Nampa, Idaho - August 17, 2026 - According to John Green’s recent book, Everything Is Tuberculosis (2025), one out of every seven people who ever lived died of the infectious disease. Not even the combined kill totals of Mao Zedong (80 million), Genghis Kahn (40 million), Joseph Stalin (20 million), Adolf Hitler (17 million), and Leopold II of Belgium (15 million) can come close to the staggering death toll of tuberculosis: 17 billion. At only 200 million deaths to its credit, the plague pandemic of the 14th century—better known as Black Death—can’t compare to the enduring wrath of the tuberculosis pathogen. Green goes on to say that the insidious microbe has been with us for over 9,000 years, since before written language and domesticated horses—even before the pyramids of ancient Egypt were built.
Although he doesn’t spell it out per se, Green smartly divides his captivating and sentient commentary about the number one killer of humans between two lenses—one that looks at the world before there was a cure and the other, after highly successful antibiotics were developed in the 1950s. What I found most disturbing was Green’s sad disclosure that more than 150 million people have died of tuberculosis since the initial remedy was developed. Most of these avoidable deaths occur within impoverished nations, where marginalized people not only continue to spread the disease, but they also allow the untreated microbe to develop resistance to first- and second-line antibiotic regimens. This year alone, 1.25 million people will die from tuberculosis, with the U.S. contributing less than 1,000 of those deaths.
Leading the way in this travesty are, of course, drug companies, who, not surprisingly, prioritize greed over human need. But the problem extends beyond the usual exploitative practices of a sickening business world that kneels at the feet of the god of profit. Even if these precious, life-saving drugs were sent to low- and middle-income countries—places like West Africa and Southeast Asia—the infrastructure needed to support the distribution and administration doesn’t exist or is in poor shape. To illustrate this point, Green tells a story of when he stepped on a rusty nail in his backyard. In it, he describes all that was necessary for him to obtain a simple tetanus shot in a medical office: his car, roads, a doctor, insurance, refrigeration for the drug, a clean needle, etc. In other words, obtaining a tetanus shot requires much more than just the vaccine itself.
In his closing remarks, Green eloquently summarizes the ongoing tuberculosis crisis with these sobering words: “Modern TB deaths are driven by inequality rather than the bacteria itself.” I believe there’s a tendency in all of us—especially those lucky enough to have been born within the borders of a rich country—to consider abominations like tuberculosis to be a third-world problem when, in fact, it’s a ticking time bomb for all of humanity. A new super-stain of the deadly disease, resistant to our entire arsenal of antibiotics, will inevitably infiltrate the United States and other wealthy nations. While we twiddle our thumbs, awaiting the next tuberculosis pandemic to commence, drug companies will continue to focus on money-making trivialities like stopping premature hair loss, eliminating body odor, treating dogs for depression, and neutralizing heartburn.
Everything Is Tuberculosis is written by an author who, at the same time, engages and outrages his readers with the harsh realities about our longstanding relationship with an infectious disease that’s as old as dirt. To me, Green’s entire approach is analogous to ignoring a leak when it’s not on your side of the boat. Eventually, everybody succumbs to what could’ve been an avoidable catastrophe, but unfortunately, I’m a passenger on a ship of fools.
-Chuck Trunks
“This work was written independently by the author without the use of generative AI.”
Trunks Art moved from Columbia, South Carolina, to Nampa, Idaho, in 2025 and has made this city his home and writing inspiration.
To see more of my work, please have a look at more posts or email me at chucktrunks@gmail.com. Or, visit my website at www.trunksart.com. Also, you can find me on Instagram (chucktrunks) and Facebook (Chuck Trunks).
