The World Health Organization (WHO) maintains that billions of people
may become infected with swine flu.[1] "This virus travels at an
unbelievable, almost unheard of speed," the WHO Director-General was
quoted as saying last week.[2] The “most worrying fact,” according to
the Director-General, is “that 40 percent of the fatalities concern
young adults -- in good health -- who die of a viral fever in five to
seven days.”[3] I’ve attached an update published by the Council on
Foreign Relations that provides a good overview of recent events.

In light of the current situation, last week I released my latest
presentation “Flu Factories: Tracing the Origins of the Swine Flu
Pandemic” on DVD. Here is a list of the chapters (video previews at
www.humanesociety.org/swineflu):

1. Introduction
2. 1918 Pandemic
3. Swine Flu Stable for 80 Years
4. North Carolina, 1998
5. Triple Hybrid Mutant
6. Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza
7. Pork and Poultry Industrialization
8. Strep suis
9. Nipah Virus
10. Ebola in Pigs
11. Mad Cow Disease
12. Multi-Drug Resistant Bacteria
13. Acceleration of Human Influenza
14. Aquatic Virus to Airborne Flu
15. Harmless to Deadly
16. Emergence of the 1918 Flu
17. Poultry Industry Response to Bird Flu
18. Intensification of the North Carolina Pork Industry
19. Factor 1: Sheer Numbers
20. Factor 2: Geographic Density
21. Factor 3: Overcrowding
22. Factor 4: Stress
23. Meat Industry Defense of Intensive Confinement
24. Factor 5: Lack of Adequate Fresh Air
25. Factor 6: Lack of Adequate Sunlight
26. Factor 7: Cesspools of Waste
27. Factor 8: Preponderance of Disease Vectors
28. Factor 9: Pharmacological Crutch
29. Factor 10: Long-Distance Transport
30. Family Farms to Factory Farms
31. What if Swine Flu Combines with Bird Flu?
32. Factory Farm Moratorium
33. Pandemic Prevention
34. The Meat Industry Responds
35. Single Biggest Human Disaster
36. Banning Gestation Crates
37. Pork Industry Response to Swine Flu
38. Industry Cover-Up
39. Conclusion
40. Additional Resources

Thanks to the generosity of The Sheepdrove Trust, subscribers to this
newsletter can get a free copy of this new DVD by mailing a
self-addressed stamped envelope to the address below. The envelope
should to be at least 6 inches wide (15cm), stamped with at least
$1.39 in postage for domestic mail ($2.28 international).

It looks like we may be in for a tough flu season this year. While the
focus is understandably on mediating the impact of the current
pandemic, by exploring its roots we may be able to lower the risk of
future emergences of such viruses.

[1] bit.ly/billionsinfected and bit.ly/worldpopulation
[2] bit.ly/directorgeneral
[3] ibid.

--
Michael Greger, M.D.
Director, Public Health and Animal Agriculture
Humane Society International
2100 L St., N.W.
Washington, DC 20037
direct line: (202) 676-2361
fax: (202) 676-2372
http://www.birdflubook.org
http://www.humanesociety.org/swineflu

CFR Global Health Update August 27 2009.pdf 773K Download