Smallpox = horrifying!

[Sir Kenyth]

I just randomly did a little research on smallpox after I read an article on it. We all know it's a terrible killer disease, but never did I fully understand the depth of the terrible things it does! I don't think I have ever seen a more horrifying disease. The stuff destroys all the skin and membranes of the body from the inside out! A virus that literally tries to flay you alive, and often succeeds! In the worst hemorraghic cases, it causes the digestive tract linings to completely slough off and be expelled! Death(thankfully) always comes shortly after this due to extreme blood loss. It's hideous, heinous, and cruel beyond belief! Any civilized person wouldn't wish it on his worst enemy! Add that to the fact that it is highly contageous and nearly uncontrollable. There are places that would use this as a biological agent?! I can't imagine the kind of person who would even consider it! Add this to the fact that we are vulnerable now. There is only a small amount of vaccine left in questionable condition. The amount of death this disease could cause right now is unthinkable! The vaccine is also good for only 10 years or so. Even I, who has been innoculated three times, am probably vulnerable at this point. I want my son vaccinated, but there is no way to do it at this point.

Interestingly enough, humans aren't the only ones to have poxes. Many animals have their own versions, including insects. They are every bit as terrible in nature too. Soft bodied insects are literally reduced to puddles of goo!

All I can say is:
[img]graemlins/jawdrop.gif[/img]

[ 12-04-2002, 09:37 AM: Message edited by: Sir Kenyth ]

[Indemaijinj]

Ebola does the same as far as I know.

[/)eathKiller]

why else do they call it a Pox?

I still say there are worse ways to die...

[Scholarcs]

Originally posted by /)eathKiller: why else do they call it a Pox? I still say there are worse ways to die...

Radiation poisoning is one of them.

Only 30% of smallpox victims died when the disease ran rampant.

[The Hunter of Jahanna]

Smallpox is a good place to start when trying to control the explosion of humanity. Disease is one of the ways that nature weeds out the weak. Unfortunately humans discovered medicine and now the weak and useless are over running the planet.

[Ladyzekke]

Originally posted by The Hunter of Jahanna: Unfortunately humans discovered medicine and now the weak and useless are over running the planet.

Please explain more what you mean by that statement. To me, it reads as if you would prefer to see certain humans taken out of existence as you consider them "weak and useless," and are dissappointed (the "Unfortunately" part of your sentence) that modern medicine has kept them alive and well.

[The Hierophant]

Originally posted by The Hunter of Jahanna: Smallpox is a good place to start when trying to control the explosion of humanity. Disease is one of the ways that nature weeds out the weak. Unfortunately humans discovered medicine and now the weak and useless are over running the planet.

Heh, well, we've all become well acquainted with the 'grumpy old Hunter' so I guess we should take this with a pinch of salt right? [img]tongue.gif[/img]
Still, there is alot of illogic within your line of reasoning. You seem to make the assumption that 'nature' is some sort of conscious entity that makes efforts to 'control' populations and 'weed out' the 'weak'. All four of the concepts in '' would be open for debate. [img]smile.gif[/img] Also, define 'medicine' for me if you will, and we'll see if your definition stands up to the socratic method [img]smile.gif[/img]
Also, much of the time it is mere chance as to whether humans will die from such a disease. Nothing to do with fitness or weakness. The prevalence of particular immunological devices within the body vary from person to person, from time to time, from generation to generation. 'Fit', 'healthy' and 'strong' individuals are just as much at risk from these types of aggressive micro-organisms as anyone else.

ps: The 'grumpy old hunter' thing was an 'affectionate jest' as opposed to a flame. All in good fun

[The Hunter of Jahanna]

For Lady Z, I dont have any specific group in mind. It is just that from a purely biological standpoint in nature the smartest and strongest survive while the weaker and dumber are culled by disease ,predator or enviroment. Humans have no natural predators except for age and disease. Thanks to the advent of modern medicine humans dont have disease to keep their numbers in check , so as a species we breed out of control and over use out enviroment.This causes both pollution and in some countries starvation. Without enviromental controls on humanitys reproduction recessive and abnormal genes surface and are allowed to flourish. Things like this will eventualy weaken us as a species, subsequently causeing us to bring our own biological downfall upon us.

For Hierophant, it aint easy being grumpy

[Ladyzekke]

Bah it's too late for me to respond fully. But I see things a bit differently than you, although at the same time understand what you are saying as well.

I personally think that one of the things that separate us humans from animals is the fact that our weak can survive, as it is our minds in many ways that makes us the dominant species. We have no pointy teeth or claws or rough skin with fur. We really as humans ARE a weak species in and of itself. But again physical attributes are only a small part of what keeps the human race alive.

I do not wish to see any disease kill any humans, it would be a sick thing to think "oh good we've cleansed".

And to end, the part I do agree with you about is overpopulation. I do think that something should be done about how many children people have. The planet is only so big, and we cannot rape it's resources in entire. Everyone should be able to procreate, but so many have 5 or more kids, and a lot of people have kids simply because they cannot afford birth control (accidents). So we have a huge population of humans, and yes, if it continues to grow, when the planet isn't growing, ultimately we will end up destroying all our resources, hence destroying ourselves.

So I'm more for prevention rather than annihilation, if that makes sense [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Sir Kenyth]

All right, so maybe we are "too smart for our own good" sometimes. Societal order, tools, and intelligence are all part of what makes us a superior species. Even the weakest of us can easily overcome any predator or situation with tools. We can harness the surrounding environment to make anything we need for almost any situation. With a motorized vehicle and firearms we become the most deadly predators on the planet! No other creature can boast such strengths!