Why don't they care? Well, corporations have no hearts and no capacity for caring. As the fragile humans that we are, we should want them somehow kept in check. How that happens, in this day and age is beyond me, but the fact that countless corporations are ALLOWED to go out and poison the world is incomprehensible to me. Why does it have to be proven that what they do causes harm? Why shouldn't it be that THEY HAVE TO PROVE that what they do causes NO harm BEFORE they are allowed to do it (whatever "it" is)? Capitialism at it's finest! Bah!
Too many people have cancer. WAY more people die of cancer in this country every single year, than all the people that have died in the 9/11 attacks and all the immoral killing that has gone on since. Why are we not waging war on cancer rather than on brown people? What happened to the good of the government that I remember growing up with as a child, where monopolies were illegal and spying on citizens was cause for impeachment? What happened to leaders that united our country around sacrifice and true love of country and those that defended it? Why CAN'T we all agree that getting rid of cancer and providing health care for all people would be so much more productive than spending all our resources on bombs and guns? Something in my soul tells me that something is terribly wrong with this and that if we don't do something about it, the planet will finally spit us all out so that she can survive. That's not what I want for my kids and all their kids to come. Maybe cancer will just have to knock at every door to get people to wake up, but will it be too late then?
The Health Industry's Secret History of Delaying the Fight Against CancerIn her new book, Devra Davis exposes scientists and government officials who have worked to downplay or dismiss preventable causes of cancer.Let's just hope so huh?
Davis is also arguing that we need to dislodge the belief in the existence of incontrovertible scientific proof from the public and legal mind as well; after all, most scientists would be the last to say their conclusions represented some forever-undeniable truth. "If we insist on having at hand absolute proof that harm has happened before we move to prevent or control damage," Davis writes, "we are dooming future generations." But the time is right, she says, for a paradigm shift in how we think about cancer; and she argues that we are beginning to make major breakthroughs -- in part due to the help of industry insiders -- that can help bring about this fundamental change.
In the meantime, I've decided not to give those tobacco companies any more of the little money I have. On December 1st, I quit smoking after almost 40 years. I've been pretty much a closet smoker for quite a while and I'd cut so far back, that quitting is the only logical next step. They say that no matter when you quit, you start getting healthier in the first few days. I'm not sure about that yet, but I'm open to feeling it when I get over "jonesing" for my next American Spirit Light Menthol cigarette.
Anyway, we have the scientific tools to reveal the connection between the environment and disease in a way never before possible.
We will probably have to wait till there is new leadership in this country, but we can start now, figuring out ways to demand that we are protected from pollution and that we join the rest of the world in figuring out how we can all prevent the looming climate crisis.
Oh, and can we just stop with all the wars?
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3 comments:
Ok. So John tells me I'm not really clear about what I'm trying to say with this post.
In a nutshell, I think it's that this nations priorities are severely screwed up. I think we need to start putting people's needs over corporate greed.
There's so much more to it than that and everything is connected to everything, but that's the main jist...just in case there was any confusion.
Vicki
You were quite clear, and it is quite clear you are correct. I found this article this morning: New Medicare rules for a small but promising class of cancer drugs may cause thousands of lymphoma patients to lose access to the treatment, which in some cases is the only therapy available to them.
The drugs’ makers and patient advocacy groups say the changes will sharply cut reimbursement for the medicines next year, and they predict that many hospitals will stop offering the treatments. The Medicare changes come just as new data provides additional evidence that the medicines, called Bexxar and Zevalin, are effective.
More at http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/07/business/07drug.html?_r=1&ref=business&oref=slogin
So Mrs Beckwith and 60,000 other people who are diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma every year get to sweat it out (oh, 20,000 of those will not see the end of this argument) while they talk about methodology?
Where is this reverence for life that we hear so much about?
This is just unconscionable. It's hard for me to fathom that anyone would just let a patient die when there are ways to save them.
Thanks mhr for sharing. I know I drive people crazy with politics, but this is life and death proof that EVERYTHING is political.
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