operating room metaphor

A while ago I read a book called “Aristotle and an armadillo are coming to the capital”. The subtitle tracks the content: “Politicians’ lies are analyzed with humor.” The authors are two American philosophers: Thomas McCathcart and Daniel Klein. On page 25, they tell a well-known story about the phenomenon they call “the light is better here.” A man is walking out one night when he sees his friend Joe on all fours under a streetlight.

• He asks what are you looking for, Joe.

• I dropped my car keys, Joe replies.

• Here?

• No, it’s there in the bushes. But there is much more light here.

Where the sought is not sought. There are discussions, but the essence of the subject is not entered, other issues that are not related to the discussion are mentioned.

I was surprised and outraged when the opposition voted against a law, a decree, a proposal to improve the lives of citizens, for reasons completely unrelated to the content of the vote. In this way, the affirmative vote becomes a blackmail: “In support of the law, I demand that they give it to me or that it be terminated or changed…”. In other words, the goodness of the content of the votes is indisputable, more partisan interests are sought or those who govern are harmed.

“We will not support government budgets unless the negotiating table opens, I will not vote in favor if levels of autonomy do not increase, I will vote no to weaken the government…” What does this have to do with budgets? The fundamental question is: Are they good or bad for citizens? And once the question is fully answered, vote accordingly.

How will some politicians explain their vote to their voters when they reject a benefit, a development, a help? Because it is not only ethical that is corrupted. Logic is also flawed. Because you vote for what you vote for. And you are being irrational and unfair by saying no for other reasons.

The parties engage in accusations, arguments, arguments that have nothing to do with solving problems. Citizens feel abandoned to their fate while criticizing, disqualifying, opposing, mocking and arguing.

Politics is a battleground where the interests of citizens become a weapon against the enemy or a means to gain an advantage.

The main thing is not discussion, but the main thing is that the debate opens the way to find solutions to people’s problems.

The strength of the opposition, which criticizes the government for its desire to stay in power at all costs, amazes me, without admitting that this desire is of the same intensity and nature that the opposition must occupy it.

Consider an operating room where a patient will undergo emergency open-heart surgery. The family is in the grip of uncertainty. The whole medical team is ready. The chief surgeon is a member of the X party, the assistant surgeon is a member of the Y party, the male and female nurses are members of the Z party, the anesthesiologist J is a supporter of the political formation, the assistant doctor is the leader of the H party…

In the middle of surgery, the medical team gets into a heated argument. The anesthesiologist scolds the surgeon for not wanting to join the strike of the health workers promoted by the unions at the hospital, saying that he did not participate because he did not. the recruiters have camouflaged interests and since the improvement of medical practice is not really sought, the assistant surgeon feverishly lays out the reasons why the employment of health workers should be terminated, the nurse says that only the doctors receive MIR tells the nurse that her party has organized a riot that leads to acts of violence in the street…

While all this is happening, the patient is open in the channel under the spotlights. Panels provide information about a patient’s vital signs without anyone noticing:

• Listen, one of the medical students invited to observe the surgery tells the medical team that the patient is not responding to anesthesia. Leave the discussion for another time.

The debate is intensifying as the strikers blame each other for the acts of violence they incited at the demonstration. Some say these facts would go against the case defended by the strike. Others argue that without this violence, power is unresponsive.

The heroes of the discussion turned their backs on the patient. The group is now engaged in a discussion that goes beyond the initial approaches to the discussion. Now there are insults, disqualifications, violent attacks… The accusations turn into disqualifications and insults. On the other hand, offensive allusions are made to the private lives of healthcare team members.

• If they continue to argue, another student insists, the patient will be relieved of anesthesia and intervention will not be possible.

• A frightened student, please don’t let go of the patient whose heart is coming out of his chest, he will die. and angry.

The surgical team is now discussing the most appropriate strategy to improve medical practice. And about the need to improve education, the organization of hospitals, and medical careers. They are immersed in the “light is better here” phenomenon.

When they thought about continuing the operation and concentrating on the task, the patient died.

The purpose of the discussion was to find a strategy to improve medical practice, but the result was that the patient died.

And now, after the unjust and sad conclusion, another vicious debate unfolds over who is truly to blame for the failure. One blames the other. And now, to exacerbate the situation, we can even find an explanation linking the main cause of death to the patient: his body was so weak that he could not stand the surgery.

If medical team members do not criticize themselves, if there is no one open to criticism from the relatives of the deceased who complain about the outcome and the experts who examine the case and identify the flaws, healthcare team members are forced to repeat mistakes without the possibility of learning from mistakes.

We are the witnesses. And we have the opportunity to analyze the facts and decide who should stay in the operating room and who should go out on the street.