CLG has a Flu 'Oddities' RSS Feed in addition to our main CLG RSS feed.

Drug companies prepare for swine flu epidemic 26 Apr 2009 Pharmaceutical stocks are expected to rise on Monday morning, after Roche and GlaxoSmithKline said they may need to supply millions of vaccine doses to help protect against the swine flu that has killed up to 81 people in Mexico. 26 Apr 2009 Vaccines from Roche, which sells Tamiflu, and GSK, maker of Relenza, have been shown to work against viral samples of the new disease. The drugs were also used to help protect against outbreaks of bird flu in Asia, providing windfall profits for the companies. Roche confirmed it already has a stockpile of 3m packs of Tamiflu ready for use by the World Health Organisation (WHO). [Well, knock me over with a feather! Instead of facing trial and execution for war crimes, Donald Rumsfeld is going to make a killing - maybe even greater than Rudy Giuliani/'Lucky Larry' killings from the 9/11 terror attacks. See: Rumsfeld's growing stake in Tamiflu --Defense Secretary, ex-chairman of flu treatment rights holder, sees portfolio value growing 31 Oct 2005 The prospect of a bird flu outbreak may be panicking people around the globe, but it's proving to be very good news for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and other politically connected investors in Gilead Sciences, the California biotech company that owns the rights to Tamiflu, the influenza remedy that's now the most-sought after drug in the world. Rumsfeld served as Gilead (Research)'s chairman from 1997 until he joined the Bush administration in 2001, and he still holds a Gilead stake valued at between $5 million and $25 million, according to federal financial disclosures filed by Rumsfeld.]

Mission accomplished. CDC to conduct avian flu pandemic experiments 27 Dec 2004 Can the highly virulent flu strain -- known as H5N1 -- actually acquire the ability to spread easily to and among people? And if it can, how likely is that dreaded event to occur? Early in the new year, U.S. scientists will begin experiments that should provide some answers to those questions... The researchers, from the influenza branch of the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, will mate H5N1 and human flu viruses in a process known as reassortment. Viable offspring will be tested in animals thought to be good surrogates for humans, to see if the viruses can infect, can be transmitted easily from infected animals to healthy ones and to note the severity of disease each provokes.

Swine flu: two admitted to hospital in Scotland as world braces for more cases 26 Apr 2009 Two people have been admitted to hospital in Scotland amid fears they may have contracted a deadly form of swine flu after returning from Mexico where the disease has claimed at least 81 lives. Their admission has reignited fears that swine flu may have arrived in the UK although there have been no confirmed reports of the virus infecting anyone in Britain. British officials remain on high alert as scores of travellers return from the centre of the outbreak as the United States government declared a public health emergency.

Israeli suspected of having swine flu in Mideast first --Patient had been put in isolation 26 Apr 2009 In the first suspected swine flu case in the Middle East, a 26-year-old Israeli man has been hospitalised upon returning from Mexico on suspicion of contracting the potentially fatal strain, hospital officials told AFP on Sunday. The man checked into the Laniado hospital in the coastal city of Netanya with flu-like symptoms and doctors were trying to determine whether he had contracted the disease, a spokeswoman said.

Swine flu fears prompt quarantine plans, pork bans 26 Apr 2009 Canada became the third country to confirm human cases of swine flu Sunday as global health officials considered whether to raise the global pandemic alert level. Nations from New Zealand to Spain also reported suspected cases and some warned citizens against travel to North America while others planned quarantines, tightened rules on pork imports and testing airline passengers for fevers.

Russia takes steps to combat deadly swine flu 26 Apr 2009 Russia has tightened preventive measures to stop the spread of swine flu, which has already killed at least 81 people in Mexico. Anyone arriving from North America with symptoms of the deadly virus will be quarantined.

Obama orders active measures to deal with swine flu 26 Apr 2009 U.S. President Barack Obama has ordered his administration to take active and aggressive measures to deal with swine flu, which has infected at least 20 people in the United States. As one of the measures, the administration declared a public health emergency on Sunday. [See: DoD to carry out 'military missions' during pandemic, WMD attack 08 Mar 2009 and DoD to 'augment civilian law' during pandemic or bioterror attack 11 May 2007.]

