damn foreigners. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/23 "2014-10-17T17:53:51Z")
Those are not new problems. Or viruses. ---
**Author:** ![furt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/439d5e/32.png) [@furt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furt)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/24 "2014-10-17T17:58:12Z")
[Top. Men.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoy4_h7Pb3M) ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/25 "2014-10-17T18:04:12Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > And shouldn’t there first be a cancer czar and a heart disease czar? You know, the stuff that’s already killing millions of Americans? Don’t forget the car czar and the swimming pool czar. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/26 "2014-10-17T18:08:33Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Those are not new problems. Or viruses. Exactly. Your average overweight smoker knows they are at elevated risk of heart disease and cancer. If he wakes up one day and wants to reduce that risk, easy-peasy: quit the smokes and drop the weight. Beyond “Wash your hands” I’m not sure just what I can do to not contract this bad boy. Or worse, should it get into my home, what do we do to protect the others of us that aren’t sick? How do we sanitze the house? The cars? Clothes? I have some ideas, but I am absolutely uncertain they are correct or adequate. And how do I know it’s ebola and not just flu or a nasty cold which I’m perfectly content to deal with at home. More info would be nice. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/27 "2014-10-17T18:16:07Z")
> [@The Great Sun Jester](#): > > Beyond “Wash your hands” I’m not sure just what I can do to not contract this bad boy. Or worse, should it get into my home, what do we do to protect the others of us that aren’t sick? How do we sanitze the house? The cars? Clothes? I have some ideas, but I am absolutely uncertain they are correct or adequate. And how do I know it’s ebola and not just flu or a nasty cold which I’m perfectly content to deal with at home. More info would be nice. We don’t need a czar for that. We have google. We might need a czar to coordinate the governmental response, which could include a bunch of different stuff in the U.S. and Western Africa and involve different federal agencies and make sure everybody’s doing things properly. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/28 "2014-10-17T18:20:17Z")
The best way not to get Ebola is to not travel to West African countries that have Ebola outbreaks, and don’t be a health care worker who cares for patients with Ebola. If you don’t do either of those things then you’re good. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/29 "2014-10-17T18:38:29Z")
Why not at the very least make it a more general “contagious diseases” specialist? Even if Ebola is a problem now, it’s not going to be forever. And all the things people are suggesting to deal with this are just general problems with how we’ve handled things. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/30 "2014-10-17T18:43:38Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Why not at the very least make it a more general “contagious diseases” specialist? Because this is a new problem and the flu isn’t, and because the symptoms of Ebola are much more severe and debilitating than the flu, which means you don’t need to take radical steps like isolating flu patients? ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/31 "2014-10-17T18:45:37Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > How long until the response is “Worse than Watergate times a million”? I believe that by the right wing media’s count, Obama has had like fifteen Katrinas, six Watergates, two or three Teapot Domes, and a Panic of 1837. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/32 "2014-10-17T18:51:01Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Most managers I’ve known aren’t very effective managers. A valid point as well. BigT and Marley – Ebola isn’t that new; it’s been around since 1976 (the Swine Flu year, IIRC). So we know some about it. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/33 "2014-10-17T18:53:26Z")
> [@GrumpyBunny](#): > > BigT and Marley – Ebola isn’t that new; it’s been around since 1976 (the Swine Flu year, IIRC). So we know some about it. I know the virus isn’t new. It’s new to the U.S. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/34 "2014-10-17T19:01:56Z")
I’m just waiting for “antibacterial” cleaning products advertise that they destroy the virus that causes Ebola. ---
**Author:** ![Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blue_blistering_barnacle/32/3386_2.png) [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blue_Blistering_Barnacle)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/35 "2014-10-17T19:09:47Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > The best way not to get Ebola is to not travel to West African countries that have Ebola outbreaks, and don’t be a health care worker who cares for patients with Ebola. > > If you don’t do either of those things then you’re good. Is this serious? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/36 "2014-10-17T19:11:06Z")
> [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](#): > > Is this serious? Serious _and_ true. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/37 "2014-10-17T19:14:18Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > So today, President Obama announced he’s naming an [“Ebola czar”](http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/10/17/obama-to-name-ebola-czar/). He’s a guy named Ron Klain. It was immediately noted that Klain has no medial background of any kind; he’s Joe Biden’s former chief of staff. > > Way to phone it in, Barak. Couldn’t you find a former surgeon general, or at least a freakin doctor, to be your “Ebola Czar”? The only comment I can make in this forum is: :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/38 "2014-10-17T19:22:19Z")
As President, Obama can’t devote his full time to dealing with this problem. He’s got too many other things he also needs to do. But he can devote someone else’s full time to deal with it. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/39 "2014-10-17T22:57:26Z")
> [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](#): > > Is this serious? I am serious, even though you didn’t call me Shirley. What are the parts that you don’t think are serious? As of October 17, 2014 there have been only three cases of Ebola in the United States. One of those people had just traveled from West Africa where he had helped care for a person sick with Ebola, and the other two were nurses who helped care for the first person. And this comports with how Ebola is spread in West Africa–the people who get sick are people who care for people who are sick with Ebola. Casual transmission of the virus doesn’t seem to be a serious risk, the people who are at serious risk are the people dealing with someone who is bleeding, sweating, pissing and shitting all over themselves due to the virus. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2014, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589/40 "2014-10-17T23:33:09Z")
> [@The Great Sun Jester](#): > > Exactly. Your average overweight smoker knows they are at elevated risk of heart disease and cancer. If he wakes up one day and wants to reduce that risk, easy-peasy: quit the smokes and drop the weight. > > Beyond “Wash your hands” I’m not sure just what I can do to not contract this bad boy. Or worse, should it get into my home, what do we do to protect the others of us that aren’t sick? How do we sanitze the house? The cars? Clothes? I have some ideas, but I am absolutely uncertain they are correct or adequate. And how do I know it’s ebola and not just flu or a nasty cold which I’m perfectly content to deal with at home. More info would be nice. Do you not have access to…anything? Ebola has been on the news 24/7. By now I can draw the floor plan of an Ebola treatment center, demonstrate how to remove PPE, dilute bleach to the right concentration, name the major transit hubs out of West Africa, describe Liberian funeral customs…what I am saying is access to information about Ebola isn’t actually a problem for anyone in the US. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-obama-isnt-taking-the-ebola-threat-seriously/701589.md?page=3)