Importing The Next Plague

Anyone reading this article is old enough to remember the recent outbreak of Ebola, which terrified the world, and laid ruin to West Africa.

We’ve done battle with bubonic plague, influenza Poliomyelitis… but in 2014, the bacteria Ebola, a relatively new enemy, burst forth like a bloodthirsty hellhound. It took 11,310 lives and spread faster than wildfire. It surged across West Africa and put the entire world on edge… if this outbreak had gotten a little farther it could have been “the next big one.” Entire cities were quarantined, and travel to and from Africa ground almost to a near-complete halt.

The moral of this story is these outbreaks can happen fast. They come out of nowhere, and, even in a society where we are equipped with international medical services trained to deal with this sort of thing, disease outbreaks can take us by surprise and spread faster than we can contain. Stay alert and stay informed, otherwise you may find out too late. Stay ahead of it. Stay on guard.

There’s no telling when or where the next serious outbreak of disease will be. It could be across the world, it could be in your hometown. Being prepared for it, and understanding our history with disease will put you a step ahead of the rest.

We have learned even great and powerful cultures can fall easily and quickly to an outbreak and outbreaks have lasting effects that can change history drastically.

We can all agree rats suck (along with many other ground rodents) and often carry disease/s. Stay on guard, even after things seem to be getting better. Diseases like to recur.

Wars often precipitate disease outbreaks. They create the ideal disarray for disease to spread. Third world regions are particularly susceptible and therefore more dangerous.

We can win. Vaccinations and medications can be created, which have the capability to eradicate diseases. There is hope!

Our ancestors did a lot of suffering at the hands of diseases. I can’t even imagine what it would have been like to live through one of these historical epidemics – the horror, the sadness, the misery… Don’t let their tribulations go to waste! Learn from the past, learn from the mistakes and the successes of those who came before, and maybe – just maybe – you will see next big one – and live to tell the tale.

Remember, we’re all in this together,

Derek Paulson

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