Obama Was In Mexico For Swine Flu Outbreak --Man Obama Met Later Died With Flu-Like Symptoms 25 Apr 2009 President Barack Obama's health is fine a little more than a week after he traveled to Mexico, where an outbreak of swine flu has killed at least 68 people and sickened more than 1,000, the White House said Saturday. "The president's trip to Mexico has not put his health in any danger," said spokesman Robert Gibbs. The World Health Organization's director-general, Margaret Chan, said the outbreak of the never-before-seen virus is a very serious situation and has "pandemic potential."

U.S. Declares Public Health Emergency Over Swine Flu 27 Apr 2009 American health officials on Sunday declared a public health emergency over increasing cases of swine flu, saying that they had confirmed 20 cases of the disease in the United States and expected to see more as investigators fan out to track down the path of the outbreak. Although officials said most of the cases have been mild and urged Americans not to panic, the emergency declaration frees government resources to be used toward diagnosing or preventing additional cases, and releases money for more antiviral drugs.

Press Briefing on Swine Influenza with Department of Homeland Security, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and White House (dhs.gov) 26 Apr 2009 (Transcript)

U.S. fears possible deaths as flu virus spreads 26 Apr 2009 A top official at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Sunday she feared some people in the United States would die as a new strain of swine flu spreads. The agency's Dr. Anne Schuchat said in a telephone briefing with reporters that officials are preparing for a possible spread of the illness beyond the 20 cases confirmed in the United States and added, "I do fear that we will have deaths."

CDC confirms Queens high school students have swine flu; National state of emergency declared 26 Apr 2009 (NY) The swine flu was confirmed in eight Queens prep school students Sunday, prompting the federal government to declare a public health emergency across the United States. Suspected cases popped up from New Zealand to France and some countries began warning their citizens not to travel to America as fears of a global pandemic grew.

France Says Studying Four Possible Swine-Flu Cases 26 Apr 2009 French health officials said they’re studying four possible cases of swine flu in the north of the country. Test results should be available within 24 hours, said Francoise Weber, director-general of the Sanitary Surveillance Institute, at a news conference in Paris today.

Briton quarantined as killer flu spreads 26 Apr 2009 A British Airways cabin crew member was taken to hospital with flu-like symptoms yesterday afternoon after falling ill on a flight from Mexico City to Heathrow. The Health Protection Agency said it was keeping a close eye on the situation.

New Zealand quarantines 25 amid swine flu alert 26 Apr 2009 Twenty-five students and teachers in New Zealand, some with flu-like symptoms, were quarantined and tested for swine flu after returning from a trip to Mexico, officials said Sunday, as Asia stepped up surveillance for the deadly virus.

Minister: 10 NZ students likely have swine flu 26 Apr 2009 New Zealand said Sunday that 10 students "likely" have swine flu after a school trip to Mexico, as governments across Asia began quarantining those with symptoms of the deadly virus and some issued travel warnings for Mexico.

Mexico Takes Powers to Isolate Cases of Swine Flu --The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta said Saturday that it had sent a team of experts to Mexico to assist with the investigation cover-up of the outbreak.26 Apr 2009 This sprawling capital was on edge Saturday as... President [sic] Felipe Calderón published an order that would give his government emergency powers to address a deadly flu outbreak, including isolating those who have contracted the virus, inspecting the homes of affected people and ordering the cancellation of public events. The newspaper Reforma reported that President Obama, who recently visited Mexico, was escorted around Mexico City’s national anthropology museum on April 16 by Felipe Solis, an archaeologist who died the next day from flu-like symptoms.

Texas Gov orders 37,430 courses of antiviral medications from Strategic National Stockpile --New possible case of swine flu identified in Texas 25 Apr 2009 A Texas high school where two students are confirmed to have swine flu is temporarily closing after a new possible case of swine flu was identified there, state health officials announced Saturday... Gov. Rick Perry announced Saturday that because of the outbreak he was asking the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to give Texas 37,430 courses of antiviral medications from the Strategic National Stockpile to prevent the spread of swine flu.

