Union factor surely played role in Boeing win

It's probably going to take a few years to assess the overall impact of Boeing moving its 787 Dreamliner assembly plant to South Carolina. But what an incredible early Christmas present this is for the greater Charleston area during a period of economic recession that has affected just about everyone.

I just wish my father were around to see it. Always pro-growth and pro-business, he'd have probably needed a straitjacket and a shot of liquor just to get reasonably settled. (Although he really didn't drink.)

And why not be excited? The deal could eventually pump billions (with a "b") of dollars into the regional economy. Are we smiling over at The Post and Courier? Well, we're trying not to be too blatant about it. Yet everybody knows the media business has been struggling over the past couple of years.

So, from a purely personal viewpoint, it may not come as a complete surprise that some of us envision direct and/or indirect increases in circulation and ad revenue. Which we would accept in the most gracious manner possible without appearing vulgar or overly enthusiastic.

But surely we're not alone. Boeing is expected to generate at least 3,800 jobs and invest more than $750 million in seven years as a result of the generous incentive package offered by the state. Multiple businesses across the board will be positively affected, unemployment will go down, people will spend more, which should ultimately help the real estate and construction markets emerge from the doldrums.

And what's the most succinct explanation behind this most fortuitous development? Two words: organized labor. The labor unions have done for the good people of Seattle what they did for Detroit and the Georgetown steel mill. Once Boeing understood that this type of threat to its business would not occur in South Carolina, the deal was essentially done.

Too simplistic? Perhaps, but I'd bet that if the local Boeing subcontractor had not recently voted out organized labor, the deal would not have come to fruition. Am I wrong?

Another big story is the proposed rejuvenation of the Gaillard Municipal Auditorium. This, too, will be great for Charleston, and I imagine Mayor "Pamma" would be pleased.

There's been some confusion over who should or shouldn't be vaccinated for H1N1 ("swine") flu, and by what means. Here's a brief synopsis as recently described in The Medical Letter, which a lot of doctors read as a nonbiased overview of available information:

Like the usual seasonal flu vaccine, H1N1 vaccination will be available as an intramuscular shot of inactivated (or dead) viral particles or as a live (but "attenuated") intranasal formulation.

Priority groups for vaccination include pregnant women, persons who live with or provide care for infants younger than 6 months, health care and emergency medical services personnel, children and young adults ages 6 months to 24 years, and people ages 25-64 years with medical conditions (such as asthma) that put them at risk for complications.

The vaccine is not recommended for infants younger than 6 months of age.

Those 65 and older are presumed to have already had passive exposure to H1N1 and are therefore not urged to get vaccinated, although they may certainly do so if they choose.

What type of vaccination should one get? This is confusing. The live, intranasal vaccine is recommended only for generally healthy, nonimmunosuppressed persons age 2-49 years. Children ages 6-23 months need to get the inactivated shot.

Children who are not candidates for the live vaccine may get the shot, but there is an increase in dosage at 36 months. Children 10 or older need only one dose of either vaccine, depending on which they can take. Those 9 or younger receive two doses, about a month apart.

Everybody else gets the shot, including pregnant women, who are not candidates for the live, intranasal vaccination, regardless of their health.

One may get both the seasonal flu vaccine and the H1N1 vaccine at the same time, and one of the vaccines may be live -- but not both.

Hopefully that makes sense, and the recommendations haven't changed by the time you read this.

Edward M. Gilbreth is a Charleston physician. Reach him at edwardgilbreth@comcast.net.