The modern tech industry seems to want to make people disposable. Automation will help cement their status, I guess. I’ve seen terms “zombies” (for fentanyl users) and “NPCs” thrown around by the tech “elite.” The idea of a permanent, disposable underclass is a bit… odd, to say the least.

My dad was an award winning AIDS doctor in the highest-incidence city in New England. Medicine has a quiet respect for the dignity of humans that you don’t see in industry. My dad was friendly with all his “regulars,” and despite big pharma’s push (dirty secret: immigrant doctors in free clinics got big monetary rewards for pushing oxy to people on government benefits). Somehow he kept his head on straight and treated patients, and kept their humanity.

When you are faced with ambiguity early, with children, you learn to live the consequences of your actions sooner. My dad got the muscle of act first, question never. Unfortunately I don’t have that given my whole academic bent.

Medicine has recently made HIV virtually a preventable condition, and Bridgeport is undergoing its own urban revitalization. You don’t typically see “recovering from AIDS” as a line item in a database. But you can see it when you talk to people.