... about maybe taking a break from this hobby for a little while?  I mean, the whole point of this is TO "exchange bodily fluids," and the reality is that we're doing so with people who have been exchanging fluids with many other people, many of whom travel and ohmygod who the hell knows who they've been in contact with?!?

I know that one transmission in the U.S. is a million miles away from an epidemic, but still, given the severe consequences of this particular STD, are you thinking about placing any restrictions on your activity?

A total break for a while?
Avoid seeing providers who have recently toured in Dallas?
Avoid seeing providers FROM Dallas?
Take a break only if it gets much worse?
Or, no change in normal behavior -- whatever will be, will be?

Where are you all at

1: It's not an STD. No sexual contact is necessary to get ebola.
2: That being said, it's really hard to catch.
3: People are not contagious unless they are symptomatic (or men for 7 weeks after recovery via their semen)
4: It comes on fast, so once a person is symptomatic, they are pretty sick and unlikely to be in any condition to have sex anyhow. Think: High fever, body aches, cough, sweats, lethargy...like a bad case of the flu.

You can quarantine yourself if you want, but it's likely a waste of time. I would wager a week's pay that you are more likely to get in a car crash on your way to work tomorrow than you are of getting Ebola from a provider.

You could always get one of these: https://scroguard.com

“The people who have brains and courage come through and the ones who haven't, are winnowed out.  At least, it has been interesting, if not comfortable, to witness a Gotterdammerung".
                                                                                        ~Ashley Wilkes~
                                                                                               GWTW
P.S. If that whiny, boor, represented Southern gentlemen, I would have shot his ass myself! And while I'm expressing my personal opinion, Lord love a Texan and a fine Italian man too!
 Gotta step up for those damn Yankees also. Yep, I love me some irresistible Yankee bball players, but I was referring to our awesome, everyday Yankee fellas of which my Papa was one of them.  Gad, I miss him!
I seem to have an abundance of opinions recently. Wonder when that'll run out.  Thanks for your patience!

I got mugged in NYC, moved to LA almost got killed by an earthquake, moved to Miami almost died in a hurricane, moved to Aspen almost done in by an avalanche, moved to Topeka barely escaped a tornado, moved to Dallas and yep you guessed it almost took a bullet for Kennedy.

END OF MESSAGE

Leave rest of the humans alone.

When did Ebola become an STD? CDC claims:

Ebola is a disease of humans and other mammals caused by an ebolavirus. Symptoms start two days to three weeks after contracting the virus, with a fever, sore throat, muscle pain and headaches. Typically, vomiting, diarrhea and rash follow, along with decreased function of the liver and kidneys. Around this time, affected people may begin to bleed both within the body and externally.

The virus may be acquired upon contact with blood or other bodily fluids of an infected human or other animal.[1] Spreading through the air has not been documented in the natural environment. Fruit bats are believed to be the normal carrier in nature, able to spread the virus without being affected. Humans become infected by contact with the bats or living or dead animals that have been infected by bats. Once human infection occurs, the disease may spread between people as well. Male survivors may be able to transmit the disease via semen for nearly two months. To diagnose EVD, other diseases with similar symptoms such as malaria, cholera and other viral hemorrhagic fevers are first excluded. Blood samples are tested for viral antibodies, viral RNA, or the virus itself to confirm the diagnosis.

Only solution for dumb fucks like you is to live in BUBBLE for rest of your life.

but thanks for the stupid post, SPOTY points are at a premium at this time of year.

and I like the way that you are both stupid and insulting at the same time, people like to vote for posters that are not only stupid, but posters they don't like as well, and you are tops in both departments, keep up the good work.

Does TER need to start an ebola discussion board so that you people will have someplace to tell each other scary stories? Ebola is not an STD that you can somehow unknowingly contract. You have to have contact with someone who is infected and exhibiting symptoms of the disease. At the moment, there is one such case in the US, a healthcare worker in Dallas. That's one person in 320 million (and she doesn't want to have sex with you). I have a better chance of winning the Powerball, and I don't even buy tickets.

So it does belong in the STD category if contracted that way.

END OF MESSAGE

You can also contract the virus through sweat, urine, feces, blood, and breast milk.

That means in the rare case that an infected person's sweat gets in your eye, you could catch the virus.

Obesity kills 300,000 people per year in the US.
Tobacco kills 450,000 people per year in the US.
Alcohol kills 88,000 people per year in the US.

 
Ebola……1 guy came here with it and died.  

 
Yes, everyone panic.

Those things are not a contagious virus.  

Those are conditions that manifest from the indulgence of products that contain fat, tobacco, and alcohol.

Maybe the OP fucked their brains out, resulting in anterograde amnesia.

Anterograde amnesia may be drug-induced (several benzodiazepines are known to have powerful amnesic effects, and alcohol intoxication also has a similar effect) or it may follow a traumatic brain injury or surgery in which there is damage to the hippocampus or medial temporal lobe of the brain, or an acute event such as a concussion, a heart attack, oxygen deprivation or an epileptic attack. Less commonly, it can also be caused by shock or an emotional disorder.

http://www.human-memory.net/disorders_anterograde.htm

So, ride on, cowboy.

...this is what I see. I see at some point, there maybe a panic in African-American community since majority of travelers from West Africa end up settling in predominantly black neighborhoods. I base this on the following experience:

I had a favorite Chinese restaurant in Chinatown. The place was in the basement, the food and the atmosphere was awesome. Some random Chinese person on the street once recommended it to me as a place that caters to Chinese and not to "the others" and I never looked back. I used to took my friends there and we were almost always the only non-Chinese people being served. Sometimes there'd be a Chinese guy with a non-Chinese girl that obviously brought her there to impress.

The bird flu epidemic however forced the place to shut down. During the epidemic me and my friend stopped by and found the place totally empty. Sad owner told us that bird flu makes all Chinese people try not to interact with other Chinese (and that again was in Chinatown). Restaurants that cater to non-Chinese are doing fine but his place was having 2-3 clients/day.  

Something similar could at some point arguably start happening in African-American community too.

the patient starts showing symptoms, and badly. I think most of us are pretty safe. I'm obviously not a virologist (I'm a linguist actually) but I've studied epidemiology quite extensively just because it's so fascinating. Just from talking to some friends who are actual doctors, I've come to the conclusion that I should not be overly worried until my neighbors contract the virus.

The latest Ebola Victim is a Texas Nurse that was caring for the guy that was in Liberia. Here's the sad part for you White Guys, she's Asian.

any infectious diseases can be transmitted through semen and sexual activity but are not considered STD. Disease that are primarily transmitted through sexual activity and only affecting genital areas are considered STD.

Per your definition, common cold is an STD because one can be infected by having sex with another who  has cold or is infected but doesn’t show external symptoms