Local attorney and Scene contributor Peter Pattakos found himself at Coming Attractions Bridal and Formal in Akron last Saturday. It was the only time Pattakos has ever been in that store (he was getting fitted for a tux), and it happened to be right around the same time Ebola patient Amber Vinson was in the store. 

We always welcome our frequent and long conversations with Pattakos, many of which devolve into some hybrid of climate change discourse and NBA post-season chit-chat, but his interview with the Northeast Ohio Media Group pretty much says all that needs to be said on this one.

Given the mania found in most communication channels these days (see all local news websites), Pattakos offered a refreshingly reasonable perspective on the matter: “I didn’t exchange any bodily fluids with anyone, so I’m not worried about it. I’m much more likely to be mistakenly killed by a police officer in this country than to be killed by Ebola, even if you were in the same bridal shop.”

The story’s headline, “Man not worried about Ebola after visiting same bridal shop as Amber Joy Vinson,” borders on the Onionesque, contrasting sharply the rest of the wary content swirling around the social media vortex these days. It feels good to read something that’s not utter claptrap. 

“I wish people would freak out this much about climate change,” Pattakos went on. “It’s one of those problems that’s real easy for the media to cover, rather than some of those other problems that people should be more concerned with.”

This article appears in Oct 15-21, 2014.

Eric Sandy is an award-winning Cleveland-based journalist. For a while, he was the managing editor of Scene. He now contributes jam band features every now and then.

9 replies on “Area Man Gives Only Reasonable Interview About Ebola On Record Anywhere”

  2. Instead of interviewing someone whose opinion is of little to no consequence. The reporter could have talked to the person who helped Amber Vinson. After all, according to the CDC, if they came within 3 feet of Amber Vinson, they are at risk.

  7. Contrary to his earlier statement that Ebola CANNOT be transmitted through the air, CDC Director Tom Frieden testified in front of a House subcommittee on 10/16 and said” EVIDENCE does not suggest Ebola is spread through the air”. Why the small back track on his previous certainty? CDC has tweeted that Ebola can be transmitted by a cough or sneeze if the saliva or mucus comes in contact with the mouth, eyes or nose. I am very curious as to why some people seem so invested in swallowing the government line to the point that they mock those who aren’t?

  8. I also have been going to the links that the Ebola deniers( or should I say those who only note facts or partial facts that agree with their world view)
    have been providing which note the bodily fluid transmission issue. They need to update to include sweat which the CDC now has acknowledged. Just hanging out waiting for the next reversal or addition………….

  9. I read an article about someone that has Ebola. I think it’s a pretty safe statement to say that I should panic now and wonder if I caught it.

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