Sunday, April 23, 2017

Another thing: We are a root-cause determining society. "Can't cure the symptoms unless you cure the cause!" Utter bullshit.

When you go to a doctor, or to an auto mechanic, you can present with the most common complaint imaginable: "I've had a runny nose and aches for three days." "Had trouble starting the car today." What do they do? "We have to diagnose. Let's take a blood sample first." No. YOU HAVE A COLD MOTHER-FUCKER! Your blood work has nothing to do with it! Make them treat your symptoms. They make a routine of taking your blood because getting to the "root cause" is in their blood. They're gonna find something! Guaranteed. I went to the doctor once feeling fatigued, had felt unusually fatigued for an unusual amount of time. So, went to the doctor. "Let's do your blood work." My PSA came back elevated--had nothing to do with my fatigue symptoms--"You'll want to get your prostate checked." Course, turned out I had prostate cancer, WHICH HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH FEELING FATIGUED. NEVER did anything for my fatigue.

I took the rust bucket into the shop last week. "It's hesitating or jumping on the highway, back-firing or farting or something." "We have to diagnose. We don't know what's wrong with your car."
Really? I thought. You HAVE NO IDEA from those symptoms? Never heard of such a thing before? You want to come out and look at it? Maybe take it for a diagnostic test drive. Is the "Needs Maintenance" light being on for a month of any relevance to your diagnosis? No? Alright, then. "We'll put your car through our diagnostic computer, that will cost $129. Then we'll fix it. You'll have to leave the car with us for at least a day. There's an Enterprise Car Rental right around the corner." "Oh, I see" (to self). I have to go the hospital for a day for a fucking cold? No. I left. Took the rust bucket to Jiffy Lube.

FDR had so many fucking physical problems he was a medical case study. Had to go to the White House doctor every year for a check up, though. "Help him manage the symptoms" was that doc's mantra.