
The centenary of the 20th century’s worst catastrophe, the Spanish flu - sohkamyung
https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2018/09/29/the-centenary-of-the-20th-centurys-worst-catastrophe
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chriselles
I wonder if a discussion around Spanish Flu should also include the 1956-58
Asian Flu as well as the 1968-69 Hong Kong Flu?

Would the much more open travel of today, compared to the far more closed
international travel of yesterday have had a significant impact on virality
and mortality of those two more recent pandemics?

I’ve sat in on a meeting in the post Tamiflu/bird flu scare environment that
provided a macro view of the challenges facing a small country like New
Zealand.

My thoughts are that a financial hedge against a pandemic might include:

Going “long” tele-presence such as Zoom, Skype, etc as well as streaming
entertainment.

Going “short” passenger airlines, lifestyle retail, and shopping mall REITs.

As far as global/macro risks go, pandemic is top of mind for me.

I perceive pandemic as a lower risk and likelihood than another global
financial shock.

But I view them both as ultimately inevitable.

It’s just a question of severity for both.

But Imthinkmthe difference is that another GFC would not precipitate a
pandemic.

But a pandemic could precipitate a GFC.

~~~
ekianjo
> But a pandemic could precipitate a GFC.

I dont see why. Some industries would suffer, but others would prosper. It
would not be a whole-encompassing GFC like when the banks derail.

~~~
PeterisP
A pandemic with casualty rates comparable to the Spanish Flu would mean a
rapid worldwide GDP drop comparable to a GFC simply because even if the GDP-
per-capita would stay the same, there would be less people, so a drop in both
production and demand. It would also mean an immediate jump in household
default rates as a noticeable portion of families lose their main earners.
Both of these factors are likely to cause banks to derail as well.

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neonate
[http://archive.is/7aEug](http://archive.is/7aEug)

[https://outline.com/3Yndgb](https://outline.com/3Yndgb)

~~~
IloveHN84
Hero

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wpq0
Extra credits has a series about this pandemic:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQ9WX4qVxEo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQ9WX4qVxEo)

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rossdavidh
The most rollicking fun song about the Flupandemic ever made was by the Flying
Fish Sailors:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JV938U4Y96w](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JV938U4Y96w)
Not to be missed, if you're interested in the topic and don't mind
lighthearted songs about widespread death.

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chrisbennet
I think it was "Adam Ruins Everything" that pointed out that that flu
basically killed everyone it could i.e. except for those that were resistant,
it killed until it ran out of people to infect. Scary.

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HarryHirsch
_We Heard the Bells: The Influenza of 1918_ , a documentary from the Health
Department

[https://archive.org/details/gov.hhs.cms.006719](https://archive.org/details/gov.hhs.cms.006719)

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n95_throwa
Buy NIOSH-approved N95 particulate respirator masks. They're like $2/per on
Amazon.

Make sure they fit you, and your family. Get different types / sizes.

You won't be able to buy them -- anywhere -- once media organizations start
reporting on an outbreak.

Don't tell anyone you have them.

Ignore people who don't think this is worth worrying about. People are stupid.

~~~
cstejerean
I wouldn’t trust my life to a respirator mask I bought from Amazon. How would
I know I didn’t get a fake?

~~~
masonic
It has NIOSH approval printed right on it. Or, at least, written in crayon.

