Guess Who is Unprepared?

We learned over the last several years, that this administration was unprepared
(1) to deal with an August 2001 memo titled "Bin Laden Determined to Strike the U.S."
(2.) with an exit strategy in Iraq
(3.) for a natural disaster (Hurricane Katrina and Rita).

Having noted these examples of being unprepared, it would not surprise anyone that this administration is unprepared for an avian flu pandemic.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/08/politics/08flu.html?hp&ex=1128830400&en=2d36703f52765687&ei=5094&partner=homepage

WASHINGTON, Oct. 7 - A plan developed by the Bush administration to deal with any possible outbreak of pandemic flu shows that the United States is woefully unprepared for what could become the worst disaster in the nation's history.

A draft of the final plan, which has been years in the making and is expected to be released later this month, says a large outbreak that began in Asia would be likely, because of modern travel patterns, to reach the United States within "a few months or even weeks."

President Bush met with vaccine makers at the White House Friday to ask them to increase production.

If such an outbreak occurred, hospitals would become overwhelmed, riots would engulf vaccination clinics, and even power and food would be in short supply, according to the plan, which was obtained by The New York Times...
In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the Bush administration's efforts to plan for a possible pandemic flu have become controversial, with many Democrats in Congress charging that the administration has not done enough. Many have pointed to the lengthy writing process of the flu plan as evidence of this.

But while the administration's flu plan, officially called the Pandemic Influenza Strategic Plan, closely outlines how the Health and Human Services Department may react during a pandemic, it skirts many essential decisions, like how the military may be deployed.

"The real shortcoming of the plan is that it doesn't say who's in charge," said a top health official who provided the plan to The Times. "We don't want to have a FEMA-like response, where it's not clear who's running what..."

Pandemic: an epidemic occurring over a very wide area, crossing international boundaries and usually affecting a large number of people. A global epidemic.healthyamericans.org/docs/

Other views: http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2005/10/08/bushs_risky_flu_pandemic_plan/
http://www.stanford.edu/group/virus/uda/

Since our government is not ready for this possible pandemic, it appears that citizens will need to prepare for an outbreak. How? I'd start by asking my physician what symptons to look for and what items to have on hand in the house. Once again this administration is demonstrating the fact that it is a miserable failure at protecting its citizens.