The 10 Worst Epidemics In History

The bacteria yersinia pestis was responsible for the Bubonic Plague, or the Black Plague.

• Despite popular belief the black plague is only the second largest epidemic by death rate.
• HIV/AID is one of the largest epidemics ongoing that does not have a vaccine.
• More often than not, epidemics begin in animals that are then transmitted to humans.

OVERVIEW:  10 Worst Epidemics In History

1. Plague of Justinian (Years: 541-542); Number of deaths: 100 million

2. Black Plague (Years: 1346-1350); Number of deaths: 50 million

3. HIV/AIDS (Years: 1960-present); Number of deaths: 39 million

4. Spanish Flu (Years: 1918-1920); Number of deaths: 20 million

5. Modern Plague (Years: 1894-1903); Number of deaths: 10 million

6. Asian Flu (Years: 1957-1958); Number of deaths: 2 million

7. The Sixth Cholera Pandemic (Years: 1899-1923; Number of deaths: 1.5 million

8. Russian Flu (Years: 1889-1890); Number of deaths: 1 million

9. Hong Kong Flu Years: 1968-1969; Number of deaths: 1 million

10. The Fifth Cholera Pandemic (Years: 1881-1896); Number of deaths: 981,899

Throughout history, epidemics have been responsible for hundreds of thousands of lives lost. The reason epidemics have claimed so many lives is that they are usually highly communicable diseases which reach large populations in very short times. The number of cases of the disease quickly exceeds what would normally be expected within the population. These diseases could be viral, bacterial, or other health events (like obesity). Some epidemics have been so great that they left a permanent impact on the population at the time. Some of the worst of these can be found below.

Epidemics With The Highest Number Of Deaths

Plague Of Justinian (Byzantine Empire, 541 - 750) 

The Plague of Justinian hit humanity between 541 and 542 AD. It was responsible for the highest number of lives lost in an epidemic in history. Estimates believe 100 million people died during this time, which was half the world population. This plague was able to spread so quickly because it was carried on the backs of rodents, whose fleas were infected with the bacteria. These rats traveled all over the world on trading ships and helped spread the infection from China to Northern Africa and all over the Mediterranean. The Plague of Justinian is attributed with having weakened the Byzantine Empire in several ways. The military lost power and was no longer able to fend off intruders. Farmers became sick, and agricultural production declined. With a smaller agricultural base, income taxes fell. Thousands of people died daily at the height of the destructive plague.

Black Plague (Mostly Europe, 1346 To 1350) 

The Black Plague claimed the lives of 50 million people from 1346 to 1350. The outbreak began in Asia and, once again, was carried throughout the world by rats covered with infected fleas. After its arrival in Europe, it spread death and destruction. Europe lost 60% of its population to the Black Death. Symptoms of this disease began with swelling of the lymph nodes, either in the groin, armpit, or neck. After 6 to 10 days of infection and sickness, 80% of infected people die. The virus was spread via blood and airborne particles. This epidemic changed the course of European history. The lack of understanding of the origin of the disease led the Christian population to blame the Jewish community of poisoning the water wells; as a result of this accusation, thousands of Jews were killed. Others believed it was punishment dealt from Heaven for leading sinful lives. The world saw agricultural shortages as in the Plague of Justinian, and malnutrition and hunger were rampant. After the ending of the Black Death, the decline in population resulted in increased wages and cheap land. The available area was used for animal husbandry and meat consumption throughout the region increased. 

HIV/AIDS (Worldwide, 1960- Present)

The HIV/AIDS epidemic began in 1960 and continues to the present day, although the scariest moments happened during the 1980s when the world became informed of its existence. So far, this virus has caused the death of 39 million people. By the 1980s, HIV was believed to infect somebody on every continent. Rare lung infections, rapidly advancing cancers, and unexplained immune deficiencies were rampant among gay men, and at the time, doctors believed it was caused by same-sex activity. A large number of Haitians were also carriers of the virus, which were not named until 1982. Cases were identified in Europe and Africa. In 1983, it was discovered that transmission occurred via heterosexual activities as well. Medicine for treatment was not available until 1987. Today, about 37 million people are living with HIV. For those individuals with access to antiretroviral medication, life expectancy has been extended. Currently, this virus is particularly aggressive in Sub-Saharan Africa, where at least 68% of all global HIV/AIDS infections are found. The reasons for this are many but stem from poor economic conditions and little to no sex education.

