The thoughts, creations, and bizarre adventures of an Actor/Composer/Playwright/Activist

Pikuach Nefesh – Saving a Life in the Time of Coronavirus

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As I read with deep sadness that various religious institutions are still hosting services or plan to resume them soon, I’d like to take a minute to tell you (if you don’t already know) about a Jewish concept called pikuach nefesh.

Pikuach nefesh loosely means “saving a life.” The concept – observed by even the most Orthodox Jews, though applied more stringently than in other denominations – is that nearly every piece of Jewish law should be overridden if obeying that law puts even one person’s life in danger. So for example, if someone has a heart attack on Shabbat, it’s okay to drive them to the hospital. If you are trapped on an island and the only protein available is pig, you don’t have to keep kosher. The point is that human life is incomparably sacred, and that to risk that life – especially in an attempt to please God – is actually an affront to God, who gifted each person with that life.

This has perhaps never been more relevant than it is right now. Last week, a prominent and revered Virginian pastor contracted the virus and died after insisting on holding services in defiance of social distancing guidelines. “I firmly believe that God is larger than this dreaded virus,” the pastor said to the media just a few short weeks ago. In response to his pastor’s death, a church elder then stated, “The first thing I asked God is, ‘Why?’”

I genuinely do not mean to make fun of this pastor’s death or the grief of his congregation, friends and family, but I think most of us can agree that the “why” is fairly obvious. If someone died by playing a game of Russian Roulette, would any of us struggle to determine “why” it had happened? This pastor believed that God would keep him safe. I would argue that God tried to. By giving humans the ability to understand medical science, by sending warnings through public health officials, and by inspiring government policies urging the pastor not to do this. He didn’t listen. And now he’s gone, having risked not only his own life but the lives of people whose wellbeing and trust were placed in his hands.

I truly hope that if anyone of any religion who reads this is planning to attend religious services during this pandemic, thereby endangering your life as well as those around you and all of society’s, you will consider the concept of pikuach nefesh, and ask yourselves if the God you believe in would ever want you to risk your life and the lives of others in order to worship Him/Her/Them/It.

Feel free to share this post with anyone whom you think might benefit from it… Let’s all stay safe, and find ways to stay connected to our faiths and to our communities without endangering ourselves or others.

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Your Odds of Getting COVID-19

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Just because a relatively low number of people have COVID-19 today does not impact your odds of getting it in the future. To think otherwise is to use the exact same logic Trump used weeks ago when only 10 people had it in the whole country; now 200,000 people have it (a figure which is estimated to be as much as 80% lower than the actual number due to lack of testing and the extraordinary range of symptomatic responses). Project that exponential growth forward and your odds of getting it are actually quite high.

Early in the 14th century, there was a time at which only one person had The Black Plague – seven years later, 50 million people/60% of Europe was dead. I’m not saying those will be close to the numbers here, but the numbers will still be high. We can keep them lower by being safe and cautious. Please be careful, both in your actions and in your posts; we must all act in a way that we would want everyone to behave to save as many people as we can. If we do that, then your odds remain low. If not, then our trouble is very much just beginning.

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The above is a slightly edited version of a message I sent to someone I love very much who was uncharacteristically repeating Trump’s style of thinking regarding COVID-19, and thought I would post it publicly here because I think this perspective is very important as we all strive to act responsibly for the duration of this crisis. Please feel free to share, or to copy and paste – we must not lose sight of our moral responsibility for collective action.

Advocacy, Healthcare, Politics, Science Leave a Comment

Elizabeth Warren’s Disability Plan – Incomplete, But a Huge Step in the Right Direction

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Please read through this policy proposal by Elizabeth Warren regarding the reform of disabled people’s rights. Skim if you have to, but please take a look.

Our current disability system, though well-intentioned, is shamefully outdated. It does not reflect the reality of what it costs to live in America today even if you are able-bodied, let alone if you have a disability that prevents you from working regular hours at a “normal” job. Instead, it actually penalizes you if you make more than $910 per month (regardless of what you receive in disability benefits, whether it’s $1 or the maximum of around $3,000 per month – and the average is on the lower end of that spectrum).

