Dem
51
GOP
49
This week's Freudenfreude is about a fellow named Paul Alexander, whose story makes approximately 99.9% of us feel like lazy schlubs.
Alexander, whom you may know better under his online handle "Polio Paul," contracted polio in 1952 at the age of 6. It was a particularly severe case, leaving him mostly paralyzed from the neck down, and unable to breathe on his own. So, he was compelled to take up residence in an iron lung.
Despite the disability, Alexander was determined to live a full life, no matter how difficult it might be. To start, he mastered techniques that, while difficult, allowed him to breathe on his own for short periods of time. It took him a year to get to the point that he could breathe for 3 minutes on his own, an accomplishment for which he was rewarded with a dog. Eventually, he was able to spend multiple hours outside the iron lung.
Once he reached the appropriate age, Alexander was able to attend and graduate high school (as salutatorian), and then attend and graduate college, and THEN attend and graduate law school. He eventually worked for 30 years as a lawyer, often appearing in court. He always wore a three-piece suit, and used a special wheelchair that held his body in place.
Polio Paul was also an author. Holding a pen in his mouth, and using a special computer setup, he was not only able to write the legal documents required in his professional life, he also authored an autobiography, entitled Three Minutes for a Dog: My Life in an Iron Lung (2020). Following publication of the book, he started a TikTok account where he answered people's questions about polio, while reminding them not to feel sorry for him. "My life is incredible," he declared. Over time, he gained more than 300,000 followers.
Earlier this week, Paul Alexander passed away at the age of 78, having lived 72 of his years dependent on his iron lung. Guinness World Records certified that as the longest period of time a human has done that (though Alexander may be caught by the only known remaining case of an American living in an iron lung; that's Martha Lillard, who was first diagnosed with polio in 1953).
So, what is the political angle here? Well, although Paul Alexander was happy with his life, he was nonetheless an outspoken advocate for polio vaccines in particular and for vaccination in general, as he did not want others to be inflicted with dangerous diseases needlessly. This stands in marked contrast to a selfish and reckless man who is currently polling third in the presidential race, and the selfish and reckless meathead quarterback who may soon be his vice-presidential running mate. In fact, that presidential candidate has claimed that polio vaccines killed more people than they helped, because they caused 98 million cases of cancer. One wonders if this self-appointed medical expert would have had the balls to say such things to Paul Alexander's face.
And, with that rather strongly worded sentence out of the way, have a good weekend, all! (Z)