Europeans now realizing BF is there will begin stockpiling in a big way causing shortages in Europe. Thier suppliers will lock up supplies on more good as they begin to sell out.

If the Americans drag their asses European demand for goods will  buy products usually destined for the US.

Capitalisim. Free Market. Supply and Demand to the highest bidder. When Americans decide it is time to prep there will be little or nothing left.

What the worlds ecomonies feared if Americans paniced, we would buy the world and cause shortages. However the reverse will happen. Europe will stockpile while America sleeps.

 Corn You are spot on!

Watch the stock market tonight and tomorrow and rest of the week. If people are preping suddenly for the long term the will begin liquidating assets to raise cash.

Watch gold and you will get an idea of what the big players are thinking.

Fom the bottom of Italy to the Top of Germany BF has been confirmed. That shock alone of how fast one can be caught unaware. All the procrastinators will begin seeing this as there signal to prep.

You will get to watch it first hand.

It should be coming under the chunnel about now by car and train.

How shocked is anybody that BF covers Europe in 4-6 weeks? If you go by the media releases.  Even we in this forum are caught back in awe by the last 3 weeks.

Imagine those who were on the fence.

what a lot of people think is that if they dont have chickens or dont get close to birds nothing is going to happen to them , they are not looking at the big picture because they haven't taken the time to find out or study a little bit  of what bird flu is ! we learned a lot because we  wanted too but 90% of people out there think nothing is going to happen because the government is going to find a cure like my father in law told me today !!

1. France warned of high risk of bird flu contamination 

   AFP via Yahoo! News - Feb 14 11:04 AM
   The French food safety agency AFSSA warned of a heightened risk of the deadly bird flu virus reaching the country, and called for poultry to be kept indoors wherever possible.
   Save to My Web

There is a concept that ypur government ACTUALLY WILL help you.  :)  A friend who was in Japan during the Kobi earthquake.  He said that, by the end of the day, amonst all the wreckage, distribution lines were set up and handing out thousands of emergency  kits conataining: a small tent and a small gas cookstove, thin but serviceable cookware, warm clothes and a sleeping mat, some personal care items and other necessities.  A potable water distribution point about every 4 blocks.  Storekeepers all had the surviving food stores open, and people went in were allowed to take a day or two's supply of basic food items.  He saw NO looting or hoarding of supplies in the middle of this devastated city.

I imagine the Mormons are going to operate  in a similar manner, especially since I understand they are supposed to keep 1 years food supply on hand.  (I learned this when I bought a farmhouse from a Mormon couple - it had a metal lined room, large walk-in closet sized, and talked with the son as he moved out  5 gallon buckets of grain and beans, 5 gallon cans of honey and packages of some kind of hard-tack dry bread.

I don''t wish I lived in Japan, and I couldn;t deal with being a Mormon.  And while nothing is perfect, there I times I wish a large cooperative effort could be a workable concept.  It has been done.

Europe scrambles as bird flu spreads further

15/02/2006 12h15

German health officials bag a dead swan
©AFP - Jens Koehler

BRUSSELS (AFP) - European experts scrambled to hammer out a response to a fast-developing bird flu threat, as the lethal H5N1 strain spread into Germany, the latest country to be hit by the virus in days.

The European Union health experts, holding two days of talks in Brussels, were expected to agree speeded-up procedures to clamp down on any outbreaks, while studying the option of slaughtering poultry should any contract bird flu.

The European outbreaks of H5N1 have so far been restricted to migrating wild swans, but experts fear it is only a question of time before the virus transfers to chickens and other birds in the human food chain.

The H5N1 strain has killed at least 90 people -- almost half those who catch it -- mostly in eastern Asia, but also in Turkey and northern Iraq.

The avian virus, which was first reported on Europe's southeastern flanks at the start of January, has re-erupted with a vengeance in recent days, with new outbreaks almost daily in a string of EU countries.

In Germany Wednesday, health authorities set up the now-standard 10-kilometre (six-mile) surveillance zone around the spot where the dead wild swans were found on the island of Ruegen in the Baltic Sea.