CLG: Baxter working on vaccine to stop swine flu, though admitted sending live pandemic flu viruses to subcontractor By Lori Price 26 Apr 2009 The OMFG moment of the century. Illinois-based Baxter working on vaccine to 'stop' swine flu outbreak in Mexico (25 Apr 2009). But, looky here! Baxter admits sending live avian flu viruses to subcontractor --People familiar with biosecurity rules are dismayed by evidence that human H3N2 and avian H5N1 viruses somehow co-mingled in the Orth-Donau facility. (27 Feb 2009) Is Baxter International taking a page from the Blackwater playbook? Just as Blackwater/Xe keep on killing to justify their multi-billion dollar contracts to provide 'security' in Iraq and Afghanistan, Baxter International is poised to make *billions* to vaccinate people against their pandemic.

CLG: Flu Kills The Torture Memos --In a 'Holy convenience, Batman!' moment, a 'unique' flu virus (one likely concocted in US Army labs) overtakes media coverage of revelations that the highest levels of the US government instructed the CIA (and private contractors) to torture terror suspects. By Lori Price 26 April 2009 Guess where the first swine flu outbreak occurred? That's right, Fort Dix, New Jersey, in 1976. Thirteen soldiers died, leading the US government to force a questionable vaccine on the population -- backed by a legal liability escape clause mandated by and for the pharma-terrorists. Next, people started dying not from the flu -- but from the *vaccine.* [See compendium of key flu articles here.] Updated

Iran arrests group planning pre-vote bombings: radio 26 Apr 2009 Iran has arrested a group of people linked to Israel who were planning bombings ahead of the Islamic Republic's June presidential election, the intelligence minister was quoted as saying on Sunday. State radio, citing Intelligence Minister Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, did not say how many people had been arrested or give any other details.

Iran leader blames U.S. for bombings in Iraq 25 Apr 2009 Iran's top authority said on Saturday that U.S. forces were "the main suspects" in bomb attacks that killed dozens of Iranian pilgrims in Iraq this week. "The main suspects in this crime and crimes similar to that, are American security and military forces," Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a statement about two bombings in Iraq on Thursday and Friday. Quoted by state [as opposed to corporate] media, he said "evil hands and minds" had established "blind and uncontrollable terrorism" in Iraq.

Anger at deadly U.S. military raid in southern Iraq 26 Apr 2009 Hundreds of Iraqis protested against U.S. forces on Sunday after U.S. soldiers killed a man and a woman in an overnight raid that was condemned by the provincial governor. The U.S. military said it targeted "special groups" fighters, or elite Shi'ite militiamen the United States says are funded and armed by Iran [the US], in a raid on their house early Sunday in the city of Kut, 150 km (95 miles) southeast of Baghdad.

Iraq government says 87,000 Iraqis killed since 2005 24 Apr 2009 The Associated Press reports that the Iraqi government has counted more than 87,000 Iraqis killed in violence since 2005. The news agency said it received the information from a government official who requested anonymity. The source said the death toll could be 10% to 20% higher because of thousands more civilians missing or unaccounted for.

Barack Obama to release up to 2,000 photographs of prisoner abuse --Photographs to be released before May 28 25 Apr 2009 President Barack Obama is to release up to 2,000 photographs of alleged abuse at American prisons in Iraq and Afghanistan in a move which will reignite the scandal surrounding Abu Ghraib prison in 2004. The decision to make public the images sought in a legal action by the American Civil Liberties Union comes amid a political firestorm over alleged torture of prisoners under President [sic] George W. Bush.

Abu Ghraib Victims Can Sue Interrogators --Former detainees allege multiple violations of U.S. law, including torture, war crimes and civil conspiracy 17 Apr 2009 In a ruling that could have widespread implications for government contractors overseas, a federal court has concluded that four former Abu Ghraib prisoners, who were tortured and later released without charge, can sue the U.S. military contractor who were involved in conducting prisoner interrogations for the Pentagon in Iraq. U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee denied a motion to dismiss the prisoners' claims by the contractor, CACI International. The Arlington, Virginia-based company is a major contractor to the Defence Department.

