Your prophecy is almost about to come true,
craft1948.
Whilst not quite the same as its bubonic cousin, there have been reports over the past few days of an outbreak of pneumonic plague in China.
All of these things (the most sensational of which always seem to be associated with animals � don�t forget we were all to be slain by �bird �flu� not too long ago) give governments (particularly this one) a sense of importance. They can flap around setting up help lines and websites (most of which are no help at all) and generally spend a bit more of the taxpayers� hard-earned putting in place ineffective and often unnecessary measures.
It provides them with the activity upon which they thrive to justify their existence.
See here for more important information:
http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Body-and-Soul/Q uestion792322.html