Theos-Talk Archives (December 2002 Message tt00373)

--- In theos-talk@yahoogroups.com, "Bill Meredith" 
<bill_meredith@e...> wrote:
> Well, Steve, we do have two of several organs. Ever wonder why?

It is what we in the engineering racket call redundancy. I don't 
know if it still true, but at one time the space shuttle had three 
flight computers on board to guaramtee the craft would still be 
piloted if one of them crashed. I remember well when two of them 
crashed and the crew prayed the third computer would hold up. It did.

Perhaps we
> should be willing to donate the extra one to a brother who needs 
it. Would
> you donate a kidney to your child or brother or sister if it meant 
a chance
> at a normal life for them?

The concern that some hace expressed in the media is that organs have 
in ome cases been harvested for profit without the patient's prior 
consent. It is an unfortunate fact that there is considerable 
financial incentive to declare a patient to be non-viable and 
harcvest away when the medical decision might be different were the 
financial incentives not present. In one case reported on 60 MINUTES 
a patient was hacked all to pieces and sold without the family's 
knowledge or consent. Their concern in that specific instance was 
not an unseemly sentiment for the deceased but a desire to profit 
from the harvest If I am the person being harvested I would prefer 
they wait until I go to my reward. Or wherever it is I am headed.0

Would you expect them to donate one to you?

No. I have considered carefully and have decided I am not important 
enough that I should make such a request of a living person.

> Mauri might want to jump in here. He is the recognized authority on
> speculations on this list. I think we already grow people to 
harvest our
> tomatoes down here in the south, so maybe after tomato season we 
might be
> able to get more bang for our investment by harvesting the 
harvester as
> well.

A typical conservative comment.

Steve, you're on to something here and I want you to know that you
> have my support

Recognition and vindication at last.

> Well, I'm not sure any single heart would make anybody a fortune.
> Especially if we were following your suggestion to raise them en 
masse on
> body-part farms in the southwest

Actually what I said was there has been speculation in the press that 
this might occur in the third world or Georgia, as the case may be. 
We in the southwest are too civilized for that.