# Why all the panic over the Flu? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 16, 2020, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554 "2020-03-16T00:21:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/21 "2020-03-16T02:57:24Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > It’s true. It is all just a scam. Anyone who ‘dies’ is in on it. Crises actors every one of 'em. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/22 "2020-03-16T03:06:30Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > The O.P. is a perennial drive-by poster. > I can guarantee he will never return to this thread. Why isn’t habitual drive by thread starting bannable? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/23 "2020-03-16T03:31:57Z")
You guys with all you facts and reality. You need to explain this in simple terms the OP can understand. > [@Tempe\_Jeff](#): > > The Media creates a sensation, and people lose their minds. 30000 plus people die every year from the Flu. Why are we collectively panicking over 50 or so people with an average age of 75? As of Friday, 3/4 of all Deaths in ONE State (Washington). 3/4 of THOSE were in 1 location (Nursing Home). The Response will cause more people to die than letting this run it’s course. Children out of school with no child-care available. Hoarding of necessary items. The list goes on, and on. Explain why, this is a hair-on-fire dire emergency. I get it, old people die when they get sick. Here’s the real deal that they don’t want you to know. This is all a secret plot by the Chinese communist government. They developed a bioweapon and tested it on their own people in order to build up their immunity. Then they gave it to Deep State moles in the government who are working for Barack Obama so they could bring it to the USA and kill off Real Americans like you and me. Their plan is to release their germs in places where Real Americans hang out like bars and churches and stadiums and WalMarts. Then we’ll all be sick and they can steal the election and impose socialism and sharia law on us. Of course, Big Media isn’t telling you any of this. So what you need to do is hunker down in your house and live off the grid for a while. Give Team Trump a chance to take care of business and Make America Great Again. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/24 "2020-03-16T04:05:44Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > "The coronavirus is coming to you. > It’s coming at an exponential speed: gradually, and then suddenly. > [@El\_Kabong](#): > > Are you aware that in countries where swift action has not been taken the number infected roughly doubles every week? This is the part that needs repeating. Just tonight, I saw these two charts: > **[This coronavirus chart shows what Canada is up against in trying to 'flatten...](https://macleans.ca/society/health/this-coronavirus-chart-shows-canada-is-not-flattening-the-curve-at-least-not-yet/?fbclid=IwAR1WPh1b5MCR-0ChnAacUByg0qau5-By8hcIKiD_RKWHe5shkEDKNBuDOHA)** > > Inexplicably, the federal government is not publishing national infection numbers in a way that allows us to see the much-discussed curve. So we've done it for them. > **[Italy: coronavirus (COVID-19) cumulative cases 2024 | Statista](https://www.statista.com/statistics/1101680/coronavirus-cases-development-italy/?fbclid=IwAR28JsXO0JMV-5xRAxj5iTze-g784aYQk9ehnTFPUauG1Zg_qh8Ot2fj8Y4)** > > The first two cases of the new coronavirus (COVID-19) in Italy were recorded between the end of January and the beginning of February 2020. Canada’s cases as compared to Italy’s cases. Both are the same exponential curve, as far as I can tell, with a doubling time of just under 4 days, so less than a week as referred to above. Unchecked, this could get very bad, very quickly. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/25 "2020-03-16T04:11:53Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > Unchecked, this could get very bad, very quickly. No worries. According to the OP it’s just a bunch of old people and they were gonna die soon anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/26 "2020-03-16T05:27:36Z")
That kind of willful ignorance is disgusting. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/27 "2020-03-16T11:37:40Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > No worries. According to the OP it’s just a bunch of old people and they were gonna die soon anyway. Right, and I’m one of them. I can’t express my opinion of the OP, since this isn’t the pit. ---
**Author:** ![OldOlds](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a3d4f5/32.png) [@OldOlds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldOlds)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/28 "2020-03-16T11:43:34Z")
Posts like this are actually a bit concerning. IF you read the Fox News site and look at the comments (something I do for some reason I don’t really understand), you’ll see tons of these. Whether it’s mass trolling, right wing irony, or genuine ignorance I can’t be sure. But since some will read it and believe it’s all a conspiracy to get Trump, it is a worry. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/29 "2020-03-16T11:54:21Z")
> [@OldOlds](#): > > Posts like this are actually a bit concerning. IF you read the Fox News site and look at the comments (something I do for some reason I don’t really understand), you’ll see tons of these. Whether it’s mass trolling, right wing irony, or genuine ignorance I can’t be sure. But since some will read it and believe it’s all a conspiracy to get Trump, it is a worry. It all boils down to “I don’t like this version of reality, therefore I will assert my own”, a mindset endemic to Trump supporters. Unfortunately the virus has a way of asserting its own reality. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/30 "2020-03-16T13:27:46Z")
