Haha, I loved how they used that in V for Vendetta, more direct stories for people to think about, instead of obscure ones you cant relate to your own life.
"You'd better take care of me lord, otherwise you're gonna have me on your hands" - Hunter S. Thompson
In mid-Feb, senior British vets said that reports that a duck in Lyon, France, had died from H5N1, increased the likelihood that the virus may be found in the UK. By the end of the month, bird flu had also been detected in Greece, Austria, Hungary, Slovenia, and Slovakia. Two dead ducks heralded the virus's arrival in Sweden on 28 Feb. The Swedish authorities notified the European commission of confirmed cases of the H5N1 virus in the birds, samples of which were dispatched to the EU laboratory in Weybridge, Surrey, for further tests.
The news led the govt's chief scientific adviser, Sir David King, to declare he feared bird flu could become endemic in the UK. "I would anticipate that avian flu will arrive in the UK. We also have to anticipate that it will be here for five years plus. We are talking about the possibility it being endemic here in the UK as it did in China. It is a long-term factor," Sir David told the BBC.
It's very worrying, and certainly here in Queensland, local emergency crews are going through the routines in preparation for what may well happen down under.
I really dont understand this bird flu thing. Do people have more of a chance of geting the virus if they deal with birds? Like slaughterhouse workers and farmers etc?
Yes, Saucy. I'm worrying for our other wildlife, not just the birds. If a bird dies of this, a fox (for example) could eat/sniff around it and presumably catch the virus.
"Do what you can with what you have where you are."
- Theodore Roosevelt
The sad thing is the poultry farmers have families who may contract it too, children taking it into school and possibly infecting other children. Two girls I went to school with came from a poultry farming family, while I don't like the industry I wouldn't wish it on people like them, who were otherwise decent human beings.
You said "children taking it into school and possibly infecting other children". So far, bird flu has not been passed from human to human - let's hope that won't happen.
The insatiable demand for cheap food, the global poultry industry and the giant factory farms of south-east Asia have been blamed for spreading avian flu around the world.
A new analysis of the pandemic has sought to shift the emphasis for international action to tackle the disease away from backyard farmers and wild migratory birds. Instead, efforts to stamp out bird flu should focus on intensive rearing units, particularly those in Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam, according to Grain, an international campaigning group promoting agricultural biodiversity in the developing world.
I read that they probably wouldn't attempt to cull wild birds because it isn't really feasible and also attempting to do so would cause frightened birds to range further and spread it. Let's hope that's true.
I don't think it can be passed between humans at the moment - my understanding is that would only start happening if the virus changed so that it gained some of the properties of human flu (which could occur if the same person caught both types of flu simultaneously).
Daily Mirror
April 2006
BIRD FLU 'WILL KILL ORGANIC FARMING'
Free-range poultry warning
By Oonagh Blackman Political Editor
TONY Blair's top scientific adviser yesterday warned that the arrival of bird flu may herald the end of organic and free-range poultry.
Sir David King said it was likely the deadly H5N1 virus will spread among the UK's wild bird population.
That will mean more poultry flocks have to be kept inside to reduce the risk of infection from mixing with them.
He said: "It means organic farming and free-range farming would come to an end. It will change farming practices."
And a source at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs told the Mirror: "Even if bird flu does not hit poultry, it will still mean many, if not all, fowl are no longer able to roam free as they would be at risk from contamination by infected wild birds.
"Sadly, that could be the end of free-range farm practices."
Sorry to contradict, feral, but I'm fairly sure the virus isn't thought to have mutated in this way yet, otherwise people would be panicking more than they are at present, because then it could spread fast through the human population, like normal flu.
There have of course been cases where several members of the same family have caught it but I think most people think that was because they all had close contact with birds. I have read one or two suggestions of isolated cases of human-to-human transmission but I don't think they are that well authenticated.