Other Epidemics

Other epidemics that have resulted in numerous deaths include the: 1918 Flu (20 million deaths); Modern Plague, 1894-1903 (10 million); Asian Flu, 1957-1958 (2 million); Sixth Cholera Pandemic, 1899-1923 (1.5 million); Russian Flu, 1889-1890 (1 million); Hong Kong Flu, 1968-1969 (1 million); and the Fifth Cholera Pandemic, 1881-1896 (981,899).

Future Epidemics

The next global epidemic is the fear of many public health professionals. Given the ease of mobility and absolute globalization of today, a rapidly spreading disease that could wipe out the population is easy to imagine. The likelihood that this epidemic would come from animals is very high. New infectious pathogens are being discovered every day. Large farms pose the greatest danger because of the constant contact between animals and people; the potential of cross-contagion is increased. It is important that governments and public health officials maintain a strong, vigilant network to prevent widespread diseases in the future.

https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-10-worst-epidemics-in-history.html#:~:text=The%2010%20Worst%20Epidemics%20In%20History%20%20,%20%2020%2C000%2C000%20%206%20more%20rows%20

If Democrats Pack the Court

By The Editorial Board | The Wall Street Journal

Senator Ed Markey (D-MA), left, and U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), right, introduce the Judiciary Act of 2021 aimed at expanding the Supreme Court from nine to thirteen justices, outside the court in Washington, on April 15. - PHOTO: JAMES LAWLER DUGGAN/REUTERS

After they add Justices, the GOP could strip their jurisdiction.

 The media mostly treated President Biden’s announcement of his 36-member commission on the Supreme Court last week as a deft deflection of court packing. Well, not so fast. The Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and other Democrats introduced a bill this week to expand the Supreme Court to 13 Justices from nine.

Message: The Democratic left is serious about this, and the Biden commission better not dismiss it. Oh, and pay attention, Justices. Congress will remake the Court if you issue rulings that offend progressives.

Republicans are rightly calling this out for the political intimidation it is. But here’s another message for the GOP and the commission to consider: If Democrats do turn the Court into another legislature by packing it, the GOP has the power to limit or strip its jurisdiction.

***

If that sounds radical, consider what Democrats are proposing. Merely because GOP appointees now hold a 6-3 majority on the High Court, progressives want to blow it up on a partisan Congressional vote. Adding Justices in this way would undermine the Court’s legitimacy with the American public, with perhaps lasting harm, as Justice Stephen Breyer warned in a timely speech last week.

Many Republicans respond by saying they’ll return the disfavor when they next have power and add more Justices. But this concedes the progressive view that the Court is merely another policy-making body. It would turn the Court into a de facto House of Lords, albeit with power, which would put an end to its traditional judicial role of applying the law to cases and controversies.

There’s a better response: Limit the Supreme Court’s ability to function as a super legislature. Congress can do this by limiting the appellate jurisdiction of the Court. This would limit a packed Court’s power by returning it to the original role of the judiciary under the Constitution’s separation of powers.

The Constitution explicitly gives Congress the power to determine the appellate jurisdiction of the federal courts in Article III, Section 2. The Supreme Court recognized this Congressional authority in the 1869 case, Ex Parte McCardle . Justice Antonin Scalia invoked McCardle’s view of jurisdiction in his 2006 dissent in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld and was joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito.

Much would depend on how Congress chose to define jurisdiction to limit judicial policy-making on an expanded Court. One idea would strip jurisdiction over cases seeking to find rights not expressly mentioned in the Constitution. Progressives regularly ask the Justices to recognize new rights that are protected by the doctrine of “substantive due process,” as the right to abortion was. Congress could bar the Justices from hearing cases asking them to use that analysis to invent new rights such as a right to suicide or to a guaranteed income.

Another possibility would be cases that seek to restrict political free speech by regulating campaign contributions. A Court packed by Democrats would surely seek to overturn Citizens United v. FEC (2010), and a Republican Congress could deny the Court’s ability to hear such cases.

Stripping the discretion of courts over immigration decisions would return final authority to the federal agencies created by Congress. This would clear away the judicial interference that has bedeviled immigration policy and contributed to the mess on the Mexico-U.S. border.

Congress could also remove the Court’s ability to hear cases under the 1971 Bivens precedent that recognized implied cause of action in the absence of Congressional authorization. This gave the federal courts more power over federal and state policies, and Justice Thomas has said Bivens was wrongly decided.

Cases challenging the detention of enemy combatants could also get the heave-ho, as per Justice Scalia’s opinion in Hamdan. So could cases seeking national injunctions, which proliferated during the Trump Presidency. And don’t forget cases that challenge such fundamentally political decisions as Congressional redistricting or the Census.

