Kind of a joke, but what do you think about adding a condition that I do not want books from a home where someone has been sick within the last month. :)

You can have any requestor conditions you want. 

I would think the person was paranoid, and want nothing to do with such a transaction.

At first I started to laugh at the response - but there's something to it.  I'm not sure how the swine flu transmits from person to person.  It may really transfer by viruses left on an object...but hopefully, the time spent in the Media mail journey would make the viruses null in effect.

Ruth

I am wondering how that would be confirmed.

I can almost imagine it:

Receiver marks a book RWAP stating it has sick germs on it.
Sender denies sick germs. Asks receiver to prove it.
Receiver stands firm, saying he can tell the book has cooties all over it.
Sender sends receiver raspberries.
Receiver claims that the raspberries in the PM gave his computer a virus.....

Your question was what do I think of an RC like this?  I would find it ridiculous, sorry to say.  Unless you are living in a bubble, you are exposed to viruses multiple times a day.  Other people's books would be low on my list of concerns.  Plus, even if it did have some kind of germ on it, many viruses would not live as long as it would take for you to get the book,

I suspect that your wish list requests would get quite a few conditions not met.

I had a runny nose last week and I think it was spring-time allergies.  But I'm not sure... Next wisher please.

I guess it wouldn't be too bad if you specified "no swine flu, no bird flu, no ebola." I would probably turn someone down with "no runny noses please."

I would probably turn it down. If you are worried about germs (I'm not sure exactly how the swine flu is spread), you can wear gloves when unwrapping the book and then clean it with a paper towel and a bleach solution. That should kill any germs on the cover anyway. I doubt you'd get many people willing to send to someone with that RC. I know I wouldn't.

LOL well since it's fairly new how would you know if you were infected?  We are just starting to hear about it.  I guess it does kind of make sense if you are worried about coming down with it.  Interesting..

Swine Flu:

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Swine+Flu

I would not send a book to that person until...well, until I see swine flew...er....pigs fly. :-D

Cheryl

Since the germ can only live for 24 - 48 hours on hard surfaces, I doubt there is much of a problem.

And how would you protect yourself from the swine flu on your electric bill, or newpaper, or the pizza you just ordered?

C'mon!  Do any of you REALLY think the swine flu could survive Media Maul??

It's my understanding that many germs are contageous before the carrier even knows they are about to become ill, so the RC would seem futile.  One wonders if sometime soon, PBS members will receive a pm...."don't open the book I just mailed, it may contain Swine Flu!"

At this point, catching a virus from a mailed book isn't a big concern for me :-)

I got a book from Brooklyn today and didn't even consider the possibility...Swine has hit the NYC burroughs pretty hard, but I'm going to think positive. Most viruses don't live very long outside of the body, and books are trapped in envelopes for a few days to a few weeks.

As a matter of fact, this book was postmarked on the 21st.

Currently... from the upper right search field... curious to see what books are returned

Mad Cow - 16

Bird Flu - 3

Swine Flu - 2

A saw an expert on CNN last night say that the virus can live minutes or up to 48 hours on surfaces. So, if the book takes at least 2 days in the mail, you are safe.

Well pretty much what everyone else has said, of course you can have any RC you wish. I wouldn't send you a book if I got the request.  I would think it would be easier to be infected at the library than a book from here.

What about the Post Office, what's to keep the fellow sorting the mail, or the mail carrier from sneezing all over your mail?

If you're that worried, you might want to put your WL on vacation hold for the time being.

If it can live up to 48 hours, you could just wait 2 days before opening the package... :) Store in a warm, dry place until then.

A saw an expert on CNN last night say that the virus can live minutes or up to 48 hours on surfaces.

That's fine for hardbacks, but what about paperbacks? 

As I said, I was mostly joking.... :)

Well, you got mixed answers! ;-)

The thing is, you'd have to just stop getting mail because you can bet your mail carrier isn't staying home if he/she has been sick in the past month.  They handle stuff from EVERYWHERE, so I think the book would be the least if your worries.