| Who’s To Blame?
Looking at the world today, we can see that there are many things that have changed throughout time. One of these things would be that people are living longer and healthier lives. On the other hand there are also people that are not living such heal
y lives and for a reason that seems to be a mystery. No matter how much time or research scientists put into these issues they never seem to solve some of the great mysteries that plague humans today. Some of these issues would be cancer, AIDS, and he
t disease. Some people think that these problems have just recently come up in society, when in reality these sicknesses have been around for many years. A major thing that has changed would be the life expectancy rate has risen within the last couple
ecades so therefore people are dying from these types of diseases instead of from things like, “ …violence or infectious disease…” (Asimov 466), as they have in the past. These diseases are important now because people are dying from them and there
s so much time, money, and effort being put into the research and possible cures. The problem is that there are so many diseases and scientists to go around and it still seems that we are moving too slowly for a possible cure or miracle drug for these
lnesses.
Asimov in his essay entitled “Cholesterol” speaks about how cholesterol is now a bigger threat to humans now more than ever before (466). At the time that this essay was written there was only one or two pills out that were aiding in the effectiveness
f preventing death caused by heart disease. Asimov assures his readers that , “There is hope,” (467). The thing that has only recently been brought to the population is that, “… we are all susceptible to AIDS…” (Gould 483). Stephen Gould goes on
say:
We didn’t notice the spread at first. In a population of billions, we pay little attention when one increases t two, or eight to sixteen, but when one million becomes two million, we panic, even though
the rate of doubling has not increased. (483)
He realizes how humans think and how our society seems to deal with disease and other serious matters. We as a race seem to overlook things if they are not affecting us directly. He doesn’t believe that we can fight nature. He says, “Our species has
t won its independence from nature, and we cannot do all that we can dream. Or at least we cannot do it at the rate required to avoid tragedy, for we are not unbounded from time” (Gould 484). In this aspect he differs from Asimov because Gould believe
that nature plays a larger role in determining the fate of humans. Asimov believes that people can help themselves more times than not. “The Clan of One-breasted Women” by Terry Tempest Williams has a totally different look at cancer. Her family was
victim of the government and their bomb testing. She actually can track the cause of her families’ cancer to this harmful thing. “Most statistics tell us breast cancer is genetic, hereditary, with rising percentages attached to fatty diets, childlessn
s, or becoming pregnant after thirty” (486). Her essay is much unlike the other two in that she doesn’t look at the medical aspect to the illness, she is looking at a way to possibly be reimbursed for her losses. The only medical viewpoint that she ta
s is to describe the horrific pain that her family encountered because of the deadly disease. In this essay she doesn’t focus on the possible cures, but she does blame careless people for her suffering. All of these authors have different standpoints
the issues of disease, illness, and dying, and who is at fault for it.
When I read all of these various view points I understood all of them and could see where they were essentially coming from. I believe that all of these people have a valid fight or point of view. In a way I would say that in the larger picture all o
these aspects are things to blame in the fight against any disease. In a way it is the fault of nature, in another it is at the fault of the person himself, and in some cases it is the fault of careless people. Nature is so unexplainable and cannot be
roved and that is the mystery in this point of view, because there is no scientific proof for events or things that take place. I do believe that people have to take on responsibility’s for themselves when it comes to preventing some diseases. Diet is
lways an issue along with exercise and something as simple as listening to your doctor who is backed up by scientific research. All of these things should be considered and can be blamed on the individual when it comes to preventative care. Careless p
ple are just a part of society, and in a way unless enough people stand up to it there can be nothing done about it. Williams spoke of how the government was at fault for her families cancer, but because the government is for the most part, untouchable
there isn’t much that can be done. All of the authors did a nice job of sorting out their thoughts and getting out their points of view on each topic. Some of these essays were outdated and therefore some of the information has changed since that time
but the feelings of the individuals still stand with today’s people.
The solutions are not clear to us and no one can say when exactly it will be clear. Will cancer and AIDS ever be cured? No one can say one way or the other because as time goes on there are more exciting advances, but on the other hand even after all
his time and money has been put into research and awareness there is still no cure. Who is there to blame? What good is this question because it really doesn’t matter who is to blame for the losses of lives, because the fact remains that they are gone
the only thing that you can do is look into the future and hope that soon there will be an end to all the death and destruction that plagues the human race.
Asimov, Isaac. “Cholesterol.” McGraw-Hill Reader. ED. Gilbert Muller. 7th ed. Boston: McGraw Hill, 2000. 466-467.
Gould, Stephen. “The Terrifying Normalcy of AIDS.” McGraw-Hill Reader. ED. Gilbert Muller. 7th ed. Boston: McGraw Hill, 2000. 482-485.
Williams, Terry. “The Clan of One-Breasted Women.” McGraw-Hill Reader. ED. Gilbert Muller. 7th ed. Boston: McGraw Hill, 2000. 486-492.
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