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medpundit |
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Tuesday, June 11, 2002The beginning of the war corresponded to the beginning of the smallpox epidemic. Washington, fearing that inoculation would spread the disease further, did not allow its use among the troops. The British, however, did just the opposite. It was their policy to identify men among their ranks who had never had smallpox and inoculate them. The result was that the Americans were decimated by the disease and the British hardly noticed it. Fenn blames the disease for the American defeat on the Plains of Abraham. By the time Washington and his troops were gathered in Valley Forge, he realized the folly of his anti-inoculation position. He reversed his stance, and all nonimmune troops and new recruits were inoculated on arrival. Smallpox among the troops declined, and the course of the war turned. Now let's see, a population with very little immunity, a policy against preventive steps; sounds familiar, no? Maybe the folks at the CDC should read Elizabeth Fenn, or at least ask her to attend their conference this month. And while they're at it, invite some historians with expertise in the conquest of Central America, when smallpox was the great ally of the conquering Spaniards. They could remind the good doctors just what smallpox was like among populations with no immunity. Let's hope our leaders have the wisdom to learn from history. NOTE: I changed the link for the book to Barne's and Noble, since Amazon seems to only be offering the paperback version now, which hasn't been published yet. (Just in case any of you are anal enough to notice such a thing) posted by Sydney on 6/11/2002 06:13:00 AM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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