Friday, March 29, 2024 -
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When life ended early

-Penicillin. Post-Penicillin. This might be a major periodization in history. Of course, it’s more than penicillin — it’s also modern treatments for scarlet fever, tuberculosis, heart disease, diabetes and other ailments that most people survive today, but often did not in the past. Sometimes I read a book twice. Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, by Doris Kearns Goodwin (2005), won the Pulitzer Prize. As I re-read this evocative, collective portrait over the past few months, I could not believe how fragile life was, not that long ago. Life ended early. In Team of Rivals, I met Abraham Lincoln’s character, patience, magnanimity, steadfastness and leadership skills. And I met his team. I met their — and everyone’s — inescapable tragedy in pre-penicillin […]
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IJN Executive Editor | [email protected]