The Last Centurion

Wednesday, February 6th, 2008

The Last Centurion is a post-apocalyptic novel — the apocalypse is by unexpected global cooling combined with a flu pandemic — by John Ringo, who writes from the first-person point of view of his politically and socially conservative soldier protagonist. That means lots of salty language and lots of jabs at socialized medicine and the thinly veiled President Hillary Clinton, which would not work at all with a supposedly omniscient third-person narrator — and which works less and less as the narrator becomes apparently omniscient and the voice of the author.

Anyway, Ringo has posted the first eight chapters online, but it really gets going in chapter three.

Incidentally, there is a PandemicFlu.gov site, if you’re interested in what’s really being done about the threat — which is mainly things like producing sample chain letters to distribute:

The threat of a flu pandemic is real. It is not a question of IF it will occur, but of WHEN it will occur. You need to be ready to take care of yourself and your family during a flu pandemic.

Preparing now will make it easier for you and your family during a pandemic. Here are a few quick tips:

  • Stock up on food, medicines, and supplies. You should have enough for 2 weeks!
  • Improve your health habits. Sneeze and cough into a tissue or your sleeve and wash your hands with soap and water frequently.
  • Have a plan. Know what you plan to do if schools are dismissed, if you can’t go to work, or if a member of your family becomes sick and needs care.

Now that you’re preparing, do you know if your friends and family are?

Help spread the word about flu pandemic preparation! Send this message to your friends and family.

For more information on how to get prepared, visit
http://www.pandemicflu.gov/plan/individual/checklist.html.

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