LAST WEEK, I wrote about some of the worst pandemics known to history and compared their fatality rate with the coronavirus. This time, I want to talk about the correlation between high population densities and pandemics.
Throughout history, pandemics correlate with high population density. That isn’t to say that they can’t appear in small rural towns or sparsely populated areas, but plagues are sustained and supported by large numbers of people, usually with relatively easy access to transportation. This is truer today than in any other time in history.
There are now billions of people, and many of us have easy access to transportation, both of which are sustained by globalization. When a civilization attains these two things, it becomes vulnerable to pandemics. And there are good reasons for that.
For starters, viruses can travel more easily if there are large numbers of people.
Secondly, large populations are genetically weaker due to less selection pressure, and therefore, more vulnerable to disease.
Thirdly, large concentrated populations generally lead unhealthy lives making them more vulnerable to disease (and if you don’t believe me, I invite you to Google obesity rates by country).
Lastly and more importantly, pandemics occur when a civilization is showing signs of decay. This is not always true, but healthcare, nutrition and genetic well-being tends to correlate with how well a civilization is doing. If those things are declining then we can say that pandemics are one more sign that particular civilization is in decline.
But wait. Some people might say, “We have technology, specifically Big Pharma.” The problem with the “Science and Technology will save us argument” is the situation right now. Is Science and Technology doing a good job of fixing the coronavirus? I don’t think so, and that’s for a pandemic with a relatively small fatality rate. Imagine what a more lethal disease can do.
Now, imagine that very same disease spreading in a decaying society with all kinds of other problems. That, I think, is a likely scenario in the next 80 or so years./PN
