Swine Flu... A Big Deal?

Swine flu is the recent epidemic that is rapidly spreading across the nation and the world. According to the CDC there are a total of 64 lab confirmed cases as of April 28th. But people....is it as big of a deal as it seems? Or is this just a up close and personal exposure of the media's power to manipulate a news story? Let's look at the facts:

For one, did you know the normal flu strain causes roughly 35,000 deaths a year?

This swine flu for the month or so it has been going on has only caused 26 deaths since it began. According to the Homeland Security Secretary, Janet Napolitano, this swine flu strain is moderate but will spread. Yet somehow, the media initially portrayed it as a huge deal. This flu kills less people than the regular flu yet for some reason the entire Huntsville school system was shut down for up to seven days when an elementary school child was found with the swine flu. Trussville's band was quarantined because they just got back from a trip from Mexico. So, if I make a big deal about......strep throat.... will people quarantine themselves and stop going to school? With the media's help, I bet you it would work.