More Self-Evident Epiphanies - Human Beings.

[emanix]

Ever put up a blog post and then realise only days later you've left out the most important part?

So I posted yesterday about the concept of Self-Evident Epiphanies, but forgot what the burning reason I wanted to talk about it actually was.

Last week I had another Self-Evident Epiphany that I found both utterly banal, and yet deeply inspiring, and it goes as follows:

Every person I have ever admired, every person in power, and every famous person who ever existed was, or is, a human being.

I mean, honestly, take away the crowns, the robes, the uniforms, the bodyguards, the sound technicians, special effects artists, hyperbole and magical thinking, and what have you got? Just people. Making the best decisions they know how.

I mean, think about it. George Bush... is a person. Margaret Thatcher... is a person, Winston Churchill... was a person. Che Guevara, now a near-meaningless T-shirt icon... was a person. Queen Boadicea was a person. Martin Luther King was a person. Emmeline Pankhurst was a person. Lucy Stone was a person. Einstein was a person. Stan Lee, creator of so many superheroes, is a person. Joan of Arc was a person. Buddha. Was a person. Mohammed. Was a person. Jesus Christ. Was a fricking person. Every hollywood actor you know about... is a person. Every musician you've heard of, is a person. Britney Spears, love her or hate her, is a person. Pretty much everyone you've ever heard of, with the exception of fictional characters (and even including some of those - I mean, for example, Saint Nicholas, before he was Santa Claus, he was a person), everyone who had a part in building the world we live in is or was a person. Some of them started out with advantages, others didn't, but every single one of them is or was a person, making the best decisions they know how.

Clearly I'm not the first person to have this sort of thought - After all, it's Self-Evident. Here's Richard Feynman talking about having a 'Healthy Disrespect For Authority'
(Ed. 6/1/2012 - Oops, link broke! A new one can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhD0MxacnIE )

But why is this important? Because sometimes I catch myself making excuses, telling myself it's okay to not even try to change the world, even when it hurts me, because it's a big world, and I'm just one person. Sometimes I make decisions that are a bit feeble, and I tell myself it's okay, because I'm only human.

But everyone I've ever admired, every person in power, and every famous person who ever existed was, or is, a human being.

And so are you.

SEE?

Comments

[emanix.livejournal.com]

Ooh, I wish my GPs would remember that!

[theozzardofwiz.livejournal.com]

I guess I have the advantage of past experience in medical informatics, so I can talk to my GP as an equal. But... to be honest, if your GP(s) aren't willing to treat you as an equal and themselves as human, you might be wise to find a different GP. One who's willing to go through their reasoning and allow you to examine it!

[emanix.livejournal.com]

I've a background in medical science myself (pharmacology), so I know what I'm on about, but I've still rarely found a GP who's willing to be anything other than utterly patronising, even about conditions I've had for years and am clearly an expert on. It's also especially difficult to build up any sort a rapport in London where the turnover of both patients and doctors is huge, and the practice I go to is large enough that I rarely see the same practitioner twice.
I did try registering with a GP I'd had a recommendation for, who was apparently cool with sexuality and poly issues as well, but was turned away for not quite being in the 'catchment area'. D'oh.

The last couple of years I've simply found it easier to be a bit manipulative, treat them as automatons, feed in only the information that will get the treatment I already know I need, and wait for them to reach the conclusion I've already arrived with (On the few occasions I've actually been stumped, it's always meant a referral.). It's quicker, saves me having to spend ten minutes explaining my credentials every time, and doesn't end with us being cross at each other so often - they're always proud to have 'solved' the problem.

I have often fantasised about the idea of a 'competent patient' scheme, that allows you to bypass a GP for certain types of treatment given an appropriate level of understanding (which would of course be revoked if people demonstrated lack of judgement in their use of it). *sigh*

[theozzardofwiz.livejournal.com]

I'd settle for a "competent doctor" scheme, personally. And, no, the current system ain't it.