Pandemic 2020 ???

Described as "magisterial in its breadth of perspective and depth of research," The Great Influenza: the Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague in History, by John M. Barry provides a detailed account of the 1918 pandemic caused by the Spanish flu, even though it most likely started in Haskel County, Kansas and was spread world-wide by troop movements of WWI. It proceeded in multiple waves, the second -- occurring months after the first -- being the deadliest. It killed 50 million people world-wide including 675,000 in the U.S. according to the CDC. The above image is Camp Funston, at Fort Riley, Kansas, during the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic.

Barry's conclusion from his book is, "...those in authority must retain the public's trust. The way to do that is to distort nothing, to put the best face on nothing, to try to manipulate no one." The pandemic was made worse by the Woodrow Wilson administration doing exactly the opposite -- suppressing critical news of medical experts, lying to the public to keep up morale for the war, and passing a sedition act to threaten any criticism of its actions with imprisonment.

In a recent interview with the Washington Post about how the Trump administration is handling the current coronavirus outbreak, Barry said, "They are clearly trying to put the best possible gloss on things, and are trying to control information…. I think the No. 1 lesson that came out of the experience is that if you want to prevent panic, you tell the truth." He added that he is “a little bit worried” about the plan being followed. He doesn’t think the Trump administration is “outright lying, but they’re definitely giving you interpretations that seem to be the best-case scenarios.”

If anyone claims to know the progression of the coronavirus, they are lying. It may disappear as Trump claims, but it's current spread seems to indicate otherwise. Listen to the experts and hope Trump does likewise.

John L. Ferri