As the mainstream media continues to whip itself into a frothing, swine flu frenzy, there are a few other things we should worry about even more.

Like U.S. Sen. Max Baucus. Consider yourselves warned: Late last week, the Montana Democrat told reporters at the National Press Club that "everything is on the table" for health care reform. Somehow I doubt that includes a realistic way to pay for it. The suddenly vocal chairman of the Senate Finance Committee is clearly trying to rip out a page from President Obama's "change" playbook. Obviously, he was referring to the "public option," which sounds so much more benign than the nuclear option the Senate threatened last year, but far more frightening. Expect lawmakers to hit this hard in June.

And there's our new Health and Human Services Secretary, Kathleen Sebelius. From what I hear, she's a sound pick, but I know her stance on abortion (and her questionable campaign accounting) has a few of you worried. (Well, at least she wasn't on Air Force One during that Top Gun fly-by stunt.) Jokes aside, her confirmation is the last of the president's top posts, and we're already sitting on the 100-day threshold. So, while this flu strain bleeds across borders despite citywide lockdowns and more facemasks than Michael Jackson's Neverland, we find ourselves listening to the Homeland Security Secretary, during a health crisis. What's next, Somali pirate briefings from the FDA chief? Oh right, that position's vacant, too.