The issue with this flu is not death...

the issue is continuity of operations and the economy. This is not the 1918-19 influenza; it's (apparently, knocking on wood) not going to kill a whole lot of people. But it will make a lot of people in the work force's primary age groups sick, and people with the flu get very sick.

That is what the hype and the scare tactics miss. People probably aren't going to die, but they are going to miss work and school. Offices and schools are already closing in American cities. What do you do with your kids when they can't go to school? What happens to the economy when even a few business start shutting down? John Robb says it better than I ever could.

How big is your department? What would happen if just 10 percent of your workforce had a highly infectious illness that takes its victims completely out of commission for a week or two?

That is why this is (potentially) a big deal. And if it peters out, then it's a great dress rehearsal for The Big One.