SUPERSTITIONS

Are you superstitious?  Are you good at telling fact from fiction?  This pandemic may be testing you.  "Masks are needed"  "Masks don't do much good"  "Masks are not that effective outside in the open air" 

"Six feet distancing is necessary with no mask"  "Six feet is always necessary"  "The virus can live for two days on an inanimate object"  "The virus can only live for two hours on some surfaces"  "You must wash your hands often" "Hand sanitizer has no effect on a virus"  "If you get it once, you may be unable to get it again"  "Almost all deaths have been by people in nursing homes and jails"  "We'll have a cure by years end"  "We may never have a cure"

Enough of all that.  We have come a long way since the Middle Ages.  Let's hope!  I read recently that the Bubonic Plague may have been fostered by the superstitions of the time.  There have been several outbreaks of the disease over the years.  Once it killed 25% of the European population.  In fact, it still pops up here once in a while.  

We now know that it is caused by a bite from an infected flea known as the rat flea.  The flea got that name because the rats were known to harbor them in their fur.  The superstition comes into this whole scenario because in those Middle Ages, the religious community was coming down hard on witches and such.   It seems witches were known to keep cats - especially black cats.  Even the Pope at the time warned against cats; thinking they might be demons in disguise.  

That was enough for much of the world to stop keeping domestic cats.  Many, many were killed thinking they might be demons.  I guess you've guessed what happened after that.  Yes!  The rat population exploded with fewer cats hunting them down.  More rats - more rat fleas - more Bubonic plague.

So, what am I thinking?  I'm hoping we're not making decisions based on superstitions.  That's what.

Stay well!

😷