The last I heard the latest theory is the swan with the H5N1 virus didn't die in Britain but was washed ashore. It doesn't take much for people with access to guns to panic and become trigger happy. Thank goodness we don't have as many guns here as in the states, there'd be carnage.
'35,000 birds to be culled in new avian flu outbreak
Ian Sample, science correspondent
Thursday April 27, 2006
The Guardian
Government officials last night ordered the immediate slaughter of 35,000 chickens on a poultry farm in Norfolk - the centre of Britain's poultry industry - after dead birds were found to be infected with an avian flu virus.
Preliminary tests on carcasses of chickens found at a farm near the village of Dereham identified the virus as an H7 strain and not the H5N1 virus recently found in a dead swan washed up on the east coast of Scotland. [...]'
35,000 chickens have to be slaughtered at a Norfolk farm after some dead chickens were found likely to have the H7 strain of bird flu. This strain is not really any risk to humans (but then neither is the H5N1 strain unless you are living with your birds 24/7...).
I haven't heard any news about neigbouring farms having to destroy their chickens, or other birds. The below bbc article doesn't say either. Watch this space though, they might stir up peoples fear then destroy all the birds in an unnecessary frenzy...
oh my godness! I have just read that as a 'precautionary measure' 35,000 chickens will be slaughtered in a farm in Norfolk. I'm horrified! The article is on the news and on www.msn.com
I saw the images of the birds in question on TV this morning they are living in awful conditions as expected. As bad as this seems, the harsh reality of this is those birds would be killed sooner or later for human consumption.
Any cried you here from the public will be in sympathy for the farmers as a whole much like F&M was.
If the bird are to be killed to prevent bird flu they will be gassed, if they live and go on to be food they will be hung from their legs, dipped in electrified water then have their throats slit off with a spinning saw. All evil, all sick.
Sometimes I wonder if this Karma coming back to haunt those who have used the animals for personal profit and gain.
All the BBC spouted on about was peoples livings and wages from bird production.
The rich, affluent animal abusing types never seem to get what they deserve. They take, take, take regardless of the consequences and they always end up fine! One day the will get their come-uppance!!! - or i will be furious!!
Yea, the BBC went on about peoples jobs and incomes but the multinationals and large companies cut jobs to make profits all the time - you don't hear them getting too overly concerned about that. Yea it's crap for the workers but the animals deserve to be recognised too!! I have totally went of the point...sorry.
"Human Freedom, Animal Rights, One Struggle, One Fight!!"
The sheer number of chickens on ONE farm just blows my mind. 35'000 chickens on ONE farm??? And only for the purpose of laying eggs which will be hatched elsewhere to create new chickens? (I swear, the BBC article uses the word "create"!)
I read also that this same strain of bird flu made the Dutch government murder 30 million (!!!!!!) birds in 2003.
And people do not see that this is a HOLOCAUST??????????
'Chickens at two more British farms are found to have bird flu
By Geoffrey Lean, Environment Editor
Published: 30 April 2006
Britain's defences against bird flu were last night exposed as ineffective, as chickens in two more farms in Norfolk were found to have a strain of the disease. The news came as an Independent on Sunday investigation revealed severe flaws in the Government's surveillance against the infection.
The two new infected farms are in the same area, near Dereham, as Whitford Lodge Farm, Hockering, where 35,000 chickens are being slaughtered after the disease was found there last week. A worker caught a mild form of the bird flu.
Their flocks, with 15,300 more birds, will be culled and a one-kilometre "restrictive zone" - limiting movements of poultry, eggs and poultry products - has been imposed around all three. Yesterday, even before last night's announcement, Japan banned poultry imports from Britain. [...]'
'Discovery of poultry exposed to bird flu virus was kept from public
· Ministry imposed 'routine' movement restrictions
· Curbs lasted until tests on geese ruled out infection
James Meikle
Thursday May 18, 2006
The Guardian
Government scientists found evidence of bird flu in poultry in October but did not report their concerns to the public, the Guardian can reveal. The scientists placed movement restrictions on a bird rescue centre in south-west England after finding evidence that 13 free-range geese had been exposed to an H5 virus, one of two types of virus most likely to become deadly to birds and a group known to be a health risk to people. [...]'
