Plagues and Their Aftermath, Brian Michael Jenkins
Plagues and Their Aftermath, Brian Michael Jenkins
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Plagues and Their Aftermath
How Societies Recover from Pandemics

Author: Brian Michael Jenkins

Narrator: Will Tulin

Unabridged: 6 hr 15 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 09/20/2022

Synopsis

From a plague in Athens during the Peloponnesian War in 430 BCE, to another in 540 that wiped out half the population of the Roman empire, down through the Black Death in the Middle Ages and on through the 1918 flu epidemic (which killed between 50 and 100 million people) and this century's deadly SARS outbreak, plagues have been a much more relentless fact of life than many realize.

The legacy of epidemics, Brian Michael Jenkins observes, is not only one of lives lost but of devastated economies and social disorder, all of which have severe political repercussions.

Thus, each chapter of Plagues and Their Aftermath draws on those historical precursors to focus on one particular aspect of their aftermath: What happens to political systems? What happens in the area of crime and terrorism? Do wars happen? What are the effects on cultures? What was the impact of widespread fear and public hysteria, of increased suspicion and scapegoating, of the spread of rumors and conspiracy theories?

Jenkins's sobering analysis is riveting and thought-provoking listening for general listeners and specialists alike, and throws welcome light into what many fear is a dark future.

About Brian Michael Jenkins

Brian Michael Jenkins is a senior advisor to the president of the RAND Corporation. He served in the US Army's Special Forces during the war in Vietnam, before joining RAND in 1972. In 1996, President Bill Clinton appointed Jenkins to the White House Commission on Aviation Safety and Security. Jenkins has also served as adviser to the National Commission on Terrorism. He is a frequent commentator on matters of global security and safety for major media outlets, including NBC, PBS, NPR, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and others.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Susana on March 28, 2023

If this book taught me anything, it's that there are no original thoughts, no original protests, and no original reactions. People will always find reasons to distrust scientific data, the government reaction will always be insufficient, and diseases will always find a way.......more

Goodreads review by Karen M on September 28, 2023

Brian Michael Jenkins is a well known expert on conflict, irregular warfare and global security who advises along the spectrum of US presidents to corporate clients. I enjoy his straightforward perspective. Throughout history, plague and war have been binary stars of one another. As such, the author......more

Goodreads review by Scott on November 07, 2022

(Audiobook) This relatively concise work looks at the history of pandemics, noting that things we saw during COVID in 2020 were not alien or first seen. Protesting public health measures, economic and military actions to fight the pandemic or those fighting the pandemics…these have happened before a......more

Goodreads review by Katherine on December 03, 2022

An interesting digest that delves into the repercussions past plagues have had on societies. Mr Jenkins pulls on data throughout all of recorded history to trace back origins of certain outbreaks and speculate as to what some plagues may have been according to current medical thought. Chapters seeme......more

Goodreads review by Neal on January 06, 2023

Fascinating, chockful of startling revelations (some spurious). incl. that the Ukraine invasion is due in part to COVID, there were about 20 (!) waves of bubonic plague that hit the world, coverup and denial is nothing new (1831, Britain; 1892 Hamburg; 1911 Naples; 1900, San Francisco -- city offici......more

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