A tighter three-kilometre (two-mile) protection area will also be set up.

German officials said tests had confirmed the H5N1 virus, but added that samples were being sent to an EU-approved laboratory in Weybridge, England, with results expected on Thursday or Friday.

Also Wednesday in Greece, where it has been detected in dead swans, two elderly people who buried a dead chicken with their bare hands and are showing flu symptoms were admitted to hospital as a precautionary measure.

Cases of H5N1 were confirmed in Greece and Italy at the weekend, and in Austria on Tuesday.

EU newcomer state Slovenia is also investigating a suspected case found near its border with Austria, as is Croatia. Further east, Bulgaria, Romania and Ukraine have also reported H5N1 cases.

The Italian press reported on Wednesday that two swans which died in southern Italy had tested positive for the H5N1 form, bringing to eight the number of birds to have died of the virus in Italy.

Bird Flu spreads to Germany
©AFP Graphic

The swans were found in Puglia, one of three regions with Calabria and Sicily, where the first six cases of H5N1 were discovered.

The discoveries have been made further south than would have been expected, but bird experts say the extremely cold winter weather may have forced the swans off their usual migratory paths.

"We have absolutely no control over the introduction of the virus by migratory birds that are about to start returning from Africa to Siberia, Scandinavia and Greenland. It is unavoidable," French food safety agency panelist Jean Hars told AFP.

Also further north, Danish and Swedish authorities said they had ordered all poultry and tame birds to be kept indoors in a bid to prevent the spread of a deadly strain of bird flu rapidly approaching their borders.

Until now though the 25-nation EU -- the third biggest exporter of poultry in the world after Brazil and the United States -- has said it is satisfied that the measures taken are sufficient.

But Brussels is closely monitoring the situation and if poultry should become infected, it may call for the destruction of all birds and eggs on small holdings or farms, said the EU's spokesman on health and consumer matters.

In addition the European Commission has proposed speeding up the process of clamping down on new outbreaks, by making the arrangements automatic rather than decided on a case-by-case basis.

I agree, people won't panic until lagre numbers of people start getting sick - by then it will be too late...

I wouldn't be concerned about the possibility of infected flies contaminating door knobs. Focus on what you can do to prevent becoming infected.

1. Learn about H5N1 transmission / ingestion routes and viral shedding.

2. Avoid (at least within 3 ft.) people who have obvious flu symptoms.

3. If you must be around sick people, your goal is to avoid virus laden droplets (like sneeze and cough droplets). Wear a N-95 mask, wear nirtile gloves, wear protective eyewear to prevent the virus from entering through the eye and consider a disposable tyvek coverall to prevent clothing contamination. Use Purell liberally and often.

4. If you are still concerned, talk to a nurse or doctor and ask how medical personnel protect themselves from contagious patients. In particular ask about "isolation" and "reverse isolation" techniques and clothing.

5. Information and knowledge is the best cure for the jitters.

Good Day All

Is there anyone else here from Finland?

As far as people stockpiling anything, not only don't I see any sign of it .When I  try to talk to my husband or co workers about   the dangers of avian flu, they look at me like I am nutty.

I finally insisted this week that we begin to at least stock extra canned goods, water etc. My husband on the other hand believes that when and if " things get bad"  we can just pile the kids in the car and head towards northern Finland where his folks have a "summer place" deep in the woods.

Any thoughts?

PS I haven't seen it listed on this fourm yet...but has anyone here read about the dead birds found late this past week here in Finland that have been submitted for testing? I was shocked to read a government vet. stating that she doubted it was avian flu in the dead swans since they did not migrate from Finland during the  winter. But , wasn't that the case in Germany where some of the swans which tested positive were not migratory??

UK Friends,

I just saw this news. Are you really seeing panic or is this Tabloid BS?

Bird flu panic grips Britain
Ian Mcphedran in London
21feb06

PANIC is spreading across Britain as experts warn that the bird flu virus has already arrived and bird owners are being warned to keep them indoors.

Whole Article: http://www.thecouriermail.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,59 36,18219780%255E954,00.html

Thanks,

Pioneers Attract The Most Arrows - Prep-On