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| Oh please Facebook! I can help "stop" it by NOT going overseas!!! |
It was only a matter of time
before I sat down and mapped out a column on how I feel about how our country –
and city – is handling the Ebola scare. Ha! If you ask a large majority of the
people out there if they ARE scared, they’ll say no! It seems like every
broadcast and interview I’ve seen features citizens who aren’t scared or
concerned about contracting the Ebola virus – and they’re not really worried about
their health if they’ve been in the same environment as someone who’s
contracted the Ebola virus.
Of course not! Why should
anyone worry! According to health officials it’s not “contagious until it’s
symptomatic!” There are people who will say, what’s there to worry about – our
government is doing all that they can to keep the epidemic under control – and
that most of the people who had Ebola are now back in good health or are on
their way to getting their health back.
Call me ignorant and
naïve….or whatever – I AM SCARED!
It’s hypocritical for our
government to say Ebola “isn’t as easy to contract as you think.” Really? So,
how, in all honesty, did Doctor Craig Spencer contract the disease if he was
following protocol – and was suited up with hazmat gear like he was heading to
a nuclear danger zone?
Even though I’m part of the
media, I have a feeling many media outlets aren’t showing the truth – that
there is a population of people out there who are scared of Ebola spreading
more easily at SOME point in the future.
The Health Department
recently issued this statement: “…As
of Wednesday, November 5th, 357 individuals are being actively monitored by the
Health Department. The vast majority of these individuals are travelers
arriving in New York City within the past 21 days from the three Ebola-affected
countries who are being monitored post-arrival, as well as Bellevue Hospital
staff caring for Dr. Spencer. The list also includes FDNY EMS staff who
transported Dr. Spencer to Bellevue and the lab workers who conducted Dr.
Spencer’s blood test. All of these individuals are being monitored out of
an abundance of caution, and none are showing any symptoms. The number of
individuals who will be actively monitored will continue to fluctuate as people
arrive or depart New York City, we learn more about people’s exposures, and 21
days of monitoring has passed.”
I’m probably not the only one who
thinks this – but why allow ANY doctors who treated Ebola-stricken patients
overseas back into the U.S.? It's ironic that we’re sending doctors to other countries to “stop the spread”
and “provide a cure” to the infected population, yet they’ll fly infected
Americans back home to get treatment?
Soooo…I’m guessing the treatment we’re providing to sick patients overseas
isn’t all that effective? If the treatment was working, couldn’t American
doctors who contract Ebola overseas be treated
overseas too?
So? We have the BEST technology,
medicine and antibiotics here in the states to treat the Ebola virus…What – are
American doctors giving infected patients in Africa Fruit Loops and a make
believe time machine to backtrack how things got this bad?
It’s still scary to think and know that
doctors are coming home – knowing they were exposed to the illness, to whatever
extent – and we have to wait nearly a month to find out if they’re
Ebola-stricken. It’s 2014 and we’re quarantining and monitoring hundreds of
people as if they were exposed to a deadly amount of radon or nuclear
chemicals. We’re clearing out areas and “testing” for…God knows what.
When I heard that Dr. Spencer traveled
on the ‘L’ train, it hit home for me in a lot of ways. If you can contract
Ebola through bodily fluids, what if there’s sweat or blood left behind
somewhere on the railings or poles? Oh, right…it’s not that easy to contract
until the person is symptomatic – which he was less than 24 hours after riding
the rails. This ‘hero’ wasn’t completely honest when it came to telling
officials about his whereabouts – so what else was he lying about? The media
revealed that people who lived and interacted with this doctor – or other
infected doctors – weren’t afraid. They didn’t seem concerned – in the LEAST –
about their own health.
I’m sure there were a handful of people
who actually said, “Yeah, I’m scared as hell!” or “Of course, I’m concerned –
who knows what can happen now that this guy came home with the Ebola virus!!”
None of these interviewees made it to the broadcast. If anything, they’ll air
folks who will say, “Yeah, I’m concerned, but, hey, you can’t let it stop you
from living your day-to-day life!”
Let’s get real! No one wants to create
a panic and no one wants to stir feelings of fear even though it’s obvious how
vulnerable we really are. However, if we can’t get a handle on a disease that
was discovered over 30 years ago, we mind as well bring back measles, mumps and
rubella – and let’s get some of that classic malaria over here too! Besides, it
won’t be too much of a concern to anyone!
(Unpublished as of 11/7/14)
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