It's Safe To Travel. And It Always Was.

Panic. Mass hysteria. "I'm gonna die from the swine flu". Need to get some hand sanitizer. Where is a mask? Gimme a mask quick! Did that person cough? OMG! Quarantine them. Did that person just touch the door knob? Great, if I could only open the door with my foot :) Sound familiar?
Well, I recall listening to a ton of people that were saying the most outrageous things. Joe "Foot in Mouth" Biden took top honors this past week.

If you read my blog, you will remember that I posted, on the Sunday before last, about "What are the odds?". It seems that we never learn from the last big "scare". Now I know that this is not over yet and there could be a resurgence in the future, but when are we going to stop worrying overtime? It really is nuts. Egypt ordered the slaughter of 300,000 pigs. The European Union head said to avoid travel to the US and Mexico. THE USA. Home to 300,000,000 people and location of 1 death because of the "swine" flu. This is a reason to stop world trade? It has been widely reported by medical professionals and the CDC that 36,000 people die in the US every year from the "regular" flu. I can't understand why that doesn't scare you. Most people I know don't even get the annual flu shot that you can have for a mere 20 bucks. It seems to me that the media energizes the latest catastrophe and the public buys into it. EDUCATION. That is the key. As soon as this thing blew up, I decided to educate myself on the emerging virus. I went directly to the CDC and the World Health Organization websites to familiarize myself. I avoided all of the "doomsday" headlines of the mainstream and "fringe" media, while getting real information from the medical field.

Now we find ourselves in this predicament. Mexico, already reeling from a fragile economy, is set to lose billions and may need to tap the International Monetary Fund. We have deprived ourselves of much needed beach vacations along with supporting a global economy. Joe Biden "inadvertently" caused the airline industry to suffer another crushing blow. I think it is only a matter of weeks before another "bailout" of the airline carriers is requested. The end result of a media-generated "global panic"? Less fun for you and me. You see? The endless worrying about the next crisis is taking all of the fun out of our lives. A conspiracy theorist might say that this was a part of the terror campaign against the West. Just like 9/11 took away more of our freedoms, the latest "pandemic" has in a round-about-way, forced you to have less freedom. Scared to get on a plane? Afraid you will get quarantined in Mexico? Don't want your work to force you to take days off when you return from Mexico? (Believe me! Some employers are doing their own quarantine) Man, this is worse than 9/11. Guess what? It's safe to travel. And it always was.

In my opinion, freedom of travel is an inalienable right for all Americans. What better way to exercise your freedom than to move about at your own will. Now that Mexico is easing back into "business as usual" in Mexico City, I feel that the media owes us that side of the story. I have spoken with several clients that have traveled to Cancun/Riviera Maya during this "outbreak". They expressed to me that everything was normal and they had a great time. Even if there were less people. Too often, we associate a country or and island with some negative event. Aruba tourism was basically non-existent for months and months while the Natalee Holloway story was in the news. If you don't remember, this story revolved around the disappearance of Ms Holloway. While tragic, I don't feel that this should have taken such a toll on an otherwise friendly island. I hope you won't react the same way to what is unfortunately not the fault of Mexico. It has been reported that the swine flu may actually have originated in California. Yes, that California. The one in the US of A. Since they have the swine flu here in Kentucky, I guess I should be looking for another place to go. Oh, I forgot. Most of the states in this country have a case or 2 themselves. Oh, what to do. What to do? I guess I will refer back to my older post:
What are the Odds? I feel better now. I think I can sleep well knowing that I have that less than 1% chance of getting it. And so do you. Time to hit the beach. Mexico is cheap. And I can have it all to myself. That is until you think it is safe. And it always was.
Til Next Time,
Tom