***

We can think of others, but you get the idea. If Democrats want to turn the Court into a super legislature, then they would run the risk of having a future Congress circumscribe the Court’s writ to narrower and traditional judicial purposes.

It’s true that a packed Court could react to this by using its power to invalidate these jurisdictional limits. But if the Court did so, it would invite other retaliation by Congress using its power of the purse. Perhaps Congress would cease to fund law clerks and Court staff.

We want to be clear that we favor none of this, at least not now. But this scenario is a warning to the Biden court commission to be careful what you recommend. The political intrusion into the judiciary isn’t likely to end with the addition of two or four more Justices. Democrats are playing a dangerous game by toying with the judiciary, and the courts and the country would be the losers.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/if-democrats-pack-the-court-11618612227?mod=opinion_lead_pos1

Today's Pandemic Tyranny Predicted by Harry Vox in a 2014 video.

Investigative journalist Harry Vox unknowingly predicted the future, almost exactly what is going on today -- pandemic tyranny to control America!

Featured in this 2014 video is a chilling Rockefeller Foundation report.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THIS DISTURBING VIDEO.

A Letter from a Black American Man Born and Reared in Georgia to Will Smith

 

Will Smith Photo Credit: TechCrunch Disrupt

Mr. Smith, I am retired Lieutenant Colonel and former Congressman Allen B. West. It has come to my attention that you have decided to move your upcoming movie “Emancipation” away from my home birth state of Georgia.

Just so you know, I am the third of four generations of Black men who served these United States of America in uniform, all of us combat veterans, dating back to my dad in World War II. 

I have enjoyed several of your movies. I believe you are a man of good intent. I want to believe that you did not make the decision to deprive citizens of the state of Georgia the opportunity to earn a living in the movie industry out of spite or a callous attempt to curry favor in the delusional world of cancel culture. Because I want to believe the best of you, I have to believe you have not actually read the new Georgia voting law. And, I truly believe your perception that it suppresses votes of Blacks and other minorities is just a misinformed reaction to the lies being promulgated. 

If you have indeed read this law, I truly want to understand what caused you to take this drastic and damaging action? An action that clearly sends a message to your many fans that this law is anti-American, anti-Democracy, unjust, unfair, etc. None of which, in my objective assessment, are true. 

I have read this legislation. It’s my responsibility to do so, to understand it fully. That said, I don’t see what you see or what you’ve been told. And, as a Black man, I support ensuring election integrity in our system of representative democracy. After all, I deployed to several combat zones to ensure people in foreign lands had that very privilege.

I hope you will afford me the same respect and dignity I extend to you. I hope you do not believe for a minute that I would wish to disenfranchise anyone, nor that I would want to put an undue burden on anyone’s right to vote. As a combat veteran of the United States Army, I swore a sacred oath to defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. 

As the Chairman of the largest state Republican Party in the nation, I think my analysis of this issue and support for election integrity begs your attention.

This said, afford me the opportunity to speak with you. American to American. Let’s have an actual open discussion about the merits of this case. Let’s look at the issue of constitutionality in our electoral system and shine the light on how this or similar legislation actually makes it hard for legitimate voters to vote. We can look at what measures are in place to ensure legitimate voters can easily have identification. We can, if you choose, have a simple, straightforward discussion about how the poorest among us can use the existing identification they have and how they can easily secure identification if they wish to exercise their right to vote. We can actually look at how many people could possibly be denied the right to vote by being required to show they are legitimate voters. And consider, everyone, including minorities, must present a picture ID to travel anywhere in these United States of America. We must protect our system so that illegal voters do not skew our system. 

We must safeguard the very thing, the right to vote, that was granted to Blacks, and women, as Constitutional amendments. Sadly, Joe Biden believes that “no amendment is absolute.” I tend to believe that even you would join me as being disturbed by that absurd assertion. Clearly, you can see that a warranted distrust of our voting system is causing a festering distrust and division among our citizens. Reasonable people of good faith can look at a problem, see each other’s concerns and points of view, and come to a meeting of the minds. This is how true unity is achieved. It isn’t achieved by rhetoric, rash judgments, hard hearts, stubborn minds, and an unwillingness to talk. Nor is it achieved by the fascistic means of cancel culture, boycotts, and censorship.

The Black men in my family did not act in wars, we fought in them: World War II, Vietnam, Desert Storm, Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere. I am not a racist, extremist, or white supremacist. I am a servant to God and country, and I am prepared to speak with you at any time and at any place. 

