alex_8899: While you should always assume that there is a general risk of you catching this virus, unless you actually live close to someone who has the virus or in an environment where you have to hang around a lot of sick people, you really don't have much to worry about. And if you do get infected? It's just like normal flu, only there's currently no vaccine for it. So, there's really no problem, then.Sean H., a friend from high school, on Facebook on Tuesday: Swine flu? Really? Give me a fucking break. (note: see bird flu, SARS, Y2K...)
And
According to figures I saw on CNN, the normal flu kills 36,000 people in this country alone every year. The big difference, as Alex pointed out in the above quoted entry, is that there isn't yet a vaccine for this one. It hasn't been decided if they're going to try to make one specifically for H1N1, but if this gets much worse, I don't see that there'd be any other option. Regardless, everybody should chill and roll on with their lives. I, more than most, have less reason to be afraid of the swine flu or any other disease. The environment most conducive to the transmission of disease is a recirculating submerged submarine - and that chapter of my life is behind me...