Here are a few facts and opinions regarding swine flu.  This comes not only from the many articles and professional sources I have read over the past week, but also from my own educational background.

1. It doesn't come from pigs.  While pigs are just as succeptable to the virus as we are, there currently is not as high of a previlance in pigs globally as there is in humans.  Currently you are much more likely to get swine flu from a family member than the pig at a local farm.  Live pigs just don't travel as much as we humans do, and there is no evidence that you can contract the virus from cooked pig meat.

So why is it called swine flu?  Well it is a new form of the flu we see every year, only in this case the virus has hybridized with the original "swine flu" (which was hardly ever a problem for humans, though a few cases came up every once in a while) as well as the bird flu to form H1N1.  Swine flu is no more a correct name than bird flu or just flu. 

2. It won't stop spreading.  Like the common cold or our yearly flu, this virus will be everywhere in no time.  No amount of scrubbing your hands or locking yourself in basements will prevent this.  This appears to be a highly virulent virus that will not be controlled by stopping the spread itself.  The WHO has already told us that a pandemic is imminent.

So what can you do?  Keep yourself healthy.  If or when you contract the virus, many of us will be able to fight it off just as easily as minor flu.  However it is important that the very young and the very old are watched carefully and given full medical attention if signs of the virus appear.

Just keep your cool.  We are just as likely to become sick from any number of other pathogens, many of which are more fatal.