Topic: Passion or Reason? A Heartfelt Lapse in Judgment

Darien Fenner

Date: 2010-01-25 00:55 EST
The following article was seen on page two of the RhyDin Post, January twenty-third.

Passion or Reason' A Heartfelt Lapse in Judgment January 23, 2010

http://i738.photobucket.com/albums/xx21/dfenner_photo/6264346944a710cfe80dc5.jpg Senior Columnist and Investigative Journalist: Darien Fenner

"If men were angels, no government would be necessary." James Madison said that. Here's another one.

Aristotle: "The law is reason free from passion."

Aristotle - one of the greatest philosophical and judicial thinkers on this end of the multiverse - described an ideal government as one absent of human emotion and fallibility, and as the removal of an individual identity in favor of the whole.

Mortals - and for that matter, many gods on RhyDin - are fallible. That fact is inescapable. But the duty of a politician, or of a single person within a lawful system, is to make an impassive decision on a controversial issue based on cold, hard facts.

Perhaps someone would be so kind as to explain, then, why the governing body in RhyDin is so riddled with flawed and effete human emotion'

One of the most volatile subjects in the news today is undoubtedly the plague-like illness circulating Dockside and threatening to invade RhyDin itself. The number of victims claimed by this virus has already exceeded a staggering two hundred, and continues to grow on a daily basis. Grief is allowed. Apprehension is allowed. It is a grievous and apprehensive time - for the families of victims, and for the residents of RhyDin. But a line needs to be drawn when it comes to a decision-making authority in matters. Rationality and dispassionate reason must be applied to an otherwise unreasonable and irrational issue.

Rewind the clock to the gubernatorial election, where Matthew Algiers Simon presented a logical opinion with regard to healthcare:

"If the quality of care in health clinics is the problem, then throwing money at building more clinics will not solve that issue. If medical training is the problem, throwing money at more training will not solve the issue on its own " especially if there is no leadership to guide the distribution of funds. What if those funds are directed to the wrong sort of training or to a training program less efficient than the doctors and patients need and deserve?"

In his pre-gubernatorial speech, Simon was already well acquainted with the need to replace feeling with methodical fastidiousness. How very applicable is his advice today! The utter calamity that has accompanied the plague in Dockside only further substantiates the demand for a thorough solution. Everyone desires an instant-cure, and they have a right to. It is a dire situation. But an instant-cure does not necessarily mean a long-term one, and the governor from years ago would have recognized that.

One of a government's duties is to regulate social and economic relationships. In addition to transitory operations such as trade, that also includes the testing of drugs before they are prescribed. According to Simon, ?"the research and hunt for a cure in the hands of experts in that field and tasked those experts with quickly creating or discovering a cure or vaccine."

A methodical use of Option A: If expertise does not lie in a certain area, in most cases, defer. An impassive decision, and a rational one. A pity it is threatening to be overridden.

Enter Option B. Resort to drastic measures to stay a problem.

Until recently, the only documented researchers involved in the plague studies were directly under instruction by Governor Simon, and were employed all over the city in community and private hospitals. Latterly, however, a new group of 'researchers" has happened along with hefty promises of a total cure for the disease.

A group that refuses to be identified.

A group that refuses to present documentation of its research.

A group that has only just now made itself known to RhyDin.

Comfortable" Neither are we.

Who was it, not two months ago, that said the following in response to baseless accusations by a public opponent"

"Mr. Shadowcast' make proclamations unfounded in fact " they accuse without showing any basis, authentication, or corroboration. Do not allow words designed solely to illicit fear and antipathy grow roots and fester; dismiss them for what they are unless, and until, they come with solid measures of proof."

Why, then, is this arguably mendacious organization's unfounded quick fix being considered as a legitimate resolution to such a catastrophic and vital problem' Where is the proof? Where are the documented clinical trials - a pivotal step in the development of a new vaccine" How can the government, or anyone in RhyDin for that matter, expect to place an ounce of confidence in some opaque bottle labeled "X," with undisclosed ingredients, and originating from a 'research' institution that until recently didn't officially exist"

That path is undoubtedly a rocky one, and has enormous liabilities on either side. If Option A is to be utilized, it will mean the continuation of an organized system - one that has been proven safer than alternative means. But then clearly urgency is due on the part of RhyDin's researchers, to prevent any further casualties in this plight. If Option B is to be considered, then absolutely every effort must be made to ensure that some form of licit credence lies with this "cure." Thoroughness must be heeded above speed, lest more unnecessary deaths be sustained by a tragic and careless lapse in judgment. Human emotion must be taken out of the equation, and a logical decision must be made.

Do not be mistaken. This is not a demand for the complete and utter forfeit of humanity. A representative democracy would mean nothing if compassion were siphoned out of a governing body; all desire to help would slowly ebb, bleed out, and die, and an oligarchy would ensue.

This is also not a condemnation of a trustee leadership - far from it. Representatives do a disservice to their voters if they hew to outdated campaign promises. This is an appeal to moderation; impassive, educated decisions must be made, not desperate, thoughtless ones.

The law is reason free from passion.

Leave your heart with the lives of RhyDin citizens. Use your brain for business and results.