{"id":10816,"date":"2020-03-18T17:29:22","date_gmt":"2020-03-18T21:29:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/?p=10816"},"modified":"2021-12-28T21:36:29","modified_gmt":"2021-12-29T02:36:29","slug":"wednesday-march-18-2020-i-see-day-like-smoke","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/?p=10816","title":{"rendered":"Wednesday, March 18, 2020 \u2014 \u201cI see day like smoke.\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

While the response of Cana\u00addi\u00adan author\u00adi\u00adties to Covid-19 has not been ide\u00adal, it at least makes a bet\u00adter-than-aver\u00adage grade, and the ini\u00adtial slug\u00adgish response is quick\u00adly giv\u00ading way to a sci\u00adence-based one. Test\u00ading lev\u00adels are still woe\u00adful\u00adly inad\u00ade\u00adquate. I have to admit that even Ontar\u00adi\u00ado\u2019s noto\u00adri\u00adous\u00adly slimy Con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtive admin\u00adis\u00adtra\u00adtion is show\u00ading com\u00adpe\u00adtence, and Pre\u00admier Doug Ford, a con\u00adgen\u00adi\u00adtal fat\u00adhead, has been on his best behav\u00adiour. The Prime Min\u00adis\u00adter is in iso\u00adla\u00adtion because of his wife\u2019s pos\u00adi\u00adtive test, and gives press con\u00adfer\u00adences alone. Nine\u00adty per\u00adcent of gov\u00adern\u00adment busi\u00adness is now being con\u00adduct\u00aded by skype or oth\u00ader vir\u00adtu\u00adal plat\u00adforms. Here in Ontario, pub\u00adlic gath\u00ader\u00adings are sus\u00adpend\u00aded, restau\u00adrants are closed except for take-out, and deliv\u00adery car\u00adri\u00aders wear face-masks. Only super\u00admar\u00adkets and phar\u00adma\u00adcies remain open. The bor\u00adder is now closed with the Unit\u00aded States, with var\u00adi\u00adous eco\u00adnom\u00adic and med\u00adical-based excep\u00adtions. There was con\u00adsid\u00ader\u00adable \u201cpan\u00adic buy\u00ading\u201d over the week\u00adend, and you can\u2019t find either eggs or toi\u00adlet paper for the moment, but even at the height of this pan\u00adic buy\u00ading peo\u00adple remained polite and well-behaved. Super\u00admar\u00adkets are assur\u00ading that they will be restocked quick\u00adly, and prices will remain the same. As of this writ\u00ading, eight Cana\u00addi\u00adans have died. The supe\u00adri\u00ador\u00adi\u00adty of a sin\u00adgle-pay\u00ader pub\u00adlic health insur\u00adance sys\u00adtem in such an emer\u00adgency is self-evi\u00addent beyond the slight\u00adest doubt<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the U.S., var\u00adi\u00adous state gov\u00adern\u00adments have been tak\u00ading up the slack of a pathet\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly inept and cor\u00adrupt White House, and Amer\u00adi\u00adca must place it\u2019s hopes in local infra\u00adstruc\u00adtures. Notable is Wash\u00ading\u00adton State, which has been hard hit and requires dras\u00adtic mea\u00adsures. Wash\u00ading\u00adton has about twice as many cas\u00ades as all of Cana\u00adda and has had 52 fatal\u00adi\u00adties. Wash\u00ading\u00adton\u2019s Pub\u00adlic Health author\u00adi\u00adties are fac\u00ading a fierce foe. But to demon\u00adstrate that state\u2019s cre\u00adative spir\u00adit, the best online web\u00adsite for con\u00adsol\u00adi\u00addat\u00ading cur\u00adrent world Covid-19 sta\u00adtis\u00adtics was built as ear\u00adly as last Decem\u00adber \u2014 by Avi Schiff\u00adman, a sev\u00aden\u00adteen-year-old high school stu\u00addent in a Seat\u00adtle suburb.<\/span><\/p>\n

Amer\u00adi\u00adcan State-lev\u00adel author\u00adi\u00adties have been respond\u00ading admirably, but to show you the dif\u00adfer\u00adence between the two Fed\u00ader\u00adal admin\u00adis\u00adtra\u00adtions, I sub\u00admit the fol\u00adlow\u00ading image from a White House press con\u00adfer\u00adence tak\u00aden a few hours ago:<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/a>The most basic pro\u00adto\u00adcols in an epi\u00addem\u00adic are being vis\u00adi\u00adbly vio\u00adlat\u00aded by the Pres\u00adi\u00addent, Vice Pres\u00adi\u00addent and his staff. This is idio\u00adcy, incom\u00adpe\u00adtence and cor\u00adrup\u00adtion in a nutshell.<\/span><\/p>\n

