Via Ryan Briggs (originally from iayork), a malaria mortality map of the US from 1870. I grew up near Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, which is heavily red on the map (mostly due to the swampy landscape and mosquitoes the size of small dogs).
Ryan sees this map as a sign:
Let’s say it together everyone, geography is not destiny.I'm not sure that Jared Diamond would agree. For the Native American population geography was much, much closer to destiny.
Maybe I'm wrong - after all, look at the beacon of enlightenment, culture and development Myrtle Beach has become!
2 Comments
Except Diamond gave equal (or more) importance to a society's ability to manage their environment/geographic resources. Not saying that we won't manage to screw it up in North America (or haven't already...)
B
True, but one's ability comes from experience, norms and institutions. Europeans had thousands of years of reasonably temperature climate to work in, with domesticatable livestock.