Tuesday, January 25, 2005
Lies, damned lies, and twisted interpretations.
Believe it or not, I’ve actually seen people argue that the US infant mortality rate is evidence of *too much* medicine, and that the reason that rates are lower in some suprising places is that because without doctors intervening in the natural processes of pregnancy and childbirth things go better.
Gotta say that I’m with the Coyote and Captain Ed on this one...there are several factors inflating statistics for the U.S. relative to other countries, and none of them are that capitalist doctors are evil people who kill babies with their degrees and their monitors and their big scary knives.
You know, this one gets my back up more than most. Might have something to do with the fact that if I had waited for a natural labor and a vaginal delivery, my daughter probably wouldn’t be here and I might not be, either. Probably has more to do with the irritation I’m wont to feel at the crazy fuckers who think everything was better in the Olden Days or the Way Nature Does It. Go look up how many women used to die in childbirth. Go take a look at the infant mortality statistics from a hundred years ago. Look at the percentage of children who survived to their fifth birthday. Then do whatever the fuck you want, because that’s your right. But don’t you dare say one word to me about having my baby in a hospital, attended by a doctor or doctors. Don’t give me that “vaccines cause autism” crap, and don’t try to convince me to feed my kid organic apple juice. M’kay?