Minority mars Paris CPE protest
Saturday, March 18, 2006
(This is a translation of the French Wikinews article: [1]Manifestation contre le CPE à Paris)
Under-reporting of human Bird Flu infections poses worldwide threatMonday, November 21, 2005
Possible under reporting of bird flu infections in China and other Southeast Asian countries may be promoting an illusory sense that human infections are very limited. Common press reports only describe fewer than 130 people as infected with H5N1 avian flu and that fewer than 70 have died worldwide. Yet, there are enormous problems getting accurate data, especially in a country like China with a population of more than a billion.
“Reporting a suspected bird flu infection in bird or humans is a very unlikely event,” said Dr. Shoshana Zimmerman of the eHealth Institute. She is also a founder of www.birdflubeacon.com, a site dedicated to bird flu issues. “There are very few incentives to report, and lots of reasons to refrain from reporting. From the viewpoint of local rural small farmers, there is little to be gained and much to be lost by reporting an infection. The worse threat is that their flocks could be killed, leaving them destitute.”
There are many factors which mitigate against reporting bird or human infections of bird flu.
A young woman, Zhou Maoya, died after returning home to the village of Yantan in Annui province to prepare for her wedding. Her family has stated that they did not take her to the hospital because they thought it would not do any good. Officials also note rural Chinese also often cite relatively expensive medical costs as a reason for not seeking treatment when sick.
Although initially authorities attributed her death to pneumonia the resulting political pressure prompted China to invite the World Health Organization to send experts to investigate. The authorities then rescinded the previous position and attributed her death to bird flu based on the similarity of the symptoms that she was reported to exhibit with those of bird flu. The village was quarantined and journalists were denied access. It is not known how many others might be infected in the village. Official announcements were made of plans to vaccinate and cull birds.
A local government official, Fan Qian, told AFP that it was believed Zhou was infected while she was outside of the province.
Fan Tan, a local official, told AFP news that 1,000 birds in Yantan had been culled (killed). Plans were announced to vaccinate 2 million poultry in the area, a huge and difficult task.
Zhang, another official, said authorities had met with all villagers to give them flu vaccinations and to tell them how to protect themselves against the bird flu virus, including not consuming poultry products. It is known that flu vaccinations do not protect against bird flu.
Villagers and local officials minimized the threat. In outlying areas of Yantan, residents said that they did not know of any new outbreaks. Other possible infections have been attributed to similar common causes but there have not been any tests performed validating those attributions.
Fan Litan, a peasant woman from Fantu village, about 2 miles from Yantan, lost many of her ducks, and chickens and also a dog; she has attributed these deaths to the acts of hooligans. She said her family had been extremely frightened when her animals suddenly died. “We were scared to death,” said Fan, standing next to a red sign posted on the outside wall of her home that said: “Prevention and control by the masses is basic for people.” Fan said ducks and chickens are all healthy but she admitted that she had stopped eating poultry. No testing of these birds has been reported yet.
According to a recent AFP report from Liuchang, 59 miles south of Yantan, the obstacles to identifying infections are enormous.
Like many, one Liuchang villager named Wang Hemin said he was concerned and would keep a closer eye on his ducks and chickens, but felt no immediacy since the infection was not in his province. He learned about bird flu on TV, and is aware that officials have come to his village of 2,700 people to warn residents about the virus. They offered guidelines: they told people that poultry which die suddenly could have contracted bird flu and should not be eaten or sold and that such an incident should also immediately be reported. However, the symptoms of H5N1 bird flu were not directly described.
Residents have not yet been fully informed of what symptoms to look for in ill poultry–they are fever, diarrhea, teary eyes and swelling in the legs of the birds. Though a pledge was made earlier in the week to vaccinate 2 million birds immediately, no bird vaccinations in this area have been reported yet.
In another nearby village, Nazahuang, chickens scuttle in and out of houses. One resident, Fan Jiexu, 73, said no officials had yet warned her village to take precautions. Throughout rural areas, it is customary for chickens to scuttle in and out of homes. Ducks and bird often die and are eaten by villagers when it is believed safe to do so.
China has reported 17 avian flu outbreaks as of this week. Despite the Chinese government issued high alerts, critical information is not being adequately communicated to some rural villages. The size of the poultry population, the common and normal occurrence of poultry death on farms, and status of roughly 70% of the poultry population as being kept in backyards are factors complicating infection control.
The head of World Health Organization’s China office, Henk Bekedam, is aware that slow reaction to bird flu threats and difficulty monitoring poultry in the world’s most populous country makes control of its spread challenging.
Testing is required to confirm H5N1 virus, and positive test results lead to the killing of nearby flocks. The incentive for many villagers, officials, and governments to minimize reports of H5N1 virus infections and severe medical and economic complications for making confirmations of infection are obstacles opposing complete and full reporting of the spread and infection rates of the virus.
By Jerbob Johnson
Just above the roar of the sky-scraping performance motorcycle you can hear the sound of someone screaming. You speculate if they are alright. Around the bend, they come into sight and you see the huge smile of the person realizing this wasn’t screaming but a joyful laugh. They are riding a Honda. They got this big ole rocket between their legs and are hanging on for dear life. Honda has put into the place the benchmark for invigorating motorcycle performance. Honda motorcycles are rock-solid, well intended, and calculated for performance, steadfastness and ease. Not only are they fast but they are also eye candy. You just like looking at them.
The adventure begins when you turn on the key and throw your leg up and over the seat on the slick Honda Goldwing. The open road beckons you. Not only do you experience the excitement of a road trip but the Honda can also deliver a hang on to your britches ride. The engine performs flawlessly and the handling offers a relaxed riding on the open road. Everytime you sit on a Goldwing, you will be reminded of all the reasons you enjoy riding a motorcycle. Age is no longer a factor, whether you are young or old, the Honda will bring a satisfaction when riding a motorcycle.
What separates Honda motorcycles from the Suzuki’s or Kawasaki or even Harleys? Honda is Johnny come lately to the market; they have been around a long time. They build just not motorcycles but Honda ATV’s and quite a few other heavy industrial equipment. Their reputations for building top of the line motorcycles are second to none. Honda engineers do not sit on past accomplishment. What is the next level in motorcycle or ATV design? You can rest assure they are busily designing a better ATV. Whether you are looking for a dirt bike, ATV or an open road touring cycle, Honda has one that will be just what the doctor ordered.
Have you ever been to a Honda ATV auction? At these motorcycle auctions, you have the thrill of bidding on the bike of your choice, finding parts to rebuild your ATV, Honda ATV service manual links and much more. Can you imagine being able to decide what you want to pay get the excitement through an auction to do just that?
Sometimes our Honda breaks down. Sometimes we break our motorcycle or ATV. We all need part, tires, body, electrical and even decals to rebuild our Honda. Through an auction, you can locate the hard to find parts you need to fix your bike.
Some folks need to do the touchy feely thing before you buy any parts or Honda accessories. You can stop over to your local dealer. A word of caution: At the dealer you will probably pay a lot more. Buying today on the web can be just as safe as buying from the dealer. Just use common sense and follow the rules that payment provider have such as PayPal. Some auctions (not all) make available an easy way to finance the machine of your dreams.
About the Author: Jerry Johnson owns the
Honda ATV Service Manual Links
store as well as several other successful motorcycle websites. Our Honda ATV parts auctions can save your money and are also fun. Visit Honda ATV Service Manual Links.com to find and bid on the Honda ATV parts and manuals.
Source:
isnare.com
Permanent Link:
isnare.com/?aid=230312&ca=Automotive