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Modern Medicine Might Have Saved Lincoln
Pcol writes "For the past 13 years the University of Maryland School of Medicine has presented a historical clinicopathological conference where they consider famous historical medical cases such as the death of Alexander the Great and composer Ludwig van Beethoven and provide a modern diagnosis and treatment in each case. This year Dr. Thomas M. Scalea, physician-in-chief for the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center discusses if the world's first center for trauma victims could have improved the outcome had Lincoln's assassination occurred in 2007. 'This could be a recoverable injury, with a reasonable expectation he would survive,' Scalea said, noting that assassin's weapon was relatively impotent compared to the firepower now on the streets today. The modern prognosis predicts that Lincoln might have conceivably recovered enough to return to the White House to complete his second term."
So, what this article is saying is, "Today's technology better than technology 150 years ago..."
And, as pointed out in the article, the weapon used then was relatively impotent. Would it not be safe to consider that if the assassination were committed today the assassin likely would have also used updated technology (i.e., something more, ahem, potent)?
...Is that because you don't need a brain to be president?
Of course... it could also be said that "modern security could have prevented the weapon being anywhere near the president in the first place."
"They said I probly shouldn't fly with just one eye," "I am Bender. Please insert girder."
And future medicine might have brought him back from the dead, able to play piano and fly! Or maybe not. No medicine might have saved George Washington, instead of the leeches.
Such pointless speculation. Yes, obviously better medical care could have saved a lot of people. How about "Modern Medicine Could Have Prevented Black Plague!" Maybe, "85% of amputations during the civil war wouldn't have occurred with modern surgery!" Seriously, I can keep this up all day...
ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
In other news, a recent study shows that using modern materials as well as safety and engineering best practices might have prevented the Titanic disaster.
Seriously, it's been said many times on here already, but, how is this news?
Curiosity was framed, Ignorance killed the cat.
An assassin today wouldn't use an outdated gun. He'd use an automatic, if available (Uzis come to mind) and spray his target. Or he would use a weapon with greater impact.
Of course it's easy to say today all those people who were murdered could have been saved with modern medicine. I'm quite aware that assassins are aware of this and use methods that prove to be fatal compared to the potential of their adversaries, the medics trying to save the life of the target.
Think of Caesar. Back then a stab anywhere in the abdomen was pretty much a surefire way to kill. Today you might have to hit your mark, and even then...
Think of all those people who were poisoned. How many would go to a doc today and he'd find out immediately and before it's too late that they are poisoned and what the antidote would be? Would an assassin use the same poison? No, he'd pick a killing method that can't be countered. Just like they did back then.
So, generally, I wouldn't read too much into this. Yes, they could have been saved by modern medicine if someone was stupid enough to try to kill them in an old fashion way.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
It was really the Spanish-American war that brought the country back together--the South bitterly hated the North even after the war, especially when the North did "reconstruction", their failed military occupation of the South. It wasn't until a hundred years later that the South finally quit segregation and stopped lynching Negroes. Rebellious groups continued their activities for decades--haven't you heard of the Ku Klux Klan? Finally, Lincoln was "a visionary and a very ethical man" according to the history books, because the history books were written by the Union. In reality, I think most presidents, given the situation Lincoln was in, would have risen to the challenge, and many of them would have done so more ethically and with more vision.
In Repressive Burma, it's not just your connection that dies. slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=314547&cid=20819199
You're right. We wouldn't recognize the United States. But not for your reasons. Lincoln's plan was to return the Confederate States back into the Union as the prodigal sons. He had no intention of a crushing and punishing "Reconstruction." Without having to go through Reconstruction, the race issues of the South would have been solved a lot earlier and lot more amicable than they were. The only thing the South mourned with Lincoln's death was post facto when they realized who would succeed him. His death caused generations of embittered hatred between South and North. You need to crack open a history book or maybe just google the definition of scalawag and carpet bagger to understand why generations of Southerners looked to the North with a skeptical and embittered eye. Now for the humor. Although the screeching hag is technically from Illinois (a Union State), it is awesome to see carpet bagging inversed with the Junior Senator from New York. lol.