SWINE FLU NEWS

PARENTS ARE HOLDING PARTIES TO PURPOSELY INFECT THEIR KIDS . . . WITH SWINE FLU:

Maybe I'm the only one, but I have no clue what I'm supposed to think . . . about SWINE FLU.

Here's why . . . Last week, the world went completely ape-nuts . . . and started treating swine flu like it was the Black Plague. Then we learned that this strain of swine flu isn't actually all that dangerous, and now parents have started holding swine flu parties . . . yes, SWINE FLU PARTIES . . . to purposely infect their kids.

The logic is that if a kid gets this milder strain of swine flu, it'll build up their immunity against the disease . . . and they'll be in better shape to withstand a nastier strain of the illness if one emerges in the fall.

But now health officials are saying that holding swine flu parties is a BAD idea. According to the acting head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "This is a new, emerging infection, and we're learning more about it each day. But how an individual person will be impacted by the infection is not something that we know.

"It's a big mistake putting individuals and children at risk, and the CDC does not recommend that people follow that course." (Google News)

Like I said, I'm clueless about this swine flu thing. My only advice would be to ignore the media. Why? Because they have a vested interest in getting you to freak out.

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THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS BANNED HANDSHAKES AT GRADUATION . . . TO PREVENT THE SPREAD OF SWINE FLU:

Does anyone else get the feeling that part of the reason we're all so worried about SWINE FLU . . . is because the word "swine" makes the virus sound much worse than it actually is?

Here's what I mean . . . Last week, Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania held a separate graduation ceremony for a group of students who had just spent a month in Mexico . . . for fear of spreading SWINE FLU. At the time, it seemed like the responsible thing to do . . . at least to some people . . . just in case swine flu actually was as bad as we were told. Then we learned that swine flu is no worse than the regular flu.

But this week, the University of Illinois at Chicago banned HANDSHAKES from its Honors College graduation ceremony . . . which took place on Wednesday . . . because they, too, were worried about swine flu. (CBS 2 News - Chicago)

So what's my point? Nobody would ban handshakes because of the regular flu . . . which is just as dangerous and, actually, more widespread. But, suddenly, we've got this swine flu virus floating around . . . and people are freaking out. Given what we know about swine flu, the only explanation I can come up with for this continued overreaction . . . is that the word "swine" grosses people out and makes them think swine flu is more dangerous than it actually is? YES!