On hantavirus: Before my diseases stalled me, I crossed the Atlantic 13 times by liner and nearly 400 times by air. My worst maladies were a few colds. But things have changed. There are more passengers, more destinations, and more clever viral strains on the loose, many now more familiar than ever owing to the vulnerabilities of the human immune system. Strains that once preyed mostly on the weak, the sick, and the poor — consider the Spanish Flu — now have greater potency and range. Matters are today even more precarious with an America that all but denies the possibilities of contagion. That said, the time has come for an international body to study and protect against the surge in viral strains. The World Health Organization alone is not enough. This body could be called the Global Disease Detection Agency and would permit scientists, physicians, microbiologists, and other experts to collaborate and share information on a regular basis so that governments around the world could keep current on evolving strains of viruses and other potential health crises. This global detective force would be subsidized by all nations, within their means. If America has no interest, at least under this government, so be it. Even without it, such a detective force is feasible — if only less was spent on war and tech companies focused their AI not on fake nudes but real viruses. If only this did not seem too much to ask in a world that at times seems more tilted toward viral fantasies than the reality of the rare and shrewd maladies waiting to strike.