First US swine flu victim was born to wealth

[tandot]

Source: Associated Press

HOUSTON – While some of Mexico's swine flu fatalities were poor and had uncertain access to health care, the toddler who became the first U.S. death from the outbreak was born into one of Mexico's wealthiest families.

His father is a well-known architect. His grandfather is a Mexican media mogul who serves on the International Olympic Committee. His great-uncle controls the Angeles Hospital chain, one of Mexico's largest private health providers.

Miguel Tejada Vazquez, 21 months old, died on Monday in a Houston hospital during a visit to America. He had been with his family in Brownsville, Texas, for most of April, and came down with flu symptoms the day after a shopping trip to Houston's upscale Galleria mall on April 7.

<snip>

The boy's grandfather is Mario Vazquez Rana, 76, who heads Mexico's Olympic Committee and is on the 15-member IOC board.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090502/ap_on_re_us/us_swine_flu_death

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Don't you just love those ignorant right-wing morons who blame "illegal aliens" for the swine flu

[EFerrari]

1. How could they resist? n/t

[UpInArms]

2. lbp "little brown people" aren't supposed to have "wealth"

:sarcasm:

[lapfog_1]

5. Third richest person in the world is a Mexican

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Slim_Hel%C3%BA

which probably says a lot more about the type of society the "haves" want for the US than it does about the "robust" state of the Mexican economy.

By next year, I expect that this "person" will be the second richest... and who knows, if Microsoft can't keep selling it's crap to the unsuspecting public at monopolistic prices, maybe he takes over as the richest.

[Journeyman]

3. Plays havoc as well for those who believe the flu was engineered by the wealthy . . .

to rid the world of the poor.

(And yes, saw that tidbit of stupidity on these boards just a few days ago. . .)

[1monster]

4. Just goes to show that wealth and power is no protection from tragedy.

iPequeño el pobre! Mucha condolencia a la familia.

[Baby Snooks]

6. And in Houston...

In Houston one of our city councilmembers, Toni Lawrence, went nuts and almost slipped on her tongue and began her own tirade about illegal immigrants but limited herself to "non-citizens" being admitted to our hospitals and of course implying that not only could they spread a plague but of course the taxpayers would have to pay for their care.

I would have loved to have seen her face when she read the story. The boy's grandfather probably could buy the entire Texas Medical Center. I suspect the taxpayers will not have to pay the bill.

She's an interesting councilmember. A rabid Republican. And the former sister-in-law of Solicitor General Ted Olson. Her sister Barbara was on the plane that was flown into the Pentagon on 9/11.

Even more interesting is she is always supported by one of the well-known Democratic gadflys in Texas. Calls her "his" councilmember. Maybe he likes Eva Braun types. Or maybe really likes Republicans.

He is one of many reasons why the Texas Democratic Party is a mess.

[depakid]

7. Disease knocks at the door of rich and poor alike

[Baby Snooks]

8. Yes it does...

But invariably the rich blame the poor for it.

[Turbineguy]

9. Just discovered

that in the Netherlands they refer to it as the Mexican Flu. Sort of like the Hong Kong Flu. Or the Spanish Flu.

I imagine, if there ever were to be a Dutch Flu they'd say, "Hey, wait a minute!"

[tocqueville]

13. it's because "swine flu" is wrong too

traditionally those kinds of flus have been called after the region of origin, Spanish flu, Asian flu etc...

the Spanish flu was a complete misnomer because it probably originated in the USA, but it was the amount of casualties in Spain that struck the imagination

calling it after an animal (and in this case it's not even proven it originates from pigs) is wrong too, because it can lead to suffering and unnecessary slaughter of innocent animals

France has now adopted a scientific name : the "A(H1N1)flu", which must be the correct solution.

[AlphaCentauri]

10. Has the idiot Senator from Georgia Paul Broun read this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kf9-vwCwqJU

Sick souls

[tandot]

11. He should publicly apologize

as should all those right-wing radio a**holes who were/are ranting against those "illegals"

[Baby Snooks]

12. He probably can't read...

Most of them can't. I keep hoping one of them will lose by one vote in an absolute recount. Having lost on the basis of their own vote.

[Dappleganger]

15. He probably thinks all brown people are illegals...

and couldn't possibly have any use for money except drugs.

[quidam56]

14. Health care in America is another Katrina and Wall Street- Bush gang blunder

I wouldn't be surprised if this baby also had the MRSA bug ( Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aurea's ) Our hospitals and emergency rooms are breeding grounds for MRSA, our very own health care system we trust to keep us healthy is making a killing, killing US. http://www.wisecountyissues.com/?p=62 In America, Profit Care comes ahead of Patient Care.

[DRoseDARs]

16. Lou Dobbs is going to have conniptions... n/t

[Jennicut]

17. So this little Mexican boy was not a poor unclean brown person?

That is the Right wings meme regarding why the people of Mexico have gotten more sick from this flu then people in America.

[tandot]

18. Right-wing hacks like Savage or Limbaugh will just ignore that little fact

and continue to use the flu to rally against those "brown" people

[GTurck]

19. Obviously .....

came for bail-out money and to blame Estatos Unidos for the death of the baby.:sarcasm:

[Pavulon]

20. I wonder if he had been given flu vaccines

many in the developing world have no exposure to strains of flu. This can make them more unacceptable to a more serious illness.

[Half King]

21. Probably went something like this

The H1N1 is quadruple reassortant virus. Strains from EUROPEAN and asian pigs and birds.

So, very wealthy individual goes on a hunting retreat in Slovakia for wild boar. Picks up a pig virus in the process and becomes host for a while, the virus causing a mere minor reaction in the hunters immune system. The trip scheduled between Thanksgiving and Christmas, the jet setting hunter has to make a stop in Shanghai for business. A KFC rep, he visits some of the suppliers to the ever expanding arm of the franchise. There, he picks up the avian component that now fuses with the european virus. The host now starts to feel weak and yet still makes a stop in Hong Kong for Christmas gifts. There, the fever sets in, and what the host believes is merely bit of the flu, is the now mutated virus jumping onto humans and fusing with the human flu virus. From Hong Kong, the virus now latches on to humans whose immunse systems over react and begin to attack with deathly force.