Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Egypt Slaughtering All Pigs To Stop Swine Flu

Is this story real?
Egypt Slaughtering All Pigs To Stop Swine Flu

All pigs? And they don't even have any cases of swine flu yet?

I should change the previous post to: Swine Flu And The Future Of Free-Range Pork.
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12 comments:

Seinberg said...

Well, Egypt is a Muslim country, and Muslims are supposed to keep in-line with Halal (their form of Kosher) which includes no pork, so maybe it's partially motivated by that: people shouldn't be eating pork anyway, so here's an excuse to slaughter all the pigs!

caulfieldkid said...

For those who want to keep up with the outbreaks:
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&t=p&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=106484775090296685271.0004681a37b713f6b5950&ll=14.604847,27.773438&spn=139.156044,316.40625&z=2

It's interesting that this flu is getting so much publicity. It's my understanding that it can be treated with normal flu medications. I realize the fact that we can get it from swine is scary, but I'm just not that worried at this point. Maybe I should be?

shaun

Angela and Melinda said...

I've been thinking about this, and the CAFOs, etc. At the risk of sounding clichéed, if you treat nature unnaturally, you create huge problems. Not just for "other" nature (animals, plants, water, environment), but for humanity as well. What could be more unnatural than the way we've treated animals and manipulated the environment over the last century? Sometimes clichés are true.
And I wonder where they'll put all those dead pigs. Dump 'em in the ocean? Maybe that's where the chickens went too.

Bix said...

No, I think you hit the nail on the head, Melinda.

God, where are they going to put those pigs. Maybe incinerate them? This is insane.

Bix said...

shaun, that map, you're right, that has to be *the* link for following the cases.

It does seem to be getting a lot of attention. I think the threat of a bird flu pandemic several years back put a lot of this machinery in place, and it's getting used, or experimented with, now.

I just heard that the World Health Organization is considering raising the threat level to 5 (out of 6) because of person-to-person transmission:

WHO: Phase 5-6/Pandemic

Bix said...

(... and so I feed right into it.)

Djinn said...

The EU is advising that 'swine flu' is a bit of a misnomer, because it isn't caught from pigs, or pork products, but transferred person to person. So, no need to worry about pigs or pork. If Egypt is slaughtering pigs, then I suspect it's a lazy, knee-jerk reaction, designed to increase public confidence. Just like Mexico handing out face-masks, which, as soon as they get damp (through aspiration), are next to useless at keeping the virus at bay. Best way of avoiding the germs is to wash one's hands regularly. Simple. People forget flu (real flu, not just a bad cold) is a killer - whatever particular strain it happens to be. I got it about ten years ago - was in bed for three weeks and lost a stone and a half in weight. Yes, it's very nasty, but healthy adults are likely to be able to fend the virus off. It's the elderly, infirm and children who need to be more careful.

Bix said...

I'm reading about halal now.

So, it looks like the UN wants to change the name from swine flu to H1N1 flu, to protect the pigs, calling Egypt's order "a real mistake."

Ruby said...

I just got a message from a friend (of the vaccines-cause-autism ilk) who thinks the virus was created in a lab by "big pharma" so they can make money by producing more Tamiflu. "It's a simple fact."

*sigh*

I really don't want to have to do the friend breakup over this, but I'm not sure I can get past this one.

Damn you, flu!

Angela and Melinda said...

Why were the Egyptians growing pigs in the first place, if it's against halal?
Btw, just got Bittman's new book, _Food Matters_, all about links b/tw environment, diet, and personal health. Can't wait to read it!

Anonymous said...

There are people of other religions here in Egypt that do consume pork products, particularly the Christians who raised the pigs!

Bix said...

Did they go through with it? Did Egypt really kill all their pigs?