During coronavirus crisis, former Berlin Senator for justice Erhart Korting flipped through the memoirs of his great-grandfather, doctor Johann Jacob Lerch.
They Lerch described the plague epidemic in Moscow in 1771. Reading memories, Korting was horrified to realize how similar both of the epidemic, then and now, and how easily thoughts about the disease can awaken people’s violent tendencies.
The first signs of infection of the Moscow doctors had underestimated. They considered them to be manifestations of a common fever, and therefore allowed the contamination of the whole of Moscow. When every day began to die hundreds of people, if not thousands, it was too late. Moscow spread the news about what is to blame the nuns who insulted the virgin Mary, and she has punished Moscow.
In confirmation of the veracity of this version told of a certain merchant. Most likely, he was sick of the usual fever and began to repent before the image of our lady. She allegedly performed a miracle and healed the merchant. Muscovites that was enough. The enemy was assigned — the doctors and nurses in the monastic hospitals. So they went to punish them. The end of everything, as happened in those days, laid the Cossacks. Who shot that whipped checkers.
New time, old fears
Today we are twice as smart as said Josef Svejk, when asked how long will the war, and he suggested that 15 years.
Conspiracy theories we have now also more thoughtful and not so clear. They reflect current technological advances. For example, we are confident that bill gates, most likely with the tacit consent of governments, the first artificially created virus, and then propose after some time the vaccine, which is full of microchips. He will admit them to all of us in circulation and will have full control.
Some dreamers of the Polish priests present in their sermons an updated version based on Polish traditions. The virus, according to them, spread around the world, the masons along with the Jews who control the transnational corporations.
Protests against coronavirus measures is also becoming more civilized form. No one trashes the monastic hospital. And Maria Theresa meadow at Munich or mariánské square in Stuttgart you can find all kinds of demonstrators. Some come, impressed by one or another conspiracy theory, and others genuinely fear for their civil liberties.
The staff of a German train even told how conspiracy theories can be used for good to comply with these measures. During the train conductors included a Declaration addressed to the supporters of conspiracy theories. If, say, you don’t wear a mask, you are really hurting. Particles that you can breathe without a mask in the environment, the government secretly collects, establishes their origins and send to database, then to create clones. They will replace people.
So I think whether a hundred years ago Josef Svejk was right that we became twice as smart?
