Mark Your Calendars

Sunday, September 28, is World Rabies Day. Is it OK if I choose to skip this celebration?

Not to pick nits, but, well, okay, to pick nits. A "Rabies Awareness Day" or a "Rabies Elimination Day" or a "Help Stamp Out Rabies Day--sign me up. But just "Rabies Day"? What kind of celebration is that?

Now that we're all lice-free...

I truly was surprised to hear that one person dies of rabies every ten minutes--55,000 in a year, half of whom are children under the age of 15. (Stats from the site linked above.) It's preventable, it's treatable (though prevention is better), and it affects Asians and Africans in disproportionate numbers. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control confirmed just one human case of rabies in 2007.

Yet another great reason to not keep wild animals as "pets." And to get your own pets vaccinated.

The things you learn from morning television shows.