[Apropos of, oh, nothing in particular](http://wondermark.com/c1513/)… ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/31 "2020-03-16T13:45:59Z")
Considering our fine state of AZ has literally something like 200 test kits, no on knows how many cases there are. This state is full of old trump lovers, LDS trump lovers, snowbird trump lovers, and idiot congressman Andy Biggs and idiot senator McSally. Lest anyone be confused by the OP. ---
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/32 "2020-03-16T13:50:03Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Considering our fine state of AZ has literally something like 200 test kits, no on knows how many cases there are. > > This state is full of old trump lovers, LDS trump lovers, snowbird trump lovers, and idiot congressman Andy Biggs and idiot senator McSally. Lest anyone be confused by the OP. The dead can’t vote. ---
**Author:** ![What\_the](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f4b2a3/32.png) [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/33 "2020-03-16T13:51:53Z")
> [@Tempe\_Jeff](#): > > The Media creates a sensation, and people lose their minds. 30000 plus people die every year from the Flu. Why are we collectively panicking over 50 or so people with an average age of 75? As of Friday, 3/4 of all Deaths in ONE State (Washington). 3/4 of THOSE were in 1 location (Nursing Home). The Response will cause more people to die than letting this run it’s course. Children out of school with no child-care available. Hoarding of necessary items. The list goes on, and on. Explain why, this is a hair-on-fire dire emergency. I get it, old people die when they get sick. Are the stats above accurate? - average age of 75 - 3/4 in WA - 3/4 of those in one location ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/34 "2020-03-16T14:03:12Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Considering our fine state of AZ has literally something like 200 test kits, no on knows how many cases there are. > > This state is full of old trump lovers, LDS trump lovers, snowbird trump lovers, and idiot congressman Andy Biggs and idiot senator McSally. Lest anyone be confused by the OP. My analogy is it’s like someone saying, “Nope. There aren’t any speeders on this highway,” a highway with no cops patrolling it. And in defense of Arizona, we were smart enough to not elect McSally – she was appointed to fill out the rest of McCain’s term. Biggs I’ll give you. Although unplanned, I’m fortunate enough to not have him as my representative by about a quarter mile. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/35 "2020-03-16T14:09:45Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > The O.P. is a perennial drive-by poster. > I can guarantee he will never return to this thread. Indeed. An idiot through and through. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/36 "2020-03-16T14:18:10Z")
> [@Chingon](#): > > There is zero chance this can be explained to you. It can certainly be explained to him. What it can’t be is understood for him. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/37 "2020-03-16T16:42:08Z")
The OP probably won’t be back, but in case he is - There are immunizations against flu. Hundreds of millions of people routinely get immunized annually. There is currently no effective human vaccine against coronavirus,and probably won’t be for another year to a year and a half. So, there is no defense against it other than frequent handwashing, covering sneezes and coughs, and social distancing, i. e. keeping a distance of two meters from the nearest person. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/38 "2020-03-16T18:38:52Z")
> [@Tempe\_Jeff](#): > > The Media creates a sensation, and people lose their minds. 30000 plus people die every year from the Flu. Why are we collectively panicking over 50 or so people with an average age of 75? As of Friday, 3/4 of all Deaths in ONE State (Washington). 3/4 of THOSE were in 1 location (Nursing Home). The Response will cause more people to die than letting this run it’s course. Children out of school with no child-care available. Hoarding of necessary items. The list goes on, and on. Explain why, this is a hair-on-fire dire emergency. I get it, old people die when they get sick. I bet you don’t have it, and I bet nobody you know knows anybody that has it. Everybody needs to just chill the fuck out. Amarite? {{group hug}} ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/39 "2020-03-16T19:53:06Z")
QuickSilver, heh. A NYT headline: \*Italy’s Coronavirus Victims Face Death Alone, With Funerals Postponed As morgues are inundated, coffins pile up and mourners grieve in isolation: ‘‘This is the bitterest part.’’ \* Tempe Jeff, some Italians would like to have a word with you. Things could get…unpleasant. ---
**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:** [March 16, 2020, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554/40 "2020-03-16T21:09:46Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **Guinastasia** : > > The whole point of a “panic” is to nip this thing in the bud. Otherwise, you’ll have people yelling, “why didn’t they stop it when they had the chance?” No, that’s the whole point of listening to the professionals at the CDC and similar agencies. Most of the measures that are being put into place are **not** being recommended by the CDC. For instance, the CDC recommends closing a school for three weeks when there’s a diagnosis of a student or staff member. They don’t recommend closing all of the schools for the rest of the year as soon as there are five diagnoses in the entire state. The reason that people are panicking is because our leaders are panicking, and because neither the people nor the leaders are paying attention to the professionals. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-all-the-panic-over-the-flu/849554.md?page=3)