Don't know if the A/H1N1 strain of flu is deadly atm. Looks like some people are falling off the perch because of pneumonia... whether this is a secondary infection or blood filling the lungs after immune system threw mad rave is anyone's guess. Recombinant virus strains are currently the biggest concern, as the A/H1N1 is a hodge-podge of avian, porcine and human flu viruses and it could very easily mutate into something approaching 12 monkeys-style future, complete with mad stencil art.
The awesome thing about the evolution of disease is that a sucessful virus won't kill its host quickly. This is why 'catch it and bleed-to-death' diseases like Ebola tend to burn out after a short period of time. There is a tendency with disease for the less destructive and more contagious strains to pass on to more hosts and be more evolutionarily fit, so even if the faecal matter hits the spinning blade we may end up with a less deadly disease in a year or two.
An influenza pandemic occurs when a new influenza virus appears against which the human population has no immunity, resulting in epidemics worldwide with enormous numbers of deaths and illness. With the increase in global transport, as well as urbanization and overcrowded conditions, epidemics due the new influenza virus are likely to quickly take hold around the world.
Outbreaks of influenza in animals, especially when happening simultaneously with annual outbreaks of seasonal influenza in humans, increase the chances of a pandemic, through the merging of animal and human influenza viruses. During the last few years, the world has faced several threats with pandemic potential, making the occurrence of the next pandemic a matter of time.
Consequences of an influenza pandemic
In the past, influenza pandemics have resulted in increased morbidity and mortality and great social disruption. In the 20th century, the most severe influenza pandemic occurred in 1918 -1919 and caused an estimated 40–50 million deaths world wide. Current epidemiological models project that a pandemic could result in 2 to 7.4 million deaths globally.
If an influenza pandemic were to occur today, we could expect:
the pandemic virus to spread rapidly due to the high level of global traffic;
vaccines, antiviral agents and antibiotics to treat secondary infections to be in short supply, with a period of several months before any vaccine becomes available;
medical facilities to be overwhelmed with demands to care for both influenza and non-influenza patients;
widespread illness to result in sudden and potentially significant shortages of personnel to provide essential community services.
Also, when armageddon comes, stick with the dog.
I wanted to be a hero. I wanted to be the center of attention. I wanted the glory, I wanted the fame. I wanted the pretty girls to come up and say, "Hi, I see that you're good at Centipede."