From: Kennita Watson (kwatson@netcom.com)
Date: Thu Aug 06 1998 - 05:41:11 MDT
Last night I saw Schindler's List. Following are a number of ramblings
that have come to mind, without regard to plot points they might
divulge -- I'm not in the mood for that kind of censoring.
An initial sobering thought: If everyone in the world were going to die
except those whose names I could remember, some people I like quite a lot
would die.
Money -- time -- life.
Oskar Schindler became extremely wealthy and saved 1100 lives.
Do I -- do you -- have enough to save even one? The most important
one -- your own? And now that I think of it, Schindler saved 1101,
of which the last had to be the first or the 1100 were doomed. But
I digress.
Let's start with cryonics -- a slim chance, but your best one at the
moment, should death come after you. Do you have enough to pay
startup costs, insurance, annual fees, for a chance to save that most
important life?
What if your insurance company goes belly-up, or institutes new rules,
or drops your coverage, or...? Do you have enough to pay out of
pocket for your suspension? For whatever reason, it could be your
only chance to live.
Even if you are signed up for cryonics, but especially if you aren't, I
presume you realize that each year that you stay alive improves your
chances for living indefinitely; medical technology, computer technology,
cryotechnology, etc. are constantly improving. Schindler bankrupted
himself in seven months, but it was just long enough. Do you have
enough to live another year if you lose your job? If you become
disabled? If you require constant hospitalization? If you require
expensive medical treatment not covered by your insurance, or that is
only available in a foreign country? Or for which you have to pay
bribes to ensure that you are in the experimental group in clinical
trials?
What about for five years? Or ten? Every year could be the year in
which rejuvenation is discovered -- in which a crucial disease (any
disease can be crucial if you have it and it can kill you) is cured
-- in which suspended animation is perfected. How much can you
afford to pay to live till that year rather than to die in the year
before?
And what if you have fatal disease X (AIDS comes to mind as an
example, but there are others, and evolution seems to toss us a new
one now and then)? Can you afford to fund research to find the cure?
Or at least a treatment that will allow you to live another year, or
five, or ten?
And what about the people in the world most important to you? Can
you keep them alive? How many are there, and how much would it take?
If you don't know, do you need an Itzak Stern to help you find out?
I've heard many people say "I don't care about money". Neither did
Schindler, but he realized that money could mean the difference
between life and death, and he cared about life. While our
circumstances are not as dramatic, the things I mention above, and many
others (living in a safe neighborhood, driving a safe car, whatever)
show ways in which money can prolong our lives. Schindler and the
Schindler Jews survived until the end of World War II. Your mission,
should you choose to accept it, is to survive until the War on Death
is won. How long can you afford to survive? What is it worth to you
to make enough money to survive longer -- the additional month or year
that it might be before victory is declared?
"The worst is over"
"I could have done more"
Schindler also could not have saved 1100 lives had he not been a member
of the Nazi Party. He clearly hated what they stood for, but he
realized that they had the power and that he would need some of it in
order to save lives. I have been a member of the Libertarian party for
almost 15 years, but I have the feeling that both the similarities and
the differences in the situations here/now and there/then deserve some
quiet contemplation.
I wonder if people can be taught to hate death as much as I do? An army
of such warriors could certainly fight the War on Death more effectively
than me alone. Perhaps that would be the best use of money -- starting
a school, funding a college course or community education class....
Or perhaps taking a cue from Hitler's original propaganda machine:
commercials, TV shows, newspaper articles (or even my own newspaper),
movies (though Schindler's List sets an awfully high bar), and other
mass media.
I disliked South Park before I saw Schindler's List -- I'm pretty sure
I couldn't stomach it now.
I definitely need to go find something light, happy, upbeat, and
positive to see or do.
-- Kennita Watson kwatson@netcom.com http://members.home.net/kwatson1/
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