Zika epidemic

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looks pretty bad. Several Latin American countries advising women not to get pregnant (bit hard in a region with little to no family planning, but eh)

[Clarko95 📚💰📈]

Wonder if this will be like SARS and swine flu 2009 edition...


Basically this is where it's gotten pretty bad since last April:


And here is where the vector mosquitos can be found in the U.S.:



Worst part is that only 1 in 5 actually show symptoms, which means this will be hard to contain.

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Does Trump's wall keep out mosquitoes?

[Virginiá]

Does Trump's wall keep out mosquitoes?

Word is Trump is preparing a new proposal to combat this threat. We are going to drape a huge mosquito net over America, and nature is going to pay for it. Remember, nature isn't sending it's best.

[Mike Thick]

Does Trump's wall keep out mosquitoes?

Word is Trump is preparing a new proposal to combat this threat. We are going to drape a huge mosquito net over America, and nature is going to pay for it. Remember, nature isn't sending it's best.

He's playing with fire here. This could cost him the insect vote...

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Various people on both sides of the abortion debate are thinking (of worrying) this could be Latin America's 'rubella moment'.

[136or142]

I understand this virus has sprung up so much because it mutated.  The reasons it has spread so quickly are because of the proliferation of mosquitoes due to heavy rains caused by La Nina and increased heat caused by AGW.

So, please tell me again how we can't afford to address global warming and can somebody please explain to me how the 'party of life' aka 'the party that cares for the unborn' still denies AGW is real?

Sorry to turn this into a partisan attack, but there is a political angle to this story as well and it isn't getting anywhere near the attention it deserves.

The mainstream media attitude seems to be "whatever you do, don't mention the global warming."  Are they afraid that the overrated idiot Ted Cruz will whine again about media treatment or that the scam artist Donald Trump will whine about being 'treated unfairly" or maybe they're concerned that the billionaire's toy Marco Rubio will give some convoluted non answer claiming to favor every side of the issue.

[Simfan34]

That was unnecessary. Your theory on the cause being mutation relies on conjecture.

Various people on both sides of the abortion debate are thinking (of worrying) this could be Latin America's 'rubella moment'.

That would be unfortunate. Rubella is a contagious virus merely spread by coughing or sneezing. The primary vector of Zika are mosquitos-- it is, like other mosquito-spread diseases, a disease of poverty. The key is to improve public health and foster development. Mass abortion, while it would certainly satisfy the urges of anti-clericalist leftists and "progressives", would be a poor "solution". I agree that the potential for such people to use a pandemic to push their agenda is worrying.

If this epidemic does cause a closer look at health policy and technology, I hope we take a closer look at genetically modifying mosquitoes to make them less... murderous. They are already testing some now to fight this virus. Some tabloids (and Russia Today) have been spreading unproven rumors about GMO mosquitos being to blame in the first place, but this is obviously patently false. As always some radical "humans are evil" person says that mosquito-spread diseases are good because it keeps humans out of the tropics and saves the rainforest, but the millions killed annually by malaria, yellow fever, dengue, etc. make this position morally untenable.

[136or142]

That was unnecessary. Your theory on the causes mutation relies on conjecture.

Various people on both sides of the abortion debate are thinking (of worrying) this could be Latin America's 'rubella moment'.

That would be unfortunate. Rubella is a contagious virus merely spread by coughing or sneezing. The primary vector of Zika are mosquitos-- it is, like other mosquito-spread diseases, a disease of poverty. The key is to improve public health and foster development. Mass abortion, while it would certainly satisfy the urges of anti-clericalist leftists and "progressives", would be a poor "solution". I agree that the potential for such people to use a pandemic to push their agenda is worrying.

If this epidemic does cause a closer look at health policy and technology, I hope we take a closer look at genetically modifying mosquitoes to make them less... murderous. They are already testing some now to fight this virus. Some tabloids (and Russia Today) have been spreading unproven rumors about GMO mosquitos being to blame in the first place, but this is obviously patently false. As always some radical "humans are evil" person says that mosquito-spread diseases are good because it keeps humans out of the tropics and saves the rainforest, but the millions killed annually by malaria, yellow fever, dengue, etc. make this position morally untenable.

It seems the science on the Zika virus becoming so dangerous all of a sudden being caused by a mutation isn't settled, but it's much more than conjecture:
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/features/zika-virus-in-brazil-may-be-mutated-strain/

That said, the argument that mosquitoes have proliferated due to AGW is beyond debate, which was my main point anyway.  

How much will it cost to attempt to genetically modify mosquitoes (assuming it even works)?  How much will dealing with the health care affects and other affects of this virus cost, yet alone all the other 'exotic' diseases that will  become more prevalent as a result of AGW?  

The only thing unnecessary is the idiotic Republican Party whose official position is that AGW isn't real and their even more stupid supporters.

If you don't like being called out for supporting the party of stupid, tough.

[DavidB.]

Aside from the unfortunately predictable partisan turn this thread has taken, and in danger of asking a stupid question, what are the chances of this disease spreading in the US and to Europe?

[136or142]

Aside from the unfortunately predictable partisan turn this thread has taken, and in danger of asking a stupid question, what are the chances of this disease spreading in the US and to Europe?

To repeat: if you don't like being called out for being a supporter of the party of stupid, tough.  It's not my fault you're stupid.

