In her excellent book “Dear Life: Caring for the Elderly” Karen Hitchcock writes: “If we are all just economic units who lift or lean, then very little is “lost” when a nursing home resident or anyone getting on in their years dies prematurely. In fact money might be saved – one less nursing-home bed to fund, and the kids can finally get their hands on the house.”
This describes the GOP’s stampede to re-open the American economy without healthcare, testing, oversight, and social justice. Think about Donald Trump, mask-less last week while loudspeakers played Paul McCartney’s Bond theme “Live and Let Die.” (I thought, perhaps they can do a mix of McCartney with Shirley Bassey’s “Goldfinger?”)
Like all disabled I’ve lived the effects of symbolic reductions owing to social constructions of economy and its Darwinisms. Despite what I may be able to do or can do, my blindness sails ahead of my life like the carved figurehead at the bow of a ship.
I’m one of the millions the new GOP believes is worth an early grave.
Remember the quaint old days when Barack Obama was trying to create a Romney style health care plan and Chuck Grassley said if the plan was passed it would lead to “death panels” and these in turn would ‘un-plug grandma.”? Remember? I do. Well it’s way beyond Grandma now kiddies—if you’re not rich they want you to step up and offer to die behind the counter in the dry cleaning store. Hurry up! If you drop dead more of us can get our hands on the house!
I haven’t heard Chuck Grassley speaking up. What’s the matter Chuck? Your home state of Iowa is pushing innocent people back to work with absolute cruelty and no public health plans.
As Lou Reed once put it: “Let’s get ‘em out on the dirty boulevard.”
Planet of the Blind 