CACI International receives $31 million contract 06 Apr 2009 Military contractor CACI International Inc. said Monday that it received a $31 million contract to provide information technology and software development support to the Department of Defense. The one year pact, which has a four-year option, will service the acquisition technology and logistics portion of the Defense Department

Torture? It probably killed more Americans than 9/11 --A US major reveals the inside story of military interrogation in Iraq. By Patrick Cockburn 26 Apr 2009 The use of torture by the US has proved so counter-productive that it may have led to the death of as many US soldiers as civilians killed in 9/11, says the leader of a crack US interrogation team in Iraq. "The reason why foreign fighters joined al-Qa'ida in Iraq was overwhelmingly because of abuses at Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib and not Islamic ideology," says Major Matthew Alexander, who personally conducted 300 interrogations of prisoners in Iraq.

US interpreter who witnessed torture in Iraq shot herself with service rifle 26 Apr 2009 It is possible that one of the victims of the United States' torture policy is a young, devout Mormon woman from Arizona called Alyssa Peterson. She was a soldier who not only saw the rough interrogation methods that the US military used on Iraqi prisoners, but was deeply troubled by them. Some weeks after formally protesting about them to her superiors, and asking to be reassigned, she took her gun and killed herself. The cause of her death was kept secret for two years, and the mystery of what Peterson witnessed, and the content of the notes she made, still goes on.

The Banality of Bush White House Evil By Frank Rich 26 Apr 2009 Five years after the Abu Ghraib revelations, we must acknowledge that our government methodically authorized torture and lied about it. But we also must contemplate the possibility that it did so not just out of a sincere, if criminally misguided, desire to "protect" us but also to promote an unnecessary and catastrophic war. Instead of saving us from "another 9/11," torture was a tool in the campaign to falsify and exploit 9/11 so that fearful Americans would be bamboozled into a mission that had nothing to do with Al Qaeda. The lying about Iraq remains the original sin from which flows much of the Bush White House’s illegality... President Obama can talk all he wants about not looking back, but this grotesque past is bigger than even he is. It won’t vanish into a memory hole any more than Andersonville, World War II internment camps or My Lai. The White House, Congress and politicians of both parties should get out of the way.

Five killed in bombings in Afghanistan 25 Apr 2009 Three suicide bombers killed five people and injured another eight Saturday near the governor's office in Kandahar, said officials in Afghanistan. "One detonated on the street outside the compound. The other entered a container where police stay and detonated there. The other entered through the compound door and blew himself up," said Ahmad Wali Karzai, head of the provincial council in Kandahar.

Oh, Xe is in Pakistan? Evil bomb kills children in Pakistan 26 Apr 2009 Twelve children have died in Pakistan after a bomb exploded in a toy. The incident, in the north west of Pakistan, occurred when the children picked up a booby trap which had been manufactured to look like a ball. The children found the explosive device near a girls' school in the Low Dir district.

UK to boost special forces to help terrorism fight 26 Apr 2009 Britain will boost spending on its special forces as part of a major military review to help combat terror networks that challenge its security, Defence Secretary John Hutton will say on Monday. A "rebalancing of investment in equipment and people" would be needed over the next 10 years, Hutton will tell a counter-terrorism conference in London, according to extracts of the speech released by his ministry.

Plane bound for Israel from JFK diverted to Boston after unruly passenger tries cockpit break-in 25 Apr 2009 A jetliner bound from JFK Airport to Israel with 206 passengers aboard was diverted to Boston's Logan Airport Friday night when "an unruly passenger" apparently tried to break into the cockpit, officials said. "He was making some noise and banging on doors, possibly the cockpit," Massachusetts Port Authority spokesman Phil Orlandella told a Boston television station.

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Previous lead stories: In 2002, Military Agency Warned Against Use of 'Torture' --Extreme Duress Could Yield Unreliable Information, It Said 24 Apr 2009 The military agency that provided advice on harsh interrogation techniques for use against terrorism suspects referred to the application of extreme duress as "torture" in a July 2002 document sent to the Pentagon's chief lawyer and warned that it would produce "unreliable information." "The unintended consequence of a U.S. policy that provides for the torture of prisoners is that it could be used by our adversaries as justification for the torture of captured U.S. personnel," says the document, an unsigned two-page attachment to a memo by the military's Joint Personnel Recovery Agency.

CLG Managing Editor: Lori Price. Copyright © 2009, Citizens For Legitimate Government ® All rights reserved.