My husband was just talking to his mother the other day saying how he was going to be really pissed off if the pandemic hit simply because people wouldn't stop eating/farming birds and he (a vegan) ended up with it. He asked why, if this is supposed to be such a serious threat, people would continue to consume chicken to which she replied simply "because it tastes good". I guess that's what matters, public health be damned.
I agree. Our planet is a living organism and she's only going to take so much abuse before she defends herself. The speech from the Matrix about humans being a virus is so true!
Possibly the first human to human spread of the disease.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says it is extremely worried about a cluster of recent human deaths from the virulent H5N1 strain of bird flu. Seven people from the same family in northern Sumatra, Indonesia, died from the disease earlier this month. WHO spokesman Peter Cordingley said there was no sign of diseased poultry in the immediate area. Investigators are looking into the possibility that the virus spread from human to human, Mr Cordingley said. But he emphasised that there was no indication the virus had mutated.
'Bird flu deaths spark human infection fear
By Jeremy Laurance, Health Editor
Published: 25 May 2006
Seven out of eight members of the same family who contracted bird flu have died from the disease in what the World Health Organisation describes as the "most worrying incident so far".
It is the largest cluster of human cases of infection with H5N1 since the outbreak began three years ago and scientists have been unable to identify the source.
The seven relatives in northern Sumatra, Indonesia, died earlier this month but extensive tests have failed to turn up any sign of diseased poultry in the area. Scientists are left facing the possibility that the virus passed among the family by human-to-human transmission. [...]'
The Czech Republic had the highest salmonella levels in Europe
A report which revealed more than 50% of poultry farms in some EU countries were contaminated with salmonella has sparked calls for a ban on egg imports.
The leaked study, by the European Food Safety Authority, found 62% of farms in the Czech Republic were contaminated, 55% in Poland and 51% in Spain.
In the UK, almost 12% were found to have salmonella contamination - the third lowest in Europe.
The British Egg Industry Council said eggs below standard should be banned.
In total, 85% of the eggs eaten in Britain are produced on UK farms, the remainder are imported from Europe, according to the council.
It is estimated that the vast majority of these imports come from Spain. Stringent biosecurity measures ... continue to ensure the highest safety standards for British Lion eggs
Andrew Joret, British Egg Industry Council
In the UK, vets checked more than 400 UK premises, testing dust, bird faeces and other material, the study said - which was revealed to the BBC's Newsnight programme.
It revealed salmonella contamination in 11.9% of farms with laying hens, with only 8% showing contamination with the most dangerous strain of the bacteria.
According to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, this makes the UK's infection rate the third lowest of all EU member states.
Andrew Joret, deputy chairman of the British Egg Industry Council, called for sub-standard eggs to be banned from British shores.
"We believe that imports of eggs into the UK should be banned unless they have been produced to the standards required by the British Lion scheme, including vaccination of hens against salmonella, a best-before date on every egg and full traceability of eggs, hens and feed," he said.
Mr Joret also said the small number of positive samples put the UK's poultry farms among the best in Europe.
"The stringent biosecurity measures required by the Lion Code of Practice continue to ensure the highest safety standards for British Lion eggs and we are continuing to improve these still further."
Animal Health Minister Ben Bradshaw said the number of reported cases of the disease in humans was at its lowest level since a 1997 peak.
"Recent surveys of UK-produced eggs on sale in shops have shown a significant reduction in the level of contamination compared with previous surveys," he said.
Britain at risk of an outbreak of the lethal Ebola and Marburg viruses
The Independent reports that Britain is at risk of an outbreak of the lethal Ebola and Marburg viruses because of the burgeoning trade in illegal bush meat from Africa, a leading public health expert has warned.
