A deadly virus spread by direct blood-to-blood contact surfaces in Africa. Travelling by plane through human hosts, it spreads to the United States. As the virus multiplies, a mutation occurs in a gene that encodes a protective protein on the surface of the virus. This change in the virus’s protein coating allows the virus to survive direct exposure to the air. The virus is now airborne, like the flu, and a worldwide pandemic is imminent.

This is the plot for the movie “Outbreak,” but the 1995 movie is more than just a little relevant today. The virus the movie centers around is, in fact, Ebola – the virus we are currently trying to contain in West Africa while bringing many  of those infected to the United States for treatment. And while our media here in the States focuses on the beheading of innocents in the Middle East, athletes beating women and children and the ever-popular debate as to which party will be a greater failure during the next four years, the majority of our population is not concerned with the threat of the Ebola Outbreak.

Viruses can mutate at an alarming rate. In most cases, the virus attaches itself to a host cell, injects its genome into the host cell, and uses the host cell’s mechanics to replicate the virus. Hundreds to thousands of new copies of the virus are made, which then burst from the host cell and attach to a new host cell. This can all occur within a matter of hours, leading to trillions of copies of the virus being produced over just a day or two. With each replication of the virus, a handful of mutations occur in its genome – leading to potential mutations in every single gene in the virus genome within a matter of days. Those mutations that allow the virus to spread more quickly or better survive harsh environments (like exposure to air) will continue to multiply. This is not an uncommon occurrence. It’s simply biology. Ebola could very easily become airborne.

If biology is not enough reason to be alarmed by Ebola, the addition of historical evidence should be. The world has experienced infectious outbreaks before, with devastating results. Perhaps the most well-known example, the Bubonic Plague (caused by a bacterial infection), arrived in Italy in 1347, rapidly spread from fleas to humans and decimated the English population. After only five years, the Plague killed over 25 million people, a third of the European population.  Even when the worst was over, smaller outbreaks continued, not just for years, but for centuries. The survivors lived in constant fear of the plague’s return, and the disease did not disappear until the 1600s – 250 years after it emerged. This is but one of many examples of how devastating newly introduced diseases can be. And while we no longer live in the 14th century, the introduction of a virus to a population who has not before encountered it can quickly lead to large numbers of deaths.

We must see Ebola, and diseases like it, for what it could possibly be: the death of millions or more. While our world is in many other ways falling apart, no current political debacle should take precedence over the death of millions of innocent people. If we, as humanity, do not take aggressive action against Ebola, then we could soon be left in a dire situation with no hope of a director saying, “cut.”