science

Friday Faithfuls — New To Me

Fandango23 Comments

For this week’s Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie Friday Faithfuls, Jim Adams has asked us about the latest disease making the rounds, Respiratory Syncytial Virus, or RSV.

Jim asks these questions:

How long you have been aware of RSV? I first heard about this disease this past October when my one-year-old granddaughter was diagnosed as having RSV. Then, in early November, my local newspaper had a headline about this winter’s “triple threat” of the flu, COVID, and RSV.

Did you or any one you know get RSV? Yes, as mentioned above, our granddaughter.

Do you think that life expectancy will continue to decline, or do you feel that better health care and hygiene, healthier lifestyles, diet, and improved medical care will reverse the trend? I am afraid that, between climate change being unabated and new and mutating diseases on the loose, the life expectancy trend will likely continue to decline.

If a scary new pathogen is lurking right around the corner and there’s not much you can do to stop it, do you want to know about it? I certainly think it’s important to know about these threats to our health and welfare. I’m willing to potentially isolate myself if that is the only way to stay safe.

Do you feel that anti-vaxxers are responsible for the reemergence of infections that were once well-contained? You’re damn right I do. What a bunch of selfish, ignorant jerks they all are. My son-in-law refused to get the latest COVID booster shot because it made him temporarily lose his equilibrium, he claimed. Oh boo hoo! He just tested positive for COVID, thus putting my daughter and the rest of us at risk.

What are your thoughts on antibiotic-resistant bacteria that have developed the ability to defeat the drugs that were designed to kill them? Unfortunately, I think these viruses and bacteria will continue to evolve and mutate in order to survive and thrive. Thus, medical science will continually be playing catch-up and these viruses and bacteria will continue to cause havoc on humanity.

Sorry for my relatively pessimistic outlook, but that’s the way I feel.

Friday Faithfuls — Climate Change

Fandango12 Comments

For this week’s Mindlovemisery’s Misery Friday Faithfuls, Jim Adams has asked us what we think about climate change.

Let me start out saying that I think human life on Earth is doomed. With that out of the way, let me answer Jim’s specific questions.

How serious of a problem is this? I think this a very serious problem and if it’s not taken seriously and addressed soon, it could spell the end of human kind on the planet.

Do you think that man will be able to slow down or possibly reverse global warming? Do you think that scientists will be able to get control of the carbon dioxide that is warming the Earth and save us before it is too late? I hope that climate scientists will come up with solutions that will stem the tide or possibly even reverse global warming. But unless people are willing to make certain sacrifices in order to implement those potential solutions, including a willingness to fund them, it won’t happen. I think too many people are banking on God saving us from something that is our own undoing, and I think that’s magical thinking.

Do you think that we will be able to reach the ambitious goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2050 as called for in the Paris Agreement to keep global warming to no more than 1.5°C? I think it’s unlikely. The powerful fossil fuels industries and conservative politicians will ensure that we miss that goal.

Do you want to breathe cleaner air and be able to drink fresher water? Of course I do. Who would argue against breathing cleaner air and drinking potable water?

Do you feel bad that this is happening? I’m an old fart who, with luck, may have between 10–20 years of life left. I feel really bad for our children and grandchildren, who will have to suffer the consequences of the selfishness, shortsightedness, and greed of those who came before them.