If the United States Had Smallpox..

    For my biology class, I read Demon in the Freezer: A True Story by Richard Preston as part of a summer homework assignment. It explained the story of how smallpox-a variola virus that infects only humans-had come to kill millions of people all over the world, and the process of its eradication in the late 1970’s. One thing that stood out to me while reading the book was what would happen if the disease were to ever come back. Since it is highly infectious, the disease would have no trouble passing from person to person as we live in larger communities compared to what it used to be, and traveling is much easier as well. Ultimately, we would all eventually succumb to it if preventative measures were not met in time. 

    At the moment, we are currently in the middle of a pandemic, and do not seem to be getting out of it anytime soon. It has been said because of the lack of social distancing and people not wearing their masks, cases will continue to rise as more people fail to follow the preventative measures to slow the spread of COVID-19. Many of those who refuse to follow, believe that it is an “infringement of their rights,” and seek comfort in the words of the President rather than those of the C.D.C. and W.H.O. When we look at other countries, the United States is based more on individualism, and this type of thinking may have been one of the reasons why we have the largest number of cases. It seems that people would much rather think of themselves, rather than the well being of others. Now, if we were to face a smallpox epidemic, would we be having the same reaction as we are now with the current pandemic? Hopefully the answer would be “no,” but I feel that in some way there would still be conflict similar to what is going on now. Both smallpox and covid spread easily between people, and the current situation we are in is not very comforting.

    What do you guys think? Would there we be a better response in America if a smallpox outbreak were to occur? Or would we still be fighting amongst ourselves as people continue to be infected? And above all else-will our pride be the cause of our downfall in the United States?