Christopher Columbus brought measles to the New World. It was a disaster for Native Americans.

San Jose Mercury ^ | May 6, 2019 | Michael S. Rosenwald

[artichokegrower]

In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue, bringing to the New World a bounty of wonder: coffee, horses, turnips, grapes, wine.

But Columbus and his fellow explorers, in addition to importing crops and animals we now take for granted, were also the Typhoid Marys of their time.

The New World before Columbus: no typhoid, no flu, no smallpox, no measles.

The New World after Columbus: epidemics of death.

[elpadre]

“..The New World before Columbus: no typhoid, no flu, no smallpox, no measles. ..”

How does anyone know that?? What kind of evidence exists??

[samtheman]

So what?
—
So this:

The liberals want us all to kill ourselves because of it, or at a minimum, submit to a liberal-run dictatorship to make up for it.

[I want the USA back]

People coming into the USA now from third world countries are bringing that and other diseases. The point was ... ?

[pepsi_junkie]

Thanks. I looked it up, my memory was off. He wrote for Discover and the column was from 1992, not the 80s. But hey, nearly 30 years ago anyway so I did okay remembering as much as I did. Here it is online for those interested:

Discover Magazine: The Arrow of Disease

He does indeed make the linkage to domestication of animals though not with much in the way of evidence, more of a conclusion he's drawing based on some other relevant material. But basically he's implying that the indians simply didn't have diseases because diseases all come from animals. And of course Europeans were riddled with them because ... animals. I'd like more evidence before I just buy into that. Maybe with a whole book to make the case he's able to put more behind it.

[ASOC]

You for got the biggest killer or Euros - tobacco....

[READINABLUESTATE]

Am I supposed to feel guilty? Times were tough back then.

What is the point of this article?

[PghBaldy]

More of the measles hysteria.

[PghBaldy]

One of my step-relatives died of it.

[Mrs. Don-o]

The exact and certain point of origin of the "Spanish flu" is unknown, but the first confirmed outbreak was in Haskell County, Kansas. That's were Camp Funston, a U.S. Army base, had its first documented, identified flu-deaths on March 11, 1918. Within hours of the first soldier falling ill, dozens more came down with the flu, dzens died, and by weeks' end, at least 500 people on base were sick with it.

And from thence it spread all around the world, killing more than 50 million people. Well more than died in the First World War.

If we don't really know where or how it originated (and it's all still debated),then why do we call it the 'Spanish' flu?

One big reason is that WWI was still going on, and for strategic/political/secrecy reasons, nobody wanted the whole word to know the horrible plague was decimating their country, so it wasn't reported.

But Spain wasn't a WWI combatant. It struck there, months later, and because it was openly reported, it was the first time most people had heard of it. Under the impression that it started there, they called it "the Spanish disease" or the "Spanish flu."

[Mrs. Don-o]

As for "rapey priests," you ought to be aware that it's a handful of Spanish priests who stood practically alone against the alcohol-drugging, rape, forced concubinage and other abuses of the indigenous people by Spanish soldiers.

LasCasas brought both civil and canonical charges against Spanish soldiers who abused the indigenous people. So did Serra. Turibius (a.k.a. Toribio)of Mongovejo , a canonical lawyer/judge, organized church tribunals to investiate and punish all manner of offenses and mistreatment done by Spanish.

Junipero Serra, and Bartolome de las Casas, Toribio of Mongrovejo. Names to know. We all know what the sinners do. Too few of us know the saints.

[null and void]

He makes a pretty good case for it in the book, but not just with the Americas.

[mass55th]

Somebody was going to bring disease to the New World at some point in time. It was inevitable. And it’s hard to fathom that no one else from Europe, or the Scandavian countries hadn’t already brought disease to the New World prior to Columbus arriving.

[dfwgator]

It’s made up BS, there’s absolutely no proof whatsoever it ever happened.

[Gumdrop]

The bubonic plague came to Europe on ships from SE Asia. Nearly half of the European population died as the result of the Black Death. We are the descendants of the survivors. This type of thing has been going on since time began.

[aquila48]

“Christopher Columbus brought measles to the New World. It was a disaster for Native Americans.”

Is that what they were called back then - native Americans?

[Vermont Lt]

I did know that—but for some reason I thought it was Louisiana. At least I knew the right country! ha ha.

When I was in high school I recall walking through the cemetery at the end of my girlfriend’s street (it was really pretty) and seeing a couple of large mounds that contained the bodies of the several hundred people in our small city who had succumbed to the flu. They did not have time to dig regular graves, so they tossed them into mass graves.

Can you imagine the S-Storm that would bring about today with social media and the multi-cultural BS we deal with? Back then they did not care if you were Irish, Jew, or Black—everyone who died on Monday went into the Monday hole.

[lastchance]

And I’m sure it was a picnic for those of European bloodlines.

[petitfour]

Did white Europeans not die from measles??????????

[dfwgator]

And we killed off the Martians by giving them the common cold, what’s their point?

[rlmorel]

Yep.

And before and after Columbus arrived, tribes preyed on other tribes.

A few tribes were so eager to be hospitable to and ally with Columbus in an effort to keep from being attacked and eaten by the Caribs that they readily shared scarce food with them.