By con\u00adtrast, this is a press con\u00adfer\u00adence, for iden\u00adti\u00adcal rea\u00adsons, con\u00adduct\u00aded at the same time by Finance Min\u00adis\u00adter Bill Morneau and Bank of Cana\u00adda Gov\u00ader\u00adnor Stephen Poloz fol\u00adlow\u00ading the Prime Min\u00adis\u00adter\u2019s solo address:<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

They are main\u00adtain\u00ading the prop\u00ader six-foot dis\u00adtance, the few jour\u00adnal\u00adists present are as well, and the bulk of ques\u00adtions are being asked through the inter\u00adnet. This is fol\u00adlow\u00ading protocol. <\/span><\/p>\n

Cana\u00addi\u00adans have had lit\u00adtle expe\u00adri\u00adence with epi\u00addemics since the polio out\u00adbreaks of the 1950s and the glob\u00adal flu pan\u00addem\u00adic of 1918. The most seri\u00adous recent issue was the SARS<\/span> event of 2003, which killed 44 Cana\u00addi\u00adans and was large\u00adly con\u00adfined to Toron\u00adto. I was work\u00ading in a med\u00adical lab\u00ado\u00adra\u00adto\u00adry at that time, han\u00addling poten\u00adtial\u00adly infec\u00adtious mate\u00adri\u00adals, so I was kept abreast of the issue and had to fol\u00adlow very tight pro\u00adto\u00adcols. To this day, I keep my own home well stocked with dis\u00adpos\u00adable gloves, swabs, clean\u00ading agents and large quan\u00adti\u00adties of hydro\u00adgen per\u00adox\u00adide \u2014 so I did\u00adn\u2019t have to run out and buy any of these items. For that mat\u00adter, I am also stocked with enough house\u00adhold sup\u00adplies (such as bins of rice, dried beans and peas, flour, cous\u00adcous, mil\u00adlet, as well as canned goods) to stay at home for months, if nec\u00ades\u00adsary. Toron\u00adto hos\u00adpi\u00adtals were caught with their pants down dur\u00ading SARS<\/span>, and I\u2019m told that stan\u00addards are con\u00adsid\u00ader\u00adably bet\u00adter now. <\/span><\/p>\n

But if you go back in his\u00adto\u00adry, you can learn what hav\u00ading to deal with the real hor\u00adrors of epi\u00addem\u00adic dis\u00adease is like. I\u2019m present\u00adly read\u00ading an amaz\u00ading book called The Many Voy\u00adages of Arthur Welling\u00adton Clah<\/em>, by Peg\u00adgy Brock. <\/span><\/p>\n

Arthur Welling\u00adton Clah was a Tsimshi\u00adan man born in 1831 in a vil\u00adlage in the Nass Riv\u00ader val\u00adley of coastal British Colum\u00adbia. At the age of 26, Clah [his hered\u00adi\u00adtary name was Sga\u0142a\u2019ax\u0142 Xsgi\u00adig\u0142] was taught to speak and write Eng\u00adlish by William Dun\u00adcan, an Angli\u00adcan mis\u00adsion\u00adary, and adopt\u00aded a per\u00adson\u00adal ver\u00adsion of a Chris\u00adt\u00adian reli\u00adgious faith, giv\u00ading no alle\u00adgiance to either the Angli\u00adcan or Methodist sects that he was exposed to. Dur\u00ading his long life, he worked at a wide vari\u00adety of jobs, was often an ambi\u00adtious entre\u00adpre\u00adneur, and trav\u00adelled wide\u00adly in B.C., Alas\u00adka, the Yukon, and Wash\u00ading\u00adton State. <\/span><\/p>\n

With\u00adin months of learn\u00ading to write, he began to keep a diary, and he main\u00adtained this diary for the next fifty years. Over this half cen\u00adtu\u00adry, he pro\u00adduced over 650,000 words of hand-writ\u00adten entries, the equiv\u00ada\u00adlent of Tolkien\u2019s com\u00adbined Hob\u00adbit<\/em>, Lord of the Rings,<\/em> and Sil\u00admar\u00adil\u00adlion<\/em>. By 1890 it had evolved into a repos\u00adi\u00adto\u00adry of his per\u00adson\u00adal philo\u00adsoph\u00adi\u00adcal mus\u00adings and an ambi\u00adtious attempt to write a his\u00adto\u00adry of his peo\u00adple. Clah was proud of his work and want\u00aded to see it pub\u00adlished for pos\u00adter\u00adi\u00adty, but the man\u00adu\u00adscript lan\u00adguished for a cen\u00adtu\u00adry in the stacks of the Well\u00adcome Library in Lon\u00addon. It presents many dif\u00adfi\u00adcul\u00adties to researchers because Clah\u2019s Eng\u00adlish was very crude in the begin\u00adning, and was nev\u00ader the lan\u00adguage he thought in. It con\u00adtains lit\u00adtle punc\u00adtu\u00ada\u00adtion, and because of its idiomat\u00adic speci\u00adfici\u00adty can only be puz\u00adzled out by some\u00adone very famil\u00adiar with the com\u00adplex\u00adi\u00adties of the Tsimshi\u00adan, Nis\u00adga\u2019a, Hai\u00adda, Heilt\u00adsuk, Kwakwa<\/u>ka<\/u>\u2019wakw, and Tlin\u00adgit cul\u00adtures of the region. Peg\u00adgy Brock\u00ad\u2019s book draws on the diary and explains its con\u00adtext in order to pro\u00adduce a bal\u00adanced biog\u00adra\u00adphy of Clah. This is admirable and quite dif\u00adfi\u00adcult schol\u00adar\u00adly work, so I will not dimin\u00adish it with any kibitzing.<\/span><\/p>\n

