Plague

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Plague

While I like the historical references and timelines, In the opening lines It states “Fortified by their passage through the Fertile Crescent of the Middle East, where peasants shared muddy yards with cows, horses, sheep, goats, pigs, chickens, dogs and cats, the microbes borne by fleas embedded in the fur of black rats hopped to other animals, then to people.” The Middle East would not have peasants sharing accommodation with pigs as this animal is haram to The Muslim religion. Throws off the factual references for the rest of the story in my mind.

Chris more than 3 years ago

Porcine Facts

It is incontrovertible that people and pigs shared muddy yards (not accommodation). Pigs, as Jared Diamond shows in Guns, Germs and Steel, were domesticated in the Fertile Crescent; today many people in the region enjoy pork, which is popular among Lebanese Christians, and is the most common meat in Armenian cuisine. Islamic interdictions against pork were adopted gradually; according to the Smithsonian Magazine, in woodland and marshy areas pig husbandry continued into the modern era. Like the column's other factual references, these ones were carefully checked prior to publication. —Stephen Henighan

Geist.com more than 3 years ago

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