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By now, everyone in the global warming and Flublogia communities knows about the global warming summit taking place as I write this blog, in Bali, Indonesia. 

Of course, we Flubloggers have been taking the same approach regarding the location that horror movie fans take when watching victim after victim descend darkened stairs to investigate the curious noise emanating from the basement:  "DON'T GO DOWN THERE!  DON'T GO IN THE BASEMENT!" 

But they go in the basement anyway, and we know that if they didn't, then gratuitous film violence and dismemberment would not happen.  And so it is with the Bali summit:  They have to go, even in the face of possible danger. They made the deal, and it is too hard to change locations, let alone cancel the event.

What danger, you ask?  The danger of avian influenza.  And apparently it is not as far-fetched as we might think.  Currently, on FluTrackers, a thread is discussing the death last week of a Jakarta police commander on loan to the UN to help deal with security for the Bali summit.  He died suddenly and, so far, inexplicably, from "difficult flu."  He simply went to bed and died overnight.  He died in the Bali capital of Denpasar.  From flusite poster Dutchy, via machine translation:

The guard of the Conference UN Died because of Flu

Denpasar, on Tuesday - Brigadier Samsul Bahri (32), the member Traffic Police Greater Jakarta Metropolitan Regional Police died as a result of being attacked by acute flu. Samsul at this time was in-BKO-would as pengaman Konfereni UN about the Change in the Climate (UNFCCC) Denpasar, Bali.

"From results" of the "team's inspection" of the "doctor, Samsul it was mentioned died as a result of being attacked by difficult flu, not resulting from the existence" of the "criminal action," said Kasubid Humas Regional Police Bali AKBP Sri Harmiti, in Denpasar, on Tuesday (27/11).

Brigadier Samsul since several days ago was in Bali related UNFCCC security efforts, on Monday (26/11) at dawn around struck 02,00 Wita was found by his room-mate in the Hotel of Orange-Jee in Street Hayam Wuruk, Denpasar already in the situation died. When his room-mate came, said Sri, casualties Samsul were found died with the stiff body on his bed.

Saw that, the friend a room of casualties immediately reported to Regional Police Bali that afterwards entered carried out investigation. Kasubid Humas mentioned, the official of the investigator who was accompanied by the team of the doctor who carried out investigation, in his conclusion said that casualties were killed as a result of being attacked by quite difficult flu.

Along with that, the official who carried out investigation also did not find the guidance if the member Traffic Police Greater Jakarta Metropolitan Regional Police died resulting from the existence of the criminal action. After being checked, said Sri, in the afternoon same the Samsul body was despatched to Jakarta, to be handed over to the family.
(ANT/ABI)
http://kompas.com/ver1/Nusantara/0711/27/151516.htm

Nature is full of cruel ironies -- as displayed by, among other incidents, the recent sinking of a cruise ship down in Antarctica.  The irony is the ship was a global warming cruise, and the ship/line is allegedly owned by a friend of Al Gore.  The purpose of the cruise, I assume, was to investigate the melting of the Antarctic ice shelf.  The ship hit an iceberg (!) and sank.  All hands were saved, but imagine the pollution from the ship's bilges, fuel, oil, flotsam and jetsam, etc.

Imagine if the world's leaders gathered to debate an environmental event and wound up helping transmit a lethal disease all over the world?  Stranger things have happened. 

And since the lid will be welded shut on such reports while the Bali summit is taking place (and maybe well afterward), we may never know the true reason for the death of Jakarta Brigadier, Samsul Bahri.