#smallpox

What is Humanity's Greatest Achievement?

Some will say stuff like, The Moon Landing or not blowing ourselves to kingdom come with Nukes or Indoor Plumbing. But, I rarely see people talking about The Eradication of Smallpox.

Smallpox used to terrify everyone from a random peasant to the most powerful Kings and Emperor's. The fate of history was effectively in the hands of a single disease, with no known cure or treatment, for thousands of years. But in 1986, the case of the disease passed and the last unvaccinated person was vaccinated and the disease was gone. The one time the West and East worked together for the betterment of the entire Human race. One of the most terrifying diseases ever, is just gone... To the point people my age don't even really know it even existed and some even deny it ever existed.

From the #RoyalSociety: "...the document we have unearthed, dated 1726..."

"There is a profound, aching weight in knowing that these names represent stolen futures, the laughter that never echoed, the wisdom that never grew, the loves that never bloomed...The machine of #history has tried to bury these graves under layers of prestige and medical triumph, but the truth remains stubbornly present in the ink, echoing the internal struggle of every patient who fought for breath while the vital spirit was pulled from them by those who claimed to be their saviours...This ledger is not just a relic; it is a monument to every child whose life was deemed expendable, and it serves as a permanent, burning indictment of those who think they can hide their betrayals behind the authority of a page."

#smallpox #inoculation #children