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Growing up in the big, bad northwest suburbs, Chicagoist had a bit of a rivalry with the North Shore high schoolers at New Trier. Not only did they have oodles of money and one of the most gorgeous public school campuses we've ever seen, they were just so damn smart. At least their Scholastic Bowl entrants were. Not that we were in Scholastic Bowl or anything like that. What kind of trivia nerds do you take us for? ... Don't answer that.
Well, we're having a small laugh at good ol' New Trier's expense today, for they're in the middle of a whooping cough outbreak. So far 13 teenagers at the school's Winnetka campus have contracted the disease, which is highly contagious. We tend to get whooping cough mixed up with the croup, a nasty, phlegmy cough emitted by infants. (We first read about croup in Stephen King's "The Stand." How's that for nerdy trivia?) On the contrary: whooping cough's official name is pertussis, the symptoms of which include ... well, a dry cough that has a distinctive "whooping" sound. There's no fever involved, which is why so many people wait until the cough starts up to seek treatment, thinking it's just a cold.
Not to worry, hypochondriacs: Whooping cough has little severe implications for anyone over toddler age who's been vaccinated, although one should note that such vaccinations tend to wear off after 3-5 years. That's why New Trier's freshmen have gone unharmed ... they got their immunizations upped before starting school this year. We just think it's a riot that all these teenagers have whooping cough, of all things. We thought that had almost gone the way of rubella and TB. We also imagine making out has become something of a minefield. Poor rich brainy bastids. Not that we're bitter.
Image via the Nebraska HSS System.
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How nice that you can laugh over someone else's illness! May someone come to YOU when you get sick with something "minor" and laugh at you sometime.
For the record, I grew up in Oak Park and we weren't all that fond of New Trier, either (there was a bit of a rivalry with ANY other high school, to be honest), but to laugh at someone else's illness?
Your article wasn't just insensitive, but in poor taste. Not only you, but your Editor, should be put in a room full of these kids who HAVE whooping cough, so you contract it and then see just how "funny" it is when you feel like you are trying to cough up a lung!
Lee Darrow, C.H.
fair enough. i may have been a little insensitive, but it stems from two things: 1. whooping cough is nonfatal to all but babies without immunization, and 2. it's a relatively obscure disease nowadays, raising the amusement factor for myself and hopefully a few other people out there.
Sorry for the slow comeback - it's been a busy season and I have been on the road quite a bit.
Here's some additional information about whooping cough for you. Just fyi...
Pertussis sufferers may experience more than two months of severe, uncontrollable coughing episodes that can occur 15 times within 24 hours.
These coughing fits can lead to vomiting, a hernia, or even a broken rib. In some cases, pertussis can lead to pneumonia. (source: The American Association for the Advancement of Science Eureka Alert http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-10/cw-wcm101804.php
So yeah - that is really hilariously funny - vomiting, hernia,, broken ribs and pneumonia (which CAN be fatal).
Just hilarious.
You really need to work on your empathy skills as a reporter. Seriously.