it's like the eye of a duck

The first thing I thought when I heard about the Atlanta man who flew all over Europe with active extensively drug resistant TB was "What an idiot". Maybe I've just been reading too much but it seemed obvious to me that tuberculosis is a serious disease no matter how you cut it, and the fact that it's resistant to almost all of the antibiotics thrown at it would convince, I would think, people of average intelligence to stay home and take their medicine.

Now that I've read his side of the story I'm coming to the cranky conclusion that the guy's just an asshole: he was advised not to travel and did so anyway and when ordered to turn himself in for isolation and treatment he promptly jumped another plane across the Atlantic with full knowledge that his passport was flagged, etc.

I'd have some sympathy if he first got the diagnosis while on his honeymoon and was afraid of facing a serious illness on his own in a foreign country - I imagine that would be terrifying spur of the moment news, and anyone might have done something stupid in that situation. But he knew before he left for his Big Fat European Wedding that he wasn't responding to treatment, and given that his new father in law is a TB researcher (!) I find it impossible to believe he didn't know how serious his illness was!

Nah, he's "a very well-educated, successful, intelligent person", and as such is special - he shouldn't have his life inconvenienced in the name of not infecting who knows how many family, friends and strangers </sarcasm>

Jayzus, I know that there's a careful balance to be kept between civil liberties and public health but it seems to me this guy was completely self-centered. Massive coverage/analysis by actual science/doctor types at Scienceblogs.