"Bird Flu Is Mutating Faster Than Expected"

After suiting up in full-body suits, the $cientists rejoice! A new gravy train is pulling into the station! Full employment and bonuses to everyone! Death to infidels! “First U.S. H5N1 Death Sparks Urgency: Scientists Warn That Bird Flu Is Mutating Faster Than Expected” (SciTechDaily, 2025.01.19):

Bad news: Researchers at the Texas Biomedical Research Institute (Texas Biomed) have identified a strain of bird flu isolated from a human in Texas that carries a distinctive set of mutations, making it more adept at replicating in human cells and causing severe disease in mice. This strain was compared to one found in dairy cattle, and the findings are detailed in Emerging Microbes & Infections.

Good news: Current approved antiviral treatments remain effective against this strain.

Is is just me, or do the esteemed $cientists look like complete morons? I mean, if reading faces ever was worth anything? And couldn’t they at least shave for the photo session? Or too busy saving Humanity?

“A key priority will be to eradicate bird flu from dairy cows to minimize the risk of mutations and transmission to people and other species,” Dr. Elsayed said. “Steps that can be taken now include thorough decontamination of milking equipment and more stringent quarantine requirements, which will help eliminate the virus more quickly in cows.”

No one told the esteemed scientists that H5N1 is endemic for years in the wildlife bird species, as the BBC reported almost a year ago:

H5N1 timeline

• 1996: detected in poultry in Guangdong, China

• 1997: first human deaths in Hong Kong

• 2005: Spilled over into wild birds in a major way. New strains emerge.

• 2020: A strain emerges that can sustain in wild bird populations year-round

• 2020-22: Becomes endemic in wild bird populations

• 2021: Arrives in North America

• 2022: Detected in South America

• 2024: Confirmed in Antarctica

• October 2024: Confirmed in pigs in Oregon, the US

• December 2024: First severe case in humans in the US

According to none other than Gavi (Aug. 2024):

H5N1 has not petered out between spring and fall migrations, like avian flu normally does. It’s now endemic in Europe and North America. When that happened, “people began worrying that it’s not going to go away anymore.”

Probably, the esteemed $cientists are not familiar with the meaning of the word “endemic”?

Endemic means a disease that is always present in a population within a geographic area, typically year-round.

Good luck “eradicating”! Oh, $cience, how low have you fallen!