[Newspoetry] a nation of hypochondriacs: health paranoia

[DL Emerick]

http://junkfoodscience.blogspot.com/2007/04/what-your-employer-might-not-know-bu
t.html

 

I used to like to visit the doctor,

When I was sick or had a fever,

An itch that needed some drug:

I loved chicken soup Mom made.

 

But, in our ever most fallible way,

Snake-oil salesmen have wormed in,

Like trichinosis, in porky pie pigs,

They ham health acts emotively up.

 

Their selling point is always fear,

A fear of not being quite right,

A desire to believe in prevention,

In early overpriced intervention.

 

"You could live forever and aye,

You could be almost young again,"

For we all hate the vital signs

Of aging as approaching death.

 

We see the same symptom elsewhere,

In the theory of indicators of sobriety -

If you have alcohol in you, driving,

Then surely that is a crime itself.

 

We used to wait until harm happened,

But we are impatient as imprudent,

Thinking we know the signs inevitable,

And what is signified inexorable.

 

We accept injury of false positives,

The promoters who profit thusly,

By finding more folks guilty or sick,

Warrants imprisoning health care costs.

 

The sign is not the thing in itself.

A sign is only enough for questions,

It is not sufficient not enough evidence

Upon which to treat people criminally,

As if bad health makes a person bad.

 

 

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