What Could Possibly Go Wrong? Outbreaks of Injustice Linked by Two Different Dobbs.

BY MIKE MAGEE Under the definition for the noun, epidemic, there are two main (and distinctly different) definitions. I know this fact because it was the beginning point of my preparations earlier this summer for a Fall course on “The History of Epidemics in America” at the Presidents College at the University of Hartford.  The entry reads: Epidemic nounep·​i·​dem·​ic | \ ˌe-pə-ˈde-mik  \Definition of epidemic (Entry 2 of 2)1: an outbreak of disease that spreads quickly and affects many individuals at the same time : an outbreak of epidemic disease2: an outbreak or product of sudden rapid spread, growth, or development; an epidemic of bankruptcies In my course, sessions 1, 2, and 4 will be devoted to the first (and classical, microbe-centric) definition. But my third session will focus on “manmade” epidemics which fall under definition two. I thought long and hard about this choice. The deciding factor was reading New York Times best selling author, Adam Cohen’s book, “Imbeciles.” It details the shameful story of “The Supreme Court, American Eugenics, and the Sterilization of Carrie Buck.” More on that tale in a moment, but in commentary on the book, Cohen states, “…in many ways, I believe you can learn more about an institution and more about an ideal like justice if you look at where it’s gone wrong rather than where it’s gone right.” The tale of Carrie Buck is instructive, and sheds a damning l...
Source: The Health Care Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Bioethics and Law Medical Practice Buck vs. Bell Mike Magee Source Type: blogs