Steadfast and Loyal,

Lt. Col. (Ret) Allen B. West
Member, 112th US Congress
Chairman, Republican Party of Texas

https://www.texasgop.org/allen-west-open-letter-will-smith/

The mindless mask regime might be here to stay, unless YOU resist it

By David Marcus | New York Post

The mask fanatics -- some of whom hold advanced degrees that make them no wiser as human beings -- can't be reasoned with. STR/AFP via Getty Images

The masks might be forever. We have to come to terms with the fact that a large chunk of the US population will be wearing masks in public for years, maybe even decades to come.

Even if we unquestionably achieve herd immunity, even if 100 percent of the population is vaccinated, even if COVID cases nationwide drop to zero and even if the coronavirus by some miracle learns to communicate in a human language and tells us, forthrightly, “Well, you beat me,” some Americans, especially those in blue metropolises, will continue to cover their faces — and shame you for not going along.

It’s a massively depressing thought.

For more than a year, public-health authorities have urged us to put up with temporary inconveniences, always with the soothing promise that it will be only a little while longer. But recently, NPR cheerfully reported about the growing number of people who see masks as a source of Permanent and Absolute Safety.

Flu and other respiratory illnesses are down this year owing to our ubiquitous face coverings, our state-run news agency tells us, so maybe we should just keep wearing them. Meanwhile, the rapper Will.i.am and Honeywell have introduced a super-duper smart mask that runs $300. The “Xupermask” allows the wearer to chat on the phone or listen to some dulcet music while signaling her virtue.

None of this should give anyone the slightest bit of confidence that the days of ubiquitous mask wearing will soon be behind us.

Yes, masks reduce the transmission of airborne illnesses. You know what else reduces transmission? Staying in a protective plastic bubble in your living room and never venturing into the dirty, filthy, infectious outdoors. And even if it makes sense to wear a mask in tight indoor quarters, it is utterly unscientific and, yes, moronic to wear them outside, and yet blue-state denizens insist.

Sigh. The mask fanatics — some of whom hold advanced degrees that make them no wiser as human beings — can’t be reasoned with.

The awkward moments with double-masked parents at kids’ birthday parties, the ridiculous restaurant rituals, the seething public glares from masked to maskless on our streets — all will continue. They will say it’s but a small price to pay for Health Most Holy and Sacred Safety. Huge swaths of Americans will literally be lost to our sight and recognition.

It’s a sinister phenomenon that runs radically counter to our cultural history.

Many cultures embrace face covering. Western culture, however, isn’t among them. Western culture revels in the human face and form. That is why “Westernization” is so often associated with immodesty in the East (often unfairly, for celebrating the face needn’t entail baring the backside or plunging décolletage).

A future in which millions hide behind protective masks as they wander around is a steep departure from the Western ideal, rooted in both the Greco-Roman celebration of the human form and the Genesis teaching that God formed man and woman in his image.

The typical conservative reaction — to blame government — doesn’t quite apply here. It’s mainly cultural forces that promote masking in needless places. And private actors have lined up eagerly, with Big Tech actively suppressing science that questions the efficacy of mask-wearing.

Yet we still can resist the phenomenon. We can fight against this faceless future with our own refusals. We can proudly display our lipstick, smile at a passerby and even be understood clearly when we speak. Put simply, we can go back to a normal past, when people’s faces brightened our day instead of terrifying us.

Of course, there is some marginal safety upside to wearing a mask; there always has been. But in the more sensible recent past, most people realized that such small protection wasn’t worth hiding our faces night and day.

We should treat with compassion our fellow citizens who sheepishly embrace the forever-mask regime — but not too much compassion. Those of us who value things like basic human interaction shouldn’t feel shy about mocking those who cling to the facial security blankets or who don high-tech, celebrity-endorsed visage eviscerators. It’s OK to acknowledge that a world without faces isn’t one we want to inhabit.

So let’s bare our faces to the nice, fresh air, pucker and smirk at every available opportunity. Don’t be daunted by the masked masses. Plenty of us want to see your face.

Twitter: @BlueBoxDave

https://nypost.com/2021/04/13/the-mindless-mask-regime-might-be-here-to-stay-unless-you-resist-it/

Daunte Wright Warrant; Antifa Joins 3rd Night Of Rioting In Brooklyn Center

 

Rioters in Brooklyn Center, MN using umbrellas to fend off less-than-lethal munitions in the manner that Antifa does. Tuesday, April 13, 2021, in Brooklyn Center, Minn. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

Daunte Wright choked a woman and threatened to shoot her if she did not hand over $820 she had stuffed in her bra, court papers obtained by DailyMail.com allege.

