Ebola - thoughts

Freaking, scary disease.  I read "Hot Zone" many years ago, and was reassured that because the virus is so fatal, the chance of an epidemic actually decreases.  It seems that the virus responsible for this new outbreak has found the right balance of virulence and survivability, killing enough to strike fear and slowly enough for carriers to spread the infection.

Like many people, I take refuge in a continent an ocean away from the center of the epidemic.  But are we truly safe?  One person died on American soil after traveling here from Africa and displaying symptoms after his arrival, only to be turned away from the hospital and given the chance to infect the community.  One health care worker contracted the disease despite wearing a protective suit.  Do we actually know how to stop the virus?  Do people know how to protect themselves while helping the sick?

Stories from Africa are dire.  Kids wondering around after losing their village to Ebola.  Infants licking their dead mothers searching for milk that is no longer being generated.  Is there anything at all we can offer them?  I feel the desperation and helplessness, I cried.  "Oh God!"  But I know from experience there are no answers.  God works in mysterious ways, the religious will always say.  That is not good enough for me.  My faith is weak.  Or worse yet, maybe time is up for homo sapiens.  After we eradicate our traditional natural enemies, something finally evolves to control our growing numbers.

I want to believe in human ingenuity, that some medicine will be developed in time to halt the march of the disease.  That we can be generous and flexible dealing with Ebola as a priority over profits and IP and fame.

I can't even fathom what might happens if Ebola spreads.  All I can do is to clutch my family harder, love my child harder, and hope we can protect each other.