CT Scan and Global Warming

Your father passes out. You rush him to the ER. A CT scan reveals an occlusion.

"Did the occlusion cause the fall?" you ask the doctor.

"It may have, but it's a minor occlusion so that possiblity is remote. The fall could have been caused by flu. It could be any number of things."

"So, what caused it, and what caused the occlusion?" you ask.

"Probably no single thing. There are three factors, three influences on your father's health that make something like an occlusion and a fall inevitable. The first is his age, which you can do nothing about. The second is his genetic make-up. Again, you can do nothing about his genes. And the third is his lifestyle. Does he smoke? Does he exercise? Does he eat healthy food? Here you have some control. You can reduce the chances of his having seizures, strokes, etc. if you get him to improve his lifestyle - cut out the drinking, practice yoga or meditation, that sort of thing."

"Well, thank you," you say to the doctor. "You have made my understanding of this quite clear. If I may, I would like to compare my father's occlution and his fall to Climate Change. There are many factors affecting the climate. Most of them are outside human control. But there is one factor we can control: human activity. There we have control. And that factor is burning fossil fuels."

"Do you think, then," asks the doctor, "since you can see this so clearly, that you will reduce your carbon footprint? Do you think you will change your lifestyle to keep the Earth healthy?"

"Of course not," you reply. "For the same reason I would never advise my father to change his lifestyle. My father loves his cocktail in the evening. If I even suggested taking away his cigars, I would be killing him, that is, killing his spirit, killing the person he has been his whole life."

"I understand," said the doctor. "And I would have no disagreement with your position if your father's lifestyle did not affect others. He can kill himself for all I care. But his drinking, combined with his age, is a hazzard when he drives. His smoking produces second-hand smoke that your children breathe."

"Well," you say, "I'll have to think about it, and then confer with an esteemed professor I know."