That is the case that led to a warrant for his arrest at the time he was shot and killed by police officer Kimberly Potter in Minnesota on Sunday, leading to days of unrest.

And online speculation that he did not know there was a warrant out for his arrest is false, DailyMail.com has learned. A letter returned to the court for having a wrong address was giving notice of a court date in August and had nothing to do with the warrant.

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RELATED ARTICLE

Daunte Wright had a warrant out for his arrest for attempted aggravated robbery charges after 'choking and holding a woman at gunpoint for $820 in 2019,' court papers reveal

By MARTIN GOULD FOR DAILYMAIL.COM and RUTH STYLES IN BROOKLYN CENTER, MINNESOTA, FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

 

DailyMail.com can reveal that Daunte Wright (pictured in his booking photo) 20, had a warrant out for his arrest on attempted aggravated robbery charges after allegedly holding a woman at gunpoint for $820 in December 2019

·      Daunte Wright was shot dead by Brooklyn Center Police Officer Kimberly Potter Sunday after he was pulled over for 'expired license plate tags'

·        DailyMail.com can reveal that Wright, 20, had a warrant out for his arrest for attempted aggravated robbery charges at the time

·        Charging papers allege Wright and a second man, Emajay Driver, attended a party in December 2019 at the home of two women in Osseo, Minnesota

·        The women allowed the pair to crash after they said they didn't have a ride home

·        The next morning, after one of the women went to withdraw $820 in rent money, Wright allegedly held her at gunpoint and demanded she give him the cash

·        His bail was originally set at $100k with orders that he should not contact the victim or any witnesses, refrain from drugs and alcohol and not have any weapon

·        It was revoked in July last year due to his 'failure to not possess a firearm or ammunition' and not keeping in touch with his probation officer  

·        DailyMail.com has also learned that online speculation that Wright did not know there was a warrant out for his arrest is false

Daunte Wright choked a woman and threatened to shoot her if she did not hand over $820 she had stuffed in her bra, court papers obtained by DailyMail.com allege.

That is the case that led to a warrant for his arrest at the time he was shot and killed by police officer Kimberly Potter in Minnesota on Sunday, leading to days of unrest.

Wright was fatally shot by Brooklyn Center Police Officer Kimberly Potter (pictured) on Sunday after he was pulled over for what police said were expired license plate tags

And online speculation that he did not know there was a warrant out for his arrest is false, DailyMail.com has learned. A letter returned to the court for having a wrong address was giving notice of a court date in August and had nothing to do with the warrant.

Wright, 20, was shot dead in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on Sunday by Potter, 48, a 26-year veteran in the Brooklyn Center Police Department.

Police body cam footage of the fatal incident showed three officers approaching Daunte Wright's car in Brooklyn Center on Sunday after he had been pulled over for the traffic stop

She says she mistakenly grabbed her gun instead of her taser. After the gun fired, she is heard on body camera saying: 'Holy s**t I shot him.' Potter and Brooklyn Center police chief Tim Gannon both resigned on Tuesday.

Potter could be heard shouting 'Taser!' several times in the moments before she fired her gun. Immediately after, she can be heard saying: 'I shot him'. It appears she dropped her gun in the aftermath 

Wright was allegedly pulled over for having expired license plate tags, although he called his mother and told her it was for having an air freshener hanging on his rear-view mirror. While checking his details, Potter and other officers learned of the warrant.

When they tried to handcuff him, Wright got back into his car and at that point Potter shot him in the chest after warning fellow officers to get out of the way by shouting, 'Taser, taser, taser.'

Wright was due to face trial on a charge of attempted aggravated robbery - with a possible maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. 

Charging papers say he and a second man, Emajay Driver went to a home shared by two women in Osseo, Minnesota 'to party' in December 2019. At the time, Wright was 19 and Driver was 18.

The women asked them to leave around 2.30 am on December 1, but they said they didn't have a ride and the women - who are not identified in the court documents - allowed them to sleep on the floor.

In the morning, one of the women went to the bank to get her $820 rent money which she gave to the other woman and then left for work. As Wright, Driver and the second woman were leaving, Wright allegedly tried to hold up the woman.

'The three of them were walking to the door to exit the apartment and defendant Wright turned around and blocked the door preventing victim from leaving,' says the report, written by Osseo Police Officer Shane Mikkelson.

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CNN Director ADMITS Network Engaged in ‘Propaganda’ to Remove Trump from Presidency

 

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE VIDEO:  CNN Exposed by Project Veritas