Bubonic Plague vs. Modern day Biological Threats
             The Bubonic Plague took Europe by storm in 1348 A.D killing 1/3 of its people. It wiped out over 1000 villages in England. Because of the plague, the lives of every European were drastically altered. But most people don't even realize is that the Black Death still exists with us in the world today. The difference between modern and medieval reactions to biological threats and actions taken to control them is the answer to why we don't suffer from the bubonic Plague and such of the like today.
             "Human infection [of the bubonic plague] usually occurs in areas of unsanitary living conditions where the humans come into close contact with rats" (ponderosa-pine). Since rodents were common in the middle ages, escape was not easy. It was assumed by medieval doctors that the air, person to person, spread the disease. This assumption made healthy people run from their homes and families. "There were many who pleaded with their relatives not to abandon them at nightfall" (jefferson.village.Virginia). Imagine your mother or father saying, "I'm going for the doctor" and never returning. Many died unseen, and remained in their beds until their neighbors couldn't take the smell any more. They then would be thrown onto the other bodies to be sent off for burial.
             The government issued ordinances to try and regain control of the disease. Some of the rules were important, but others seem to be useless. In certain cities citizens could not leave the district, and people from other districts could not enter the city. Bodies could not be removed from where they were found, carried out or returned to the city, or be seen by any person unless they are a blood relative. You could not give gifts to the family of the dead person, wear new clothes for eight days after the death, or mourn for anyone that lived outside of the city. It seems as
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