I certainly am one of those who has learned more about viruses and vaccines than I ever wanted to know. The history of diseases is a subject I have long neglected, perhaps because I assumed we advanced to the point where the horrible plagues of times past were far behind us. One lesson I have learned is that the health of a population is more closely tied to economic well-being than the presence of miracle drugs. Well-nourished people with steady incomes are less likely to succumb to disease than poor, starving people who don't know what tomorrow will bring. That's why it's so crazy that health officials even considered shutting down the economy in March 2020, even if only for 2 weeks.
In addition to vaccines, forced quarantines also have a history of questionable effectiveness. My ancestors came to America during a cholera epidemic and were forced to stay for a week on "Quarantine Island" near St. Louis. I wrote about their experience here:
I certainly am one of those who has learned more about viruses and vaccines than I ever wanted to know. The history of diseases is a subject I have long neglected, perhaps because I assumed we advanced to the point where the horrible plagues of times past were far behind us. One lesson I have learned is that the health of a population is more closely tied to economic well-being than the presence of miracle drugs. Well-nourished people with steady incomes are less likely to succumb to disease than poor, starving people who don't know what tomorrow will bring. That's why it's so crazy that health officials even considered shutting down the economy in March 2020, even if only for 2 weeks.
In addition to vaccines, forced quarantines also have a history of questionable effectiveness. My ancestors came to America during a cholera epidemic and were forced to stay for a week on "Quarantine Island" near St. Louis. I wrote about their experience here:
https://stephenjwood.substack.com/p/quarantine-in-the-time-of-cholera?r=17305e