Ask yourself: could you live on $910 per month and be able to afford rent, buy food and utilities, and pay health insurance premiums (which, though a lot of people don’t seem to know it, you still have to pay even on Medicare)? Now add to your calculations the thousands of dollars that many disabled people have to pay every single month for out-of-network medical care, medications and supplements, and medical equipment, and you will have an idea of how ludicrously cruel and draconian our current disability system is. And that’s just SSDI: some people only qualify for SSI, in which case you get to keep the first $85 you make, after which 50% of every dollar you make is confiscated. (Can you believe it? A whole $85! I guess you can afford that new $4,400 a month antibiotic that is the only one in its class which Medicare doesn’t cover – which is a real example of a medication I had to take for a while recently; the only reason I’m not naming it is to avoid a frivolous SLAPP suit). Warren’s plan does much to improve these issues.

Adding to this financial burden is the fact that people on Medicare are not allowed to use coupons for new drugs, because that is technically considered to be a government kickback. So that amazing new drug that could help or even cure your disability but requires a $1,200 monthly copay – which the pharmaceutical company offers a coupon to let you pay just $10 for – is beyond your reach. The result: the people who need new treatments the most can’t legally afford them. Senator Warren does not address this in her plan, but I very much hope she will eventually, and I will try to reach her myself to let her know.

Disabled people have the highest amount of essential costs of any group of people. But unless they are privileged with a wealthy family who can help out, they are literally forced to live in poverty, where they are often unable to afford basic life necessities (let alone the high level of medical care that they require). I applaud Senator Warren for bringing attention to this vital issue, and for her detailed policy on how to begin reforming this vital system.

Advocacy, Healthcare, Politics Leave a Comment

If we invade Iran, it’s over.

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Just to be clear – and this should really be something both sides agree on, including Trumpers, most of whom (rightly or wrongly) approved of his isolationist foreign policy precisely because they believed that it would keep us out of yet more conflict – if we enter another major war in the Middle East, it’s over. America is officially done. The cost and commitment will push us far beyond the brink of what we can incur as a nation. Honestly, we’re probably there already – but if we go to war with Iran, it will be certain.

Terrorists know this, as do the evil regimes that support them (and often are them). It is their stated aim to drag us into regional wars that cannot be won by traditional standards, so that we overextend ourselves and ultimately collapse from within, the way every single empire in history has within a short period of time after invading the Middle East: Greeks, Romans, Mongols, British, Soviets, and on and on and on. To go to war yet again – in a country four times the size of Iraq, and look how that turned out – is to play right into the hands of our enemies by doing exactly what they want us to do.

As George Washington warned in his farewell address: “[America] goes not abroad in search of monsters to destroy.”

We didn’t listen. I pray with all my heart that this time we will.

Advocacy, Politics Leave a Comment

Bummer.

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Dear Friends and Family,

If you could please stop telling me what a “bummer” it is when I can’t do something you want me to do with you because of my physical health, I would greatly appreciate it. It’s happened so many times in the past week alone that I feel the need to address it.

First let me make clear: I absolutely know that the reason you’re saying this is because you love me and want to spend time with me. I’m truly grateful to you for that. The fact that you’re sticking with me through all of this means more to me than I could ever adequately express.

At the same time: however bummed out you are in the moment by the implications of my illness, I promise you that I am living with those implications every moment of every day. It is indeed quite a bummer, and that’s not something I need to be reminded of when I am only trying to take care of myself – a practice that is very hard for me, and which gets even more challenging when I’m left feeling guilty about it, which I know is unintended but also kind of unavoidable when you essentially tell me that I’m letting you down.

I can only speak for myself, but I strongly suspect that this request applies to anyone in your life with a chronic illness (or even someone with a bad cold, for that matter). So the next time someone you love can’t do something you want because they just physically aren’t up to it, may I suggest this small change: instead of telling them it’s a bummer, try something more along the lines of, “I’m sorry to hear it, but I understand. I hope you feel better soon.” It’s a relatively small but compassionate shift for you to make, and I promise it would make a huge difference to me (and probably everyone else, too).

Love, Michael

PS: For more related to this topic, I refer you to the iconic essay “The Spoon Theory” by my friend and fellow advocate, the great Christine Miserandino. Also check out the Circles of Support/Ring Theory of Venting. Thanks!

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