The graphic on “Good Morning America” read “Ebola-Free America,” now that Dr. Craig Spencer no longer has the virus in his system and has been cleared. But I wonder if anyone in the media — or politicians like Chris Christie, Rick Perry, and Bill DeBlasio — has second thoughts about the panic-level fear-mongering they used to create the impression that everyday Americans were at risk for contracting Ebola.
The fact remains that the only ones who contracted the virus in this country were nurses in Dallas who tried to save Thomas Eric Duncan’s life. That’s it. No one on public transportation, no one in a bowling alley, no one at Starbucks or McDonald’s, or anywhere else.
As Frank Bruni pointed out last month, there are lots of things much more dangerous than Ebola: many thousands of Americans die every year due to the flu, skin cancer, automobile accidents, and guns. But I’m not concerned. I’m sure the media will return to fear-mongering on those and other subjects soon.
That’s a virus there is no cure for.