When Clah began this diary, there were but a hand\u00adful of Euro\u00adpeans in British Colum\u00adbia, and the abo\u00adrig\u00adi\u00adnal pop\u00adu\u00adla\u00adtion count\u00aded hun\u00addreds of thou\u00adsands. The Tsimshi\u00adan and oth\u00ader coastal peo\u00adple lived in sub\u00adstan\u00adtial towns of large wood\u00aden build\u00adings dec\u00ado\u00adrat\u00aded with art that still daz\u00adzles and amazes the world to this day. By the end of it, the Euro\u00adpean and Asian pop\u00adu\u00adla\u00adtions far out\u00adnum\u00adbered them, and most of the 20 or so abo\u00adrig\u00adi\u00adnal nations, who spoke dis\u00adparate lan\u00adguages and pur\u00adsued wide\u00adly vary\u00ading lifestyles, had been mas\u00adsive\u00adly dis\u00adrupt\u00aded and dimin\u00adished by the effects of deal\u00ading with gold-rush\u00ades, incom\u00ading set\u00adtlers, the impo\u00adsi\u00adtion of Colo\u00adnial and then Cana\u00addi\u00adan gov\u00adern\u00adment, reli\u00adgious con\u00adver\u00adsions, the rise of forestry and fish can\u00adning, urban\u00adism, the sup\u00adpres\u00adsion of the Pot\u00adlatch, and most of all, infec\u00adtious dis\u00adease. When he made his last entries as a some\u00adwhat lone\u00adly and embit\u00adtered man with fail\u00ading eye\u00adsight, he described the streets of his native village:<\/span><\/p>\n

I walk up Git\u00adlax\u00addan\u00adsk vil\u00adlage. The place half emp\u00adty, use[d] to be big place. [F]irst time I take my wife in that tribe [,] good many peo\u00adple [:] strong tribe and rich peo\u00adple to all tribes on [N]ass riv\u00ader [.] [N]ow tribe very poor. [P]eople very near all out. [G]o easy places the young people.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

While the var\u00adi\u00adous cul\u00adtur\u00adal and polit\u00adi\u00adcal shocks that abo\u00adrig\u00adi\u00adnal soci\u00adeties in the Pacif\u00adic North\u00adwest (on both sides of the Canadian\/American bor\u00adder) expe\u00adri\u00adenced were seri\u00adous, noth\u00ading was as over\u00adwhelm\u00ading\u00adly destruc\u00adtive as infec\u00adtious dis\u00adease, par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly small\u00adpox. This began appear\u00ading as ear\u00adly as the 1790\u2019s either intro\u00adduced by the Span\u00adish ships that explored the coast, or more like\u00adly trav\u00adel\u00adling up through the Basin &<\/span> Range regions from the Span\u00adish set\u00adtle\u00adments in New Mex\u00adi\u00adco, car\u00adried by the com\u00adplex trade net\u00adworks of the Man\u00addan. But the real dev\u00adas\u00adta\u00adtion began in the 1820s, as Amer\u00adi\u00adcan set\u00adtlers along the Ore\u00adgon Trail brought small\u00adpox and measles. From then on, the death rate often exceed\u00aded 80% of the abo\u00adrig\u00adi\u00adnal pop\u00adu\u00adla\u00adtion in a sin\u00adgle sea\u00adson, and wave after wave of such pan\u00addem\u00adic slaugh\u00adter drift\u00aded north\u00adward into Clah\u2019s home\u00adland. Clah\u2019s vil\u00adlage expe\u00adri\u00adenced a dis\u00adas\u00adtrous small\u00adpox epi\u00addem\u00adic when he was five years old.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>

<\/a>

Arthur Welling\u00adton Clah [Sga\u0142a\u2019ax\u0142 Xsgiig\u0142]<\/p><\/div>Brock writes:<\/span>\n

