Plagues and Peoples

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1. angst_riddenJun 2023
   I always found McNeill's "Plagues and Peoples" a much better read than Diamond's book on semi-overlapping topics.
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2. perchecrikMar 2020
   Did I panic? I don’t know. I began to prepare in early February for the possibility of draconian cordon sanitaire, widespread panic, and the consequent interruption in supply after learning that in Wuhan initial warnings had been suppressed, and mass gatherings permitted during a time the virus was in the population. Because of that head start, and the dramatic R_0 of this bug, I sensed this was no ordinary outbreak.

   I resumed my efforts in mid February after learning that the CDC had rejected WHO test kits, then had produced defective test kits, which, coupled with unreasonably strict test criteria, caused virtually no surveillance in the US to be done. It did not inspire confidence that mass gatherings continued to be held, and were even encouraged (e.g., San Francisco's Mayor's issuance of a statement encouraging RSA conference attendance, or the recent Bernie Sanders rally in San Jose).

   Note that the failure of the US to adequately surveil, moreover its failure to respond quickly to that failure, mirrors what transpired in Wuhan. In the case of Wuhan, the national state only became aware of the problem when the local medical system was overwhelmed, and the epidemic had gone, ahem, viral.

   Given the similarity between the surveillance gap in China and the US, and the failure to respond to that gap in the US, I thought prudent to continue to prepare.

   I might, though, have a different perspective due to the fact that my father was head of serology and virology labs with reporting, diagnostic, and research responsibilities for animal diseases for a US state. Or, maybe a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, I don’t know. But I can, thus, recommend journalistic potboilers such as “Rats, Lice, and Men” and “Plagues and Peoples”. More seriously, David Quammen, given the background he gained in evolutionary biology from writing “Song of the Dodo”, in “Spillover” gives what’s probably the best elucidation of zoonotic pathogens.

   Previous zoonotic pathogenic outbreaks have killed more than probably all wars combined. Disruption of habitat by human colonization and climate change have intersected with mass jet travel to increase the likelihood that pathogens will make it from animal reservoirs to our species.

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3. billswiftJan 2010
   Another really good book is William McNeill's "Plagues and Peoples". It discusses worldwide effects of diseases on populations, not just the Americas, and is very readable. He also points out that in populations with heavy disease loads, most are exposed as children often developing immunity thereafter, while newly exposed populations lose adults to the disease, which causes greater economic and military debility to the society.
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4. baseline-shiftMay 2023
   Plagues and Peoples by William McNeill does cover parish records of births and deaths (mortality tables) in England at that time, so they must have been recording this prior to the big one
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5. setrAug 2019
   When the time came to read Guns, Germs and Steel, I had bought into Plagues and Peoples (William McNeill) instead -- similar accounts, but more controlled in scope (which made it more trustworthy, imo); as a result, I guess I missed a very convenient confirmation :)
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6. james_s_taylerJan 2019
   Thanks for the recommendation! Plagues have definitely had an important impact on the river of history.

   Is there any particular reason to read Plagues and Peoples instead of Guns, Germs and Steel rather than in addition to?

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