02 May 2009

Pigs on the Wing


Temple Monkey, originally uploaded by StrudelMonkey.

Pig flu. Monkey pox. Mad cow. Bird flu

They all have a nice ring to them ... making great graphics on the lower left corner of the TV screen

... especially when you add "CRISIS" or "EPIDEMIC" in bold red text after them

I hate to be so cynical, but it all seems so contrived and alarmist. Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are old news. Economic worries appear to have bottomed out. The presidential election is over and Obama has been in office for over three months now. How else can the news networks expect to keep up viewership? Fear mongering, of course

All indications are that the Pig Flu is no more dangerous than the common flu that we deal with every year ... but add an animal name, red font ... hey, and even a more scary alphanumeric moniker ... and even I am second-guessing my Moo Shu pork order

News this morning out of Hong Kong is that an entire group of hotel guests have been quarantined after being exposed to an infected Mexican tourist.

I think I will avoid CNN coverage even more than usual this weekend ... though I may ask that my bacon be extra crispy at brunch tomorrow

1 comment:

Cate said...

Your photography is great. I've never been able to capture a monkey close up yet. Maybe they think I have a virus. I'll be heading to Beijing this week 15 May. Hopefully the flu and paranoia will have subsided.