Free Republic

The Black Death: A Global History. By Thomas Asbridge. Random House; 544 pages; $38. Allen Lane; 560 pagesThe disease seems to have emerged in Asia. It soon reached Europe, ravaging Italy first. It killed millions, often quickly. Many people perished at home, or died within a few hours or days of receiving medical treatment. So large was the death toll and so great was the danger of contagion that funerary customs were disrupted. People fled cities. All this was true of covid-19. It was also true of the Black Death. As Thomas Asbridge describes in detail, the medieval plague was...

The man shot dead during a struggle with federal agents in Minneapolis has been identified as an intensive care nurse who treated critically ill military veterans. Alex Jeffrey Pretti, 37, was killed shortly after 9am Saturday after an altercation involving multiple federal officers. Minneapolis police confirmed the deceased was a white, 37‑year‑old Minnesota resident and US citizen. Pretti's friends have since confirmed his identity to the Daily Mail as they paid tribute to the 'good, kind' who they say was 'executed' by a Border Patrol agent. The University of Minnesota alumnus most recently listed himself as a ‘junior scientist’ on...