How Much Do We Care About Health and Life?
A survey of the world today would suggest we care about as much about health and life in the abstract as we care about anyone else's property - which is to say, not enough to do anything much about it. We'll grasp at the easy non-solutions, but putting in meaningful work? That's hard. I can't say I agree with more than half of what this Huffington Post columnist has to say, and his grasp of the science of longevity is miserable, but here's some of the half worth reading: "People who grasp whatever is at hand in the hope that it will slow or stop the rising water of mortality are not to be faulted or derided. But there are those who exploit this vulnerability to achieve or maintain power, or for financial gain, who exploit with twisted science and do great harm in the process. ... So far, what is possible now, is a longevity of 122.5 years, and I see no reason why a breakthrough cannot occur during this century to make it possible for many people to attain that age. Meanwhile, research on aging and longevity is underfunded, not overfunded. The cost to the U.S. taxpayers of one month of the Iraq war would fund a serious war against mortality for ten years." What do we really care about in life, enough to do something about it?
Link: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dan-agin/methuselah-laughing-liar_b_74341.html