<\/p>\n

Clah remem\u00adbered the small\u00adpox epi\u00addem\u00adic of 1836 and the many who died from the dis\u00adease. His account of the epi\u00addem\u00adic of 1862 is much more detailed. In that year, small\u00adpox, which had been intro\u00adduced to Vic\u00adto\u00adria via a ship from San Fran\u00adcis\u00adco, quick\u00adly spread through the Tsimshi\u00adan Reserve at Rocky Bay and then to oth\u00ader camps. Tsimshi\u00adan expelled from Vic\u00adto\u00adria took the dis\u00adease north. Fright\u00adened peo\u00adple were giv\u00aden a day\u2019s warn\u00ading to vacate the reserve. They burned their hous\u00ades and blan\u00adkets before leav\u00ading, and a gun\u00adboat in the bay ensured their depar\u00adture. Although doc\u00adtors start\u00aded vac\u00adci\u00adnat\u00ading peo\u00adple in Vic\u00adto\u00adria, three hun\u00addred Tsimshi\u00adan had con\u00adtract\u00aded small\u00adpox and twen\u00adty had died by late April. Doc\u00adtors also went up the Coast to vac\u00adci\u00adnate the Abo\u00adrig\u00adi\u00adnal pop\u00adu\u00adla\u00adtion, as did Dun\u00adcan, who was con\u00adcerned the vac\u00adci\u00adna\u00adtions were not tak\u00ading. It is impos\u00adsi\u00adble from the data avail\u00adable to deter\u00admine their effec\u00adtive\u00adness. The epi\u00addem\u00adic ran its course by Decem\u00adber, when Clah wrote to Dun\u00adcan that there had been 301 deaths and 2,069 sur\u00advivors among the Fort Simp\u00adson tribes. Pre\u00adsum\u00adably, Clah had been vac\u00adci\u00adnat\u00aded, for he did not get the dis\u00adease, even though he nursed rel\u00ada\u00adtives with small\u00adpox. The Tsimshi\u00adan also tried treat\u00ading them\u00adselves with reme\u00addies such as \u201cwoomash\u201d plant, which Clah went up the Nass Riv\u00ader to col\u00adlect in July.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/em><\/span>This cat\u00ada\u00adstro\u00adphe rup\u00adtured the spir\u00adi\u00adtu\u00adal cos\u00admos and social fab\u00adric of Tsimshi\u00adan soci\u00adety. Drink\u00ading and vio\u00adlence were two symp\u00adtoms; burn\u00ading reli\u00adgious para\u00adpher\u00adna\u00adlia and mak\u00ading sac\u00adri\u00adfices for abso\u00adlu\u00adtion were oth\u00aders. Clah believed the Tsimshi\u00adan had angered the Chris\u00adt\u00adian God by lying, steal\u00ading, com\u00admit\u00adting mur\u00adder, and engag\u00ading in drunk\u00aden fight\u00ading. He prayed for God to for\u00adgive them and take away the sick\u00adness. This cri\u00adsis no doubt pushed oth\u00aders towards Chris\u00adtian\u00adi\u00adty. Dun\u00adcan\u2019s mis\u00adsion cer\u00adtain\u00adly benefited. <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Epi\u00addem\u00adic dis\u00adease was one of the chief moul\u00adders of Clah\u2019s life and world\u00adview. Of his dozen chil\u00addren only three sur\u00advived to adult\u00adhood. Two sons lived only to the ages of twelve and thir\u00adteen, both killed by measles. Two daugh\u00adters died in their mid-teens. His last son made it to the age of 23. Far from any fatal\u00adis\u00adtic Sto\u00adicism, the diaries are filled with accounts of the emo\u00adtion\u00adal trau\u00adma caused by these deaths. <\/span>But Clah\u2019s res\u00adolute devo\u00adtion to telling his sto\u00adry is best shown in an entry made as his sight began to fail: \u201cMy eyes half blind. <\/em><\/span>I see day like smoke. But I don\u2019t stop writ\u00ading.<\/em>\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While the response of Cana\u00addi\u00adan author\u00adi\u00adties to Covid-19 has not been ide\u00adal, it at least makes a bet\u00adter-than-aver\u00adage grade, and the ini\u00adtial slug\u00adgish response is quick\u00adly giv\u00ading way to a sci\u00adence-based one. Test\u00ading lev\u00adels are still woe\u00adful\u00adly inad\u00ade\u00adquate. I have to admit \u2026<\/p>\n

Read more \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,1517,946,1519],"tags":[1512,1509,1516,1515,1508,1513,1514],"class_list":["post-10816","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-a-blog","category-ag-blog-2020","category-b-reading","category-bg-reading-2020","tag-arthur-wellington-clah","tag-covid-19","tag-epidemics","tag-gitlaxdansk","tag-lockdown","tag-nass-river","tag-tsimshian"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10816","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10816"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10816\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10835,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10816\/revisions\/10835"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10816"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10816"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10816"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}