Guest Essay, on things irrelevant . . . Denton Record Chronicle, 9-23-18

On things irrelevant.

My cousin Paula was in town last week. She’s a pediatrician with a doctorate in bioethics who teaches in Santiago, Chile. Bioethics I found out is a complex field that combines philosophy, history, theology, and law, with medicine, nursing, and health care.

After greetings, the first thing she saw on the breakfast table was the paper with the report of a Dallas police officer entering the wrong apartment and shooting the surprised tenant. “So this is Texas, huh?” was her first reaction. “It was unfortunate,” I said. She read the article twice. “No words, no warning, no argument, nothing. Draw and shoot the black guy?” We looked at each other. I tried to drink my coffee and appear nonchalant. “Looks that way,” I replied. She thought about it. “Even Harry Callahan managed to be sarcastic before shooting someone. Go ahead, make my day, right?” Paula likes American movies.

So I told her about the recent trial where another Dallas cop got 15 years for shooting a teenager in the back of the head. “Let me guess, white cop, black teen?” she asked. I nodded. She puckered her lips and nodded back. At that point, I had nothing more to say.

The next day, we read an article about a confederate statue here in Denton being in the crosshairs of a national movement to remove names and images from the civil war that they don’t like. “Is that likely?” she wanted to know. I nodded again, then added. “Most likely. It happened in Dallas recently.”

She then went on to tell me that something similar happens in her field of expertise, where people usually get distracted with something totally irrelevant, while the real problem remains, festers, and gets worse. As an example, she used end-of-life care. “Typically, I see the family concerned with their feelings, their economic situation, their interests, not the wellbeing of the dying relative. After much is said and done, more is said, nothing is done, and the person suffering is no better off.” I listened. “Same with abortion,” she continued. “Many women see this as an issue about their right to decide, their welfare, me, me, me, not the rights of the unborn baby. In other words, their right to decide trumps life. Many girls that want an abortion are actually encouraged to get one, not even given a list of options or instructed on the long term consequences. And let me tell you, there are consequences, lots of them, and they are long term. I’m not giving you my opinion,” she added, “although I have one. My job, however, is to inform.”

So what does all that have to do with confederate statues?” I asked. “Easy,” she answered. “Focusing on the statues is like an obsession, irrelevant and unrelated to the problem. Takes your eye away from the ball. In this case, the ball is training cops, educating people, getting rid of bad apples with guns. Remove the statues and life is good, plus some people, no doubt, make money. No more bias, intolerance, or discrimination. Right?”

Link to Denton Record Chronicle: https://www.dentonrc.com/opinion/columnists/manuel-taboada-solutions-to-problems-often-irrelevant/article_e262f97f-0bff-5f32-b006-00f76382fb8e.html