[cheebacheeba]

Heard a joke a little while ago.

A lion and a tiger find themselves chasing the same chicken, and while on the run, the lion says "back off, I'm king of the jungle, people fear my very name!" the tiger replies "I'm just as mighty, and even more fearsome than you!" snarling. The chicken stops, and right before being ripped apart, the chicken says "Big fucking deal, all I have to do is cough and the whole world shits itself".

I'm not worried about the bird flu thing. True, Australia is located closer to asia and all, but...
1: There's actually medication to immunise yourself against it, it's called "tami-flu" or some shit like that...it's in high demand, but it's available.
2: Australia is not nearly as population congested as most other countries including the USA, UK, all other asian countries, so the spread would be much slower. I'd think there'd be adequet enough warning.
3: If it happens ANYWHERE, all you really have to do is stock up on supplies, wear a gas mask, and at this point, you'd be alright.

I'd be a little more worried if I lived in a more heavily populated country though...