Philosophy and ethics

Things are changing so fast that the Future happened last week and I missed it.

Titus Lucretius Carus (Lucretius) was born about 1 Century BC. His six part poem De Rerum Natura (On the Nature of Things) is 7400 lines of hexameter in the style of Virgil and Ovid mirroring Homer. His is hardly a household name, but when his work was (re)discovered and (re)published in 1417 by Poggio the Florentine it had major impact on the course of the Renaissance.

As a physician for 35 years, I have strived to live up to a quote I first heard from my father: the goal in medicine is to cure sometimes, to relieve often, and to comfort always. During my more than three decades of practice, I have learned that one must combine a willingness to care and ability to hear with an offer to help in order to comfort – let alone occasionally heal. It has been - and continues to be - a glorious and fulfilling career. But it has not been easy or without pain, confusion, fear, or despair.

“One does not discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time." 

André Gide (1869-1951)

Tim Jackson has written a fascinating piece about the economic limits of productivity. Aside from the economic considerations, I increasingly believe that the philosophy underlying medical care is incompatible with the concept of productivity.

It’s Father’s Day. My Dad is gone, but not his impact. 

“In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”

(George Orwell)

"It is good to have an end to journey toward, but it is the journey that matters, in the end."

(Ursula K. LeGuin)           

I used to dream about a new pair of cross-country skis for a season, evaluate different options, wait for a bargain, then purchase an expensive pair, and finally spend hours prepping the bases. Having invested so much time, money and effort in the skis, it seemed natural to do everything in my power to preserve them. I waxed and scraped them repeatedly, stored them carefully between uses, and skied carefully to avoid rocks or other hazards. In fact, I respected the value of the skis so much, I only used them in perfect conditions.