Pestilence

A century after 1918 flu pandemic, experts say it could happen again - UPI.com
UPI reports: "One hundred years ago, the deadliest influenza pandemic of all time made a ravaging march across the globe. The 'Spanish' flu of 1918-19 infected an estimated one-third of the world's population and killed between 50 million and 100 million people, modern epidemiologists estimate. That raises the inevitable question as the United States battles its way through another severe flu season -- could a pandemic as devastating in scope occur in the future? It's '100 percent' certain that another global flu crisis will happen, said Dr. Greg Poland, a virologist and vaccine researcher with the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn."

Comment: Much of this news report is encouraging. It informs us that medical science has advanced greatly since the Spanish Flu of 1918 and that doctors will be able to handle a modern pandemic. I don't doubt that. What I doubt is what happens outside medical circles. Human psychology being what it is, the doctors could have it well in hand but people could still panic, markets crash and social institutions collapse. If another pandemic is inevitable, then planning needs to happen not just in the medical community but across all sectors of society.