The bird flu is a major threat to America, far more important than terrorism, the war in Iraq, or nuclear proliferation in Iran or Korea. But the Bush administration is failing Americans by not dealing appropriately with the issue, as was the case with Hurricane Katrina.

The H5N1 strain of influenza is not a threat as long as it remains in birds. Infected birds have not reached American shores at this writing, but they will arrive in coming weeks or months. The threat is that the flu strain will mutate into one that is easily transmutable between humans. If that occurs, based on the existing death rate, 35 billion people could die, and the world as we know it will vanish.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), by mid-March, 2006, 196 people had contracted the H5N1 strain worldwide, and 98 died... a staggering 50% death rate.

Why would such a huge number possibly die, all in a flu season or two? Because, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), by mid-March, 2006, 196 people had contracted the H5N1 strain worldwide, and 98 died. That's a staggering 50% death rate. If those statistics were applied to the world population, the effects of a pandemic would be overwhelming.

If human transmission occurs, the virus will spread like wildfire, and there is no barrier to stop it. Some governments, including the US, are stockpiling Tamiflu, but there will only be enough for government workers and health professionals. However, there is no convincing evidence that Tamilful will be effective even for those who take it.

George W. Bush has allocated only $3.3 billion toward dealing with the potential pandemic, including vaccine research and drug stockpiling  This compares to the $270.1 billion spent in the last 3 years on the war with Iraq.

There have been trials of a new vaccine, but results have been disappointing. Large doses are needed for it to have even minimal effectiveness, and it would take far too long to create enough doses to save lives. In addition, influenza viruses are constantly mutating, and a vaccine made now probably will not be effective later.

George W. Bush has allocated only $3.3 billion toward dealing with the potential pandemic, including vaccine research and drug stockpiling  This compares to the $270.1 billion spent in the last 3 years on the war with Iraq. Christians, especially those of us who voted for him, should be very angry at our President for his misplaced priorities.

Today Britain announced a more pragmatic course of action... they are planning mass burials for 320,000 people who they expect will die in the first 15 weeks of an H5N1 outbreak.

In the US, millions who could have been saved, will die due to ineffective leadership. In the midst of all the dead, our leaders will only play the blame game, as they did with Katrina. But the threat is real and action is needed now. The kind of action needed is making more funds available for vaccine research and the accelerated production of it, and a specific plan to help individual Americans, on your street and mine, to deal with the coming pandemic.

Today Britain announced a more pragmatic course of action. In their land of 60 million people, they are planning mass burials for 320,000 people who they expect will die in the first 15 weeks of an H5N1 outbreak. The US has a population of 296,000,000, so that could translate to mass burials of 1,580,000 people in that same time frame.

What does this mean to the Evangelical community?

What does this mean to the Evangelical community? First, out of love for our families and concern for our neighbors here and worldwide, we must express outrage to our President and Congress for not doing a better job now of preparing for this potential catastrophe. As Christians, we tend to believe that a Christian President can do no wrong. That is not the case in this regard. He is pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into Iraq, when he could be spending the funds here protecting us from a much greater threat.

The second thing we can do as Evangelicals is to be mindful that a pandemic will mean that millions will be dying, many without knowing Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Now is the appropriate time to share your faith in Christ with friends, relatives, neighbors and co-workers. We can place little hope in our government, but we can place our hope in Jesus, and share that hope with others.