Thank You very much grandma. Its on our radar now

I am not sure why this is not in any of the other news feeds ?
It has to be some sort of hoax .
There is NOTHING else on that site except the stories about this unknown virus.

10 more patients

http://newsintheknowhalifax.wordpress.com/2014/09/13/newly-dubbed-arh2n-virus-confirmed-in-10-more-patients/

then more info here:

http://newsintheknowhalifax.wordpress.com/2014/09/14/arh2n-virus-spreading-quickly-across-nova-scotia/

Further reading to the very bottom of the main page leads to this page
and says this is a story to promot a zombie hunt

http://hyperpromotions.ca/paintball-zombie-hunt/

This is a really good link with a really good lesson (thank you, grandma).
This kind of stuff happens all the time in our worlds, where one source will put something out (YouTube or blog) and then 50 million other sites/channels of a kind will run with it as Gospel truth. Sometimes it's something big-big (by claim) and sometimes it's something smaller that could arguably slip through the cracks. If you do due diligence, you keep slapping up against a lack of referencing/citation or everything flows back to that one original site.

And then North America fails to go dark with either WROL conditions due to abandonment or EROL as we turn into District 12, and nothing happens on Oct. 17, 2013.

Just food for thought in picking these apart in the future:
- Is it a reputable (or at least known) site?
- If not, is there history in the site that can be checked for the validity of topics covered and the site's track record? (This one's archives are only for September and only have this issue, not the kiddie flu in the U.S. or ebola; but maybe they created a page for their safety and anonymity.)
- Is the terminology correct, suggesting a reputable source?
1) "...spread via airborne pathogen..." - Your disease is the pathogen; it would be an airborne pathogen or would need an airborne carrier.
2) With just two and an unresponsive cause they'd still be working through exotic and rare diseases &/or looking for an environmental/chemical cause, it wouldn't have been ID'd as a new pathogen so quickly.
3) It wouldn't be first hitting the news with just the couple; two people wouldn't be enough to stir any interest inside the field. There are hundreds if not thousands of cases of 1-5 people affected by "something unknown" pretty much daily.
4) If it was that fast-acting and easy to spread ("...less than 24 hours..." before symptoms appear) the next reports wouldn't be 10, it would be dozens. EMS/cops and ERs do not automatically set up for quarantine when somebody walks or is carried in. Even aggressive patients that bite and look like death warmed over are strapped to a bed while blood tests are run. Doctors do not start off in masks, cops do not start off in gloves, and an ambulance/cop car is tight quarters, so the EMT or cop would be breathing it in and then spreading it to all other passengers that evening or the ER waiting room would be exposed - with people who have weakened immune symptoms from respiratory or stomach causes. Even if they're patient X and managed to create something or find something in a long-lost Hindu or Sikh temple shortly before getting on a plane, and you can eliminate the airline (passengers, attendants, customs and security, airports x2(2+?), those people's families - all within the 24-hour incubation time so you could argue that the disease does not spread until it reaches a certain concentration within the host) you've got problems with the plot development.
- Do the keywords ("arh2n") hit on any search engine, besides a link back from a facebook page to the original website?
- Does the informational link take you to a zombie paintball event?

That's not to say the obscure nuggets like these should be ignored, but research and some critical thinking can help. Grandma's link really is a good lesson for some of the hair-triggered issues that crop up.
Thanks again, grandma!
It was a good one, easier than basing the whole "not so" arguments on just the "all military vehicles are EMP hardened" (solar flares downplayed; verge of destruction - this year and a year ago) and "all military have been stop-loss'd" (gov't takeover - Oct. whatever from last year) by themselves.

Cheers!
-P

Well. So I woke up to being informed that my leg had been pulled and I hadn't read thoroughly enough. Now I have to send apologies to those I sent it along to. All this before coffee.

The very first line on the initial link says "This Story is Fictitious." as a disclaimer.

It is indeed fictional; my point in posting was to alert even those 'in the know' that many can/will be fooled by media reports. Always confirm with reputable sources...

I'm miffed that I got Punked, grandma, you trouble maker....but it does peak the interest of my mischievous side. Wa ha ha. What trouble I could cause? 😈

I start at the top and read down....the top starts out with a disclaimer stating that the story is fictitious... I did find it odd that it wasn't much of a story as it was so short.

I come out and read folks comments and wonder why you guys are still playing along...then it dawns on me that maybe others must start in the middle...is that how you missed the disclaimer?

They have added the disclaimer since I first briefed over it. Its new. probably to cover their arse.

They have added the disclaimer since I first briefed over it. Its new. probably to cover their arse.

That would make more sense as it seems that a few took the same road all at once and seems oddly suspicious too! Then I was just late to the starting gate 😀

It is indeed fictional; my point in posting was to alert even those 'in the know' that many can/will be fooled by media reports. Always confirm with reputable sources...

You saved me the time. That disclaimer paragraph was the first thing I read, and I was puzzled as to just what in hell you were thinking. I'm pleased I was not made an example of your point, but good point.

You saved me the time. That disclaimer paragraph was the first thing I read, and I was puzzled as to just what in hell you were thinking. I'm pleased I was not made an example of your point, but good point.

The disclaimers at the top and the bottom was added, as was already pointed out.
They also pulled at least 1-2 comments that were originally there.
It was a slightly better lesson before they had to play the CYA game.

Indeed the disclainer seems to be added now; it was not there when I first posted the article; I did, however, try to confirm it with more sources and when no comfirmation was forthcoming, I deduced that it was indeed fiction. Sorry if any of you were confused. 🙁