Now The Plague Is Showing Up In Fleas

Interesting:

Fleas in two Arizona counties tested positive for the Bubonic plague — the same disease that killed millions of people in the 14th century throughout Africa, Asia, and Europe, public health officials say.

Navajo County public health officials announced Friday that fleas collected near the town of Taylor tested positive for Yersinia pestis, the bacteria that causes the Bubonic plague, the Associated Press reports.

The announcement came one week after Coconino County officials first discovered fleas in the area found to be carrying the plague.

KNXV reports that Coconino County officials first discovered the plague-infested fleas in the Red Lake area last week but also found fleas in the Doney Park area that tested positive for the disease…

Authorities say indicators that the plague is spreading include the sudden death of a large number of prairie dogs and rodents at the same time.

Public health officials warn residents that if they notice a sudden decrease in rodents to call their local health department.

My firm belief is the K-shift is linked in some way to the environment. As an example of a potential mechanism, perhaps slight changes in solar output affect climate, and that triggers slight diminutions in food production. That triggers slightly diminished societal dopamine. That triggers slightly more protectionist behavior. That affects the irresponsible economic behaviors that fuel a society where everyone floods money around freely and borrows to increase the surge. That diminution in irresponsible economic behavior begins an economic contraction. That increases conflict. That affects disbursement of resources, further constricting resources, and further increasing conflict. As all of that happens, the society becomes more K and less tolerant of r, reducing the irresponsible exploitation which fuels r. It all continues on, feeding off itself, until you are in the Apocalypse.

Now Apocalypses can probably have many triggers under different conditions, so I am not proposing that is a uniform starting point and mechanism.

But I have wondered if climate change is a common feature setting off many Apocalypses. If so, the effect it has on the animal kingdom, leaving many animals hungry and immunosuppressed, could affect the number of potential diseases floating around, some of which will inevitably be zoonotic and affect humans.

Could plague spread if you kill ten percent of mice by starvation, and each dead mouse’s fleas spread to other mice, turning one infected mouse into ten (and leaving fleas all over jumping around looking for any animal, even a human, to dine on)?

Personally, I think it highly likely a pandemic of some sort will be a part of the Apocalypse, and any preparation will have to factor that in. And it is not unlikely it could come out of left field, seemingly totally unrelated to human activity.

The good news is the pandemic will take out the hippies first, so my interest is purely for entertainment purposes only.

Tell everyone about r/K Theory, because there is more than one way to have an Apocalypse

This entry was posted in Decline, Economic Collapse, ITZ, K-stimuli, Pandemic. Bookmark the permalink.
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Pitcrew
Pitcrew
6 years ago

We tried to warn the hippies, many times. They wouldn’t listen. Popcorn popped.

c_arnold
6 years ago

I don’t know why, but this all seems to fascinating to me that I don’t immediately focus upon the horrific future this hints towards when the collapse occurs. Rodent die offs happen every year and bubonic plague has always been around. The only difference in our time compared to the medieval period is that Europeans are aware that rat and mice nests aren’t to be encouraged and rodents are to be avoided as a source of protein. This particular point makes me curious how many outbreaks of bubonic plague occurred during Roman Imperial times before the imperial collapse.

But back on topic, more municipalities are transitioning to and encouraging the use of chemical contraceptives to control rodent populations instead of poisons. The problem complication is that these municipalities have also given up on educating or incentivizing better household food and waste control. I imagine rodent poisons affected fleas as well, if the fleas are surviving long enough to find human hosts to infect. However, I also notice roach blooms. Swarms of roaches at locations I would once notice rats congregate.

I don’t think this will end particularly well if humans don’t get more disciplined regarding sanitation and hygiene.

Zundfolge
Zundfolge
6 years ago

The Bubonic plague never really went away. We get occasional alerts here in Colorado when local Dept of Wildlife folk find a squirrel or other rodent that has died of plague. You’re just instructed not to let your dog play with the dead rodent and if you get sick, antibiotics will kill it (but nobody ever comes down with it). Certainly if antibiotics stop working or a new strain develops it could be bad, but I think recent stories about the “imminent reemergence of the Bubonic Plague” are just click bait fear mongering.

Mr Darcy
Mr Darcy
6 years ago
Andy
Andy
6 years ago

There are like 12 cases of plague every year in the USA. There was once a case of a man in i think it was also arizona whos name was gaylord. No joke. Image youre a new doctor at that hospital and you find that clipboard of gaylord having some medieval disease not thinking your staff is playing a prank on you.