美國總統特朗普先前不斷淡化新冠肺炎疫情,最後連自己也確診。美國CNN報道,其實在第一次世界大戰高峰、1918年西班牙流感大流行期間,當時美國總統
《大型流感:歷史上最致命的流行病故事》(The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History)一書作者巴里(John M. Barry)說:「總統威爾遜從未發表過關於疫情的公開聲明。為了在戰爭中維持士氣,政府說謊了。國家公共衛生領導人還曾說過這種話:『這只是普通流感的別稱。』他們有意淡化疫情,導致更多人死亡。」
This will sound familiar. In 1918, public health authorities strongly recommended that people wear face masks to stop the spread of the virus. They also issued social distancing guidelines and urged people to practice proper hygiene.
But back then, Americans who did not wear masks were not making a political statement.
"Lots of people grumbled about wearing masks, or even refused to do so, but they weren't doing so because of a political stance or partisan allegiance," said Alexander Navarro, assistant director of the Center for the History of Medicine at the University of Michigan.
With the country at war, wearing masks was seen as patriotic. People who didn't wear them were shamed in public service announcements and news headlines for their defiance.
"Lots of elected officials as well as public health officers were telling people to wear masks as part of their civic duty," Navarro told CNN. "They were trying to tap into this idea that if you couldn't be over there fighting alongside our boys overseas, you could be doing your part here on the home front."