"It's striking that Native Americans evolved no devastating epidemic diseases to give to Europeans, in return for the many devastating epidemic diseases that Indians received from the Old World"

This quote by Jared Diamond is a reflection on the unequal exchange of diseases between Native Americans and Europeans. It stands out that Native Americans did not have any destructive epidemic illness to offer to Europeans, regardless of the truth that they received numerous terrible epidemic diseases from the Old World. This highlights the power imbalance between the two groups, as Native Americans were not able to secure themselves from the illness brought by Europeans. This quote likewise acts as a suggestion of the destructive effect of European colonization on Native American populations, as the introduction of brand-new illness had a destructive effect on their health and well-being. It is a stark pointer of the unequal power dynamics between the two groups, and the destructive effects of European colonization.