So, I am sitting here watching Rachel Maddow on the DVR after a long, hard days (nights) work at the worlds largest retailer and I cannot believe what I am hearing. The new New York and New Jersey ebola response plan failed utterly and completely. The government of New Jersey literally locked a poor nurse, who was not showing symptoms of Ebola into what looked like something out of The Stand or some dime-a-dozen zombie movies out there, simply because she happened to fly in from the effected area. No symptoms, they just locked her straight the fuck up. Luckily, she fought the bullshit new "regulations" and both Cuomo and Christie caved.
This whole thing got me thinking -- as an Oregonian, I thank god for John Kitzhaber. From his profile page on wikipedia
Kitzhaber was born on March 5, 1947 in Colfax, Washington, to Annabel Reed (Wetzel) and Albert Raymond Kitzhaber.[1] He graduated from South Eugene High School in 1965, Dartmouth College in 1969 and Oregon Health & Science University with a medical degree in 1973. Kitzhaber practiced medicine from 1973 to 1986 in Roseburg, Oregon as an emergency room physician.
After watching this response, knowing that we have a Emergency Room doctor as governor is very comforting. You wont be seeing any zombie tents outside of Salem Hospital any time soon, to say the least.
Dont believe me? Oregon has already had an Ebola "scare" if you could call it that. But, see, nobody in our government has freaked the fuck out and started locking people up (and making them shit in a suitcase, what the fuck is that?) in a tent like Joe Arpaio.
To wit (from the Portland Tribune -- Officials: 'Low risk' person monitored for Ebola, Oregon ready):
A person, with what officials call “remote or no-risk factor,” who has not been in contact with Ebola, is being monitored in Multnomah County for the virus, while six health systems say they are ready for a potentially infected person.
[snip]
“One person who is at remote or no risk of Ebola is being monitored just because they had an itinerary that included the affected area but they were not involved in patient care or had any contact with an Ebola victim,” Lewis said.
This is not the first time this has happened in Oregon either. It happened about a week ago right in my area, the person tested negative, but people believed that there was an Ebola patient in the area.
Oregon's plan of action, should the day an person with Ebola ever shows up in Oregon?
Officials are working on what they call the “continuum of care,” he said.
Response plans focus on identification, isolation and transportation to a referral center and involve local health departments, first responders and health professionals.
No zombie tents. No suitcase potties. No bullshit politicizing of a serious health issue.
Its a real plan based in science. Because our governor is not only a doctor, but a damn good democrat. Night and day, right?