The brain is really a marvelous instrument when you let it do its thing. It recognizes patterns that aren't apparent and then provides new insights, almost automatically.
To show what I mean, I have to go back to some observations about the Omi that I only became aware of quite recently when she announced, once again, that she was done sewing for ever. The project which prompted this conclusion was a knitted cashmere tube dress she had bought at a used clothing store, taken apart, and then fashioned into a sweater which, after a year or so. had to be taken apart because the sleeves were too short. Since it isn't at all unusual for her to "rip" clothing and start over, I didn't pay too much attention, at first. But then I noticed that, probably because her thinking is not quite as clear as it was, she was actually cutting the ends off the sleeves and trying to make them wider. Then, after some frustration having to do with not seeing to thread needles and not having a yarn to finish the edges, she put it all together and was quite pleased with herself.
That's when it dawned on me that what she really enjoyed was the process of "taking apart" and "fixing." That the end product was no better (actually worse) than the original was not a concern.
Then, yesterday, as I was researching John Edward's law practice I came across a couple of articles outlining the malpractice cases that had won him big fees. They had to do with babies who suffered brain damage during a lengthy birth or delayed Caesarean and would now have to be sustained and cared for god knows how long. The awards to the caretaking parents seemed appropriate, even though the percentage claimed by the attorneys could be questioned.
Then some more random searching led me to the Illinois Civil Justice League which is increasingly concerned that some counties in Illinois are losing their doctors who can no longer afford the insurance rate increases because of so many high awards.
John Edwards' associates in this enterprise naturally are resistant to having the awards capped. They argue that medical malpractice can only be halted if the malfactors are punished.
But, while that might be a logical argument, this process obviously hasn't worked so far. If anything, there seem to be more and more examples of careless or negligent behavior. Not to mention that the futures of these infants (most brought back to "life" by machines) is just horrendous, for them and their families.
Why is that? Was is it that medical practitioners seem increasingly careless? Or is it just that the expectations of patients are too high? I don't think so. The outlines of the cases I read did seem to indicate gross carelessness, if not negligence.
This conclusion is to a certain extent supported by various recent studies which suggest that fully 60%-80% of hospital admissions are the result of mistakes or infections resulting from previous treatment. Hospitals, it would seem, have become dangerous places--almost as dangerous as our highways.
Why is that? Why is it that the better we get at doing things safely and fixing things that need to be fixed, the more things need fixing? Could it be that a whole lot of people are like the Omi and so enjoy the process of "fixing" that they actually consider (perhaps subconsciously) prevention a negative? That things have to be broken so they can be mended? That cities have to be destroyed so they can be rebuilt?