Time to get serious

Ok, from time to time I post things that I think you should be concerned about. I’m sure some of you just dismiss me as being overly cautious or worse, however I’m wondering if your govt. said what I’m saying, if that’d make a difference. So let’s play, check this out!

Today, the U.S. State Department ordered 160,000 Hazmat suits for Ebola, prompting concerns that the federal government is anticipating the rapid spread of a virus that has already claimed an unprecedented number of lives.

In a press release posted by Market Watch, Lakeland Industries, a manufacturer of industrial protective clothing for first responders, announced that it had signaled its intention “to join the fight against the spread of Ebola” by encouraging other suppliers to meet the huge demand created by the U.S. State Department’s order of 160,000 hazmat suits.

“With the U.S. State Department alone putting out a bid for 160,000 suits, we encourage all protective apparel companies to increase their manufacturing capacity for sealed seam garments so that our industry can do its part in addressing this threat to global health,” states the press release.

The huge bulk order of hazmat suits for Ebola has stoked concerns that the U.S. government expects the virus to continue to ravage countries in west Africa and may also be concerned about an outbreak inside the United States.

and then there’s this from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control)

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, warning hospitals and doctors that “now is the time to prepare,” has issued a six-page Ebola “checklist” to help healthcare workers quickly determine if patients are infected.

While the CDC does not believe that there are new cases of Ebola in the United States, the assumption in the checklist is that it is only a matter of time before the virus hits home.

So what do you think now? Here we have our govt. ordering 160,000 suits to protect State Dept. employees from ebola and the CDC warning hospitals to “get ready”. I wonder what they’re doing to prepare to protect the rest of us, oh wait, nothing! So you now have two choices.

1. Ignore this and think that nothing will happen to you (that’s what the gov is hoping for so there’s no panic) and think that it’s all just an over reaction by the gov,

OR

2. Do something on your own to protect yourself and your loved ones knowing the gov can’t/won’t.

You see it’s not that the govt. doesn’t want to take care of you, it’s that they can’t. There’s just too many of us so then it comes down to (according to their disaster planners) who do they choose to take care of? The obvious answer is to take care of people in the govt! This should surprise no one. What should surprise you (if you still believe that the gov will take care of you) is that they won’t.

So what do you do? Most of us can’t buy the special suits they are as they’re too expensive for us regular folk. But you can stock up on, and I know I sound like a broken record, food, water, basic medical supplies and, wait for it, yes a gas mask. If you can’t afford the real ones (about $600 plus filters) you can buy a simple 3M mask for a few bucks. If I had the cash, I’d immediately buy 4 for my family and 3 more for my Mom, Tom and Ali, but that’s like $4200 plus filters or around $5K! I’d also then buy them for all of you in CA and send you a care package. Now you might really think I’m crazy, but if, or when ebola starts gaining momentum and all these things are sold out, you might be singing a different tune.

In the meantime, stay healthy, wash your hands, try not to be around sick people and eat right. Now onto the day.

Yesterday in the car on the way to pick up Jagger, Ty shared with me, unsolicited, that some 5th graders are wanting to take drugs! Talk about being shocked! I asked who and he told me and also told me he’s not playing with that person anymore. When I asked him why they wanted to, he said that his former friend told him “because it’ll be cool”. So there you have it, two kids in his class that have said they want to take drugs, God help us. Lori and I were so proud of him telling us that we rewarded both him and Jagger with a gift they can order from Amazon for his good judgement.

Other than that shocker, Lori and I both worked hard and I still have my sinus headache but it’s finally going away, I think. I did get to Costco for staples like tp, laundry and dishwasher soap, batteries, tin foil and zip lock baggies. These are things we need and always go through plus are items you should have on hand anyhow. A survivor of the war in Sarajevo once wrote that many a person traded a much needed meal for some toilet paper!

We had some leftovers for dinner and finished up a bunch of laundry. Other than that, business as usual. Hope you all are well. Not trying to scare anyone with today’s post but it’s a different World we live in. Like they say, don’t get caught with your pants down, especially without any toilet paper!

Best wishes to my Mom whose having her other cataract surgery this morning. I’m sure she’ll be fine. God Bless.