[DavidB.]

To repeat: if you don't like being called out for being a supporter of the party of stupid, tough.  It's not my fault you're stupid.

Nah, I'm very proud of supporting the GOP and I don't really give a sh**t what some Canadian on the internet thinks about that, sorry.

[136or142]

To repeat: if you don't like being called out for being a supporter of the party of stupid, tough.  It's not my fault you're stupid.

Nah, I'm very proud of supporting the GOP and I don't really give a sh**t what some Canadian on the internet thinks about that, sorry.

Then why did you mention it?

"Proud of supporting the Republican Party" (there is nothing 'grand' about this gang of fools, criminals and liars):  A perfect example of the Dunning-Kruger effect.

To answer your questions:  The mosquito that carries the Zika virus is found in every North, Central and South American country except Canada and Chile, so yes it can come to the United States, except for maybe some of the northern states where, like Canada, it may be too cold.

That type of mosquito isn't in Europe right now, but it 'may cross the Atlantic'
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/zika-virus-epidemic-may-cross-the-atlantic-to-africa-asia-and-southern-europe-who-health-expert-a6842506.html

[DavidB.]

Because people with different values (and therefore different political views) than you are incompetent? Gotcha. Lmao, must be easy having such a simple worldview. To answer your question, I mentioned it not because I take offense at a mischaracterization of the GOP, but because to me, it doesn't seem necessary or fruitful to turn this outbreak of a disease into a partisan issue.

But thanks for answering the question. Still not sure what, exactly, warranted your dickish behavior, but it's got a lot more to do with you than with me...

[Simfan34]

The Republican Party is not to blame for the Zika epidemic. So it's not really relevant. This thread, as a result, is not an appropriate venue to bash the "mainstream media" or the "party of stupid". That "partisan angle" simply does not exist. Please take it elsewhere.

[136or142]

Because people with different values (and therefore different political views) than you are incompetent? Gotcha. Lmao, must be easy having such a simple worldview. To answer your question, I mentioned it not because I take offense at a mischaracterization of the GOP, but because to me, it doesn't seem necessary or fruitful to turn this outbreak of a disease into a partisan issue.

But thanks for answering the question. Still not sure what, exactly, warranted your dickish behavior, but it's got a lot more to do with you than with me...

What 'value' exactly is denying the reality of global warming?  

There are partisan aspects to this issue so it is exactly correct to turn it into a partisan issue.  Is it wrong to turn illegal immigration into a partisan issue?  Was it wrong when the 99% of Republican politicians who are sleazy turned Ebola into a partisan issue (and used lies to do it)?  or when Republicans turned the ISIL attacks in Paris into a partisan issue (and used dishonest fearmongering that frightened their simple minded supporters to do it)?

Except for the billionaires that own the Republican Party, every other supporter of that party is, by definition, simple minded.  So, your reference to me as 'simple minded' is another perfect example of the Dunning-Kruger effect.

[136or142]

The Republican Party is not the blame for the Zika epidemic. So it's not really relevant. This thread, as a result, is not an appropriate venue to bash the "mainstream media" or the "party of stupid". That "partisan angle" simply does not exist. Please take it elsewhere.

By stalling action to deal with AGW they are, in fact, partly to blame for the rapid spread of Zika virus.  That is simply a fact.  If you want to say that is not the case, then please rebut me on that specific point.  It is a fact that is entirely germane to this thread, and my calling you out for being a stupid supporter of the party of stupid is your problem.

http://time.com/4200851/climate-change-mosquitoes-zika/
http://www.takepart.com/article/2016/01/28/zika-virus-could-be-climate-change-nightmare
http://grist.org/article/what-to-know-about-the-zika-virus-outbreak-el-nino-and-climate-change/

"McKibben blames the Zika outbreak on “mosquitoes whose range inexorably expands as the climate warms.” But while it’s certainly true that global warming could lead to increases in the spread of disease-carrying mosquitoes, in the case of Zika, the mosquitoes in question have been well-established in the affected region for nearly two decades.

More important than changes in mosquito distribution is the change in rainfall caused by El Niño. While this El Niño wasn’t caused by climate change per se, it is happening in a context of overall higher ocean and atmospheric temperatures — 2015 was the world’s hottest year on record — that may have helped make it stronger than usual. And there is a growing body of research finding that climate change could dramatically increase the frequency of severe El Niños, meaning that regardless of how mosquito ranges spread, places that already have mosquito problems now could see them get worse.

Moreover, Brown said, increasing global temperatures mean longer breeding seasons for mosquitoes, giving them more time to infect humans. Mosquitoes also mature more quickly in higher temperatures, meaning they can reproduce sooner. And they metabolize faster, meaning they can pass a virus on to a new host more quickly after acquiring it.

“It’s a question of probability: What’s the probability that I’ll be bitten,” Brown said. “The more [mosquitoes] that are out there, those probabilities start shifting.”"

Again, if you want to claim that Republican AGW denialism isn't a cause of the rapid spread of Zika, rebut that.

[DavidB.]

Sorry, I'm not going to reply to this. This thread is about Zika, not about you throwing a little hissy fit.

[136or142]

Sorry, I'm not going to reply to this. This thread is about Zika, not about you throwing a little hissy fit.

Of course you're won't, because you can't.  My post was exactly about Zika. Idiot.