Bracing for Swine Flu

The World’s nations rushed to avoid global hysteria as more cases of swine flu have surfaced in the last 24 hours. The message from the White House? Don’t panic.

President Barack Obama’s administration sought to look both calm and in command, striking a balance between informing Americans without panicking them. Obama himself was playing golf while U.S. officials used a White House news conference to compare the emergency declaration with preparing for an approaching hurricane.

“Really, that’s what we’re doing right now. We’re preparing in an environment where we really don’t know ultimately what the size or seriousness of this outbreak is going to be,” Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano told reporters.

Earlier, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said the outbreak was serious, but that the public should know “it’s not a time to panic.” He told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Obama was getting updates “every few hours” on the situation. (AP)

There is not a global pandemic, at least not yet. Authorities are taking every precaution to minimize the impact on people’s health.

So far there are no reports of the illness in Washington State.