Imports of wild meat, including body parts of primates such as gorillas and chimpanzees, have increased dramatically as a result of the commercial hunting of up to 71 species. Last year, there were 25,000 seizures at UK airports, a 62 per cent increase on 2004.
That article made me so mad! People can be such idiots! Those African bushmeat hunters are just ruining their own country and they don't even care. And the people who buy that meat are just as much to blame.
Human mad cow epidemic 'could be bigger than feared'
David Batty and agencies
Friday June 23, 2006
Far more people in the UK could be infected with the human form of mad cow disease than originally estimated, scientists warned today.The true prevalence of the condition might not become apparent for decades because variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) probably has a much longer incubation period than originally thought, the researchers said.
The scientists believe the time between infection with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), so-called mad cow disease, and developing vCJD could be more than 50 years. They warned that recent estimates of the size of the vCJD epidemic could be "substantial underestimations".
Exposure to BSE in the UK has been widespread, although just 160 vCJD patients have been identified, leading scientists to investigate why more people have not developed the deadly condition.The study, published in medical journal the Lancet, compared vCJD with a similar disease called kuru. Kuru, which like vCJD is a human prion (microscopic infectious agent) disease, is caused by cannibalism.
It reached epidemic proportions in some Papua New Guinea communities who ate their dead relatives as a mark of respect and mourning until the ritual practice was banned in the 1950s.
In the study, 11 patients with kuru were identified between July 1996 and June 2004. As the latest year of birth recorded for a patient with kuru was 1959, it was assumed that catching the disease through cannibalism would have stopped by 1960.
The scientists worked out that the minimum incubation period of kuru - if taken between 1960 and the date of onset of the disease in patients - ranged from 34 to 41 years. In men, estimated incubation periods ranged from 39 to 56 years and could have been up to seven years longer.
The researchers believe the incubation period for vCJD could be even longer than that for kuru because the infection is transmitted from a different animal - and cross-species infections usually take longer to develop than those within the same species.
The study warned that the full scope of the vCJD epidemic "remains uncertain" and the number of people infected is "still unknown".
"Any belief that vCJD incidence has peaked and that we are now through the worst of this sinister disease must now be treated with extreme scepticism," it said.
Furthermore the researchers, led by Professor John Collinge of University College, London, said some people were more likely to be susceptible to developing the disease. The professor said those vCJD patients already identified "could represent a distinct genetic subpopulation with unusually short incubation periods for BSE."
According to the CJD surveillance unit in Edinburgh, 2,079 suspected cases of all types of CJD have been reported to them since 1990. Of those, 111 were fatal and vCJD was confirmed as the cause of death, while the disease was considered the probable cause of death in a further 45 cases. There are five people in the UK known to be living with vCJD.
Re: New study on cannibals raises fears about mad cow disease.
Sorry Blueshark but at this time there is not a blood test that exists for prions. Final diagnosis of prion disease is usually made after death during brain biopsy. Interestingly, the appearance of Alzheimer patient's brains look very similar to the brains of those who died of prion infection.
Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds. - Albert Einstein
The herd at Mr Podger's farm was removed by government vets
A herd of nearly 70 cows is being slaughtered after a farmer illegally gave them rabbit and guinea pig food containing pulverised cattle bones.
Percy Podger, from the farm in Surrey claims he had no idea the food contained banned bovine material. [...]'
The herd at Mr Podger's farm was removed by government vets
A herd of nearly 70 cows is being slaughtered after a farmer illegally gave them rabbit and guinea pig food containing pulverised cattle bones.
Percy Podger, from the farm in Surrey claims he had no idea the food contained banned bovine material. [...]'
Re: Bird Flu in Scotland
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The Czech Republic had the highest salmonella levels in Europe
Stringent biosecurity measures ... continue to ensure the highest safety standards for British Lion eggs 
Britain at risk of an outbreak of the lethal Ebola and Marburg viruses
Kevster
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