TORRANCE TRIBUNE October 23, 2014 Page 5 One Man’s Opinion Another Man’s Opinion A Barking Dog Cannot Bite Ebola Scare is Legit Concern, Not an Outbreak A Bank for Go-Getters Our banking relationship with Bank of Manhattan allowed us to turn a fun entrepreneurial idea into an eco-friendly reality. We Bank Manhattan. -Eric & Andrea Busch Electric Bikes LA 888.657.6523 | www.bankofmanhattan.com South Bay . Glendale . Pasadena . Montebello NMLS #401422 ©2013 Bank of Manhattan, N.A. By Gerry Chong It’s been a long, long time since I had to sit like a chastened schoolboy listening to an arrogant lecturer preach about the error of my ways. But I could only clench my fists under the table and nod my head in agreement. Yesterday, I lunched with a revered Chinese doctor from Shanghai, ostensibly to learn about the differences between American medicine and Chinese medicine. But that discussion quickly evolved into a lecture on the foolishness of America, and the might of China. Appropriately, last week China passed the U.S. as the largest economy in the world, so kudos to them. Moreover, as Obama boasts of a 2% growth rate, China grows at 7% so we’ll eat crow and listen to stories of our own ineptitude. The doctor reminded me that a confident China does not fear (or respect) the U.S. because a “barking dog cannot bite.” Since we are so busy doing the former we cannot do the latter. We engage in a bombing program in the Middle East, a strategy no military person believes can succeed, using weapons the government has already ceased manufacturing. All the while IS continues its surge as Iraqi forces abandon the fight, and no Middle East country will materially contribute to the effort to save themselves. We squander our riches as Gaza wails about the consequences of the war it started and Guatemala demands we rebuild Central America or face unrestrained illegal immigration. We send 3,000 of our military into harm’s way in West Africa to build By Cristian Vasquez Without a doubt the recent cases of Ebola being reported by international, national and local media have caused some concern in my mind, especially when a report came out that a patient was being held at Centinela Hospital due to fears that they were carrying the virus. Fortunately that wasn’t the case and Inglewood and the surrounding areas can relax and take a deep breath. While I am not suggesting the Ebola virus is not to be taken serious I am convinced that the ongoing media coverage is preying on people’s fears. So far, the majority of the coverage on the reported cases of Ebola that I have seen give minimal attention to how exactly it is that the virus is contracted, if any at all. To be clear: the virus is not airborne. The virus might be easy for a healthcare worker to catch, due to their exposure to the infected patient and said patient’s bodily fluids. However, it is very difficult for the average person to become infected since they are not exposed to infected patients for the long periods of time that a healthcare worker would. So based on this simple math, why are the big media outlets teasing the Ebola news through fear tactics? Seems that the ratings are more important than informing the public. I’m not a doctor but I can understand this much: as individuals we can help prevent/ control any type of epidemic by visiting a doctor the moment we feel sick. A big mistake that 99 percent of us are guilty of is going to work, going to school or running our errands when we feel sick. We either don’t have sick days at work, or we have a big test to take and we forgo medical attention. In some cases medical attention isn’t an option due to a lack of medical insurance (that’s a different conversation). Whatever the case, most of us have roughed it out and luckily we all survive and carry on. However, that is a dangerous move because if we were unfortunate enough to become infected with something as horrible as the Ebola virus, walking around is doing anyone any favors. It’s time for the big media outlets to focus on informing the public on how a person can become infected with the Ebola virus. Focusing on the catastrophe of an outbreak and having experts comment on how likely it is for an outbreak to occur does nothing but scare people. When people react to fear bad things can happen. We don’t have to look too far back to find an example of a media-created fear. Who remembers the swine flu? The hype behind the “epidemic” was another ratings-fueling move. I accept that the swine flu then and the Ebola virus today are serious illnesses. We definitely need to be mindful of symptoms and seek medical attention when we begin to feel under the weather. While the issue at hand is serious, sometimes it’s good to not believe the hype. • hospitals and clinics without knowing what causes the disease, and without staffing or supplies for those facilities. We allow 4,500 West African immigrants into the U.S. each month even as the World Health Organization predicts worldwide infection growth at the rate of 10,000 per week. We stare in wonderment as Chinese investors buy the Waldorf Astoria for $2 billion, not realizing that China has simply traded that amount of U.S. currency it has in its treasury for a piece of irreplaceable real estate. The Chinese, in turn, stare in wonderment at our decision to import low-skilled laborers from poor countries even as we require highly skilled and highly educated workers to compete on the world stage. The former drags the economy while the latter propels the economy; so we have chosen the former. We create technical marvels like Apple iphones, but manufacture them in China where the technology can be replicated. In the search for worldwide market share, Boeing sells its most technologically sophisticated planes to China in exchange for having parts built there. Chinese manufactured planes will improve on Boeing’s products and cost it market share instead. China took advantage of Russia’s economic straits by executing a monster oil contract on favorable terms, using Chinese currency as the source of payment, and thus undermining the importance of the U.S. dollar. Everywhere now, an arrogant China sees a rival that has lost its way, a pathetic shell of its former self, reduced to merely a barking dog. How tragic. • “I’m not a doctor but I can understand this much: as individuals we can help prevent/ control any type of epidemic by visiting a doctor the moment we feel sick.”
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