The Nobodie Rules: a drama in three acts
Act I: Felix and the Eye problem.
Scene i.
Dr Crippen: You were quite right to bring Felix to me, Mrs Nobodie. He’s losing his sight because of progressive damage to the optic nerve. It’s a rare degenerative complaint. If I were you, I’d go and see Dr Blur at the Clinic for Obscure Diseases. He’s the leading expert in the field.
Scene ii.
Dr Blur: Dr Crippen’s diagnosis is correct, but Felix’s condition isn’t incurable. It’s possible to get the optic nerve to regenerate using donor cells, but they’d have to come from someone who was a close genetic match. Perhaps you or your husband or a sibling. Here’s a lab where you can get your DNA tested. I’ll have them send the results to me and let you know when they arrive.
Scene iii.
Dr Blur: Take a seat. Well, I’m afraid the news is not good. Neither of you are a close enough match to donate cells to Felix. The only other possibility is if Felix had a younger brother or sister who might be a sufficiently close match.
Mr and Mrs Nobodie: I get to have sex! [They look at each other.]
Mr Nobodie: I thought you hated sex.
Mrs Nobodie: I thought you hated sex.
Dr Blur: And now you can find out for certain. But don’t forget, if you have a second child, there’s no absolute guarantee that his or her cells will be a match for Felix.
Mr Nobodie: Let’s go and overpopulate the planet!
The question for this dilemma is whether the doctor gave the Nobodies good advice. The new child is merely being used for spare parts, which is, it seems, why Dr Blur is concerned about the Nobodies’ attitude to a sibling for Felix. The Nobodies do want a second child, but nonetheless it’s a little disconcerting to think that the primary motive for breeding again is the production of an organ donor.
One thing which the dilemma omits is whether the removal of the cells from the new baby’s optic nerve will affect it adversely. I can’t imagine that any parents, except the most bloody-minded, would have a second child to save the first at the expense of the new infant’s life. Although Felix would be blind (not a state that I’d like myself), his life doesn’t appear to be threatened by his condition.
Dr Crippen: You were quite right to bring Felix to me, Mrs Nobodie. He’s losing his sight because of progressive damage to the optic nerve. It’s a rare degenerative complaint. If I were you, I’d go and see Dr Blur at the Clinic for Obscure Diseases. He’s the leading expert in the field.
Scene ii.
Dr Blur: Dr Crippen’s diagnosis is correct, but Felix’s condition isn’t incurable. It’s possible to get the optic nerve to regenerate using donor cells, but they’d have to come from someone who was a close genetic match. Perhaps you or your husband or a sibling. Here’s a lab where you can get your DNA tested. I’ll have them send the results to me and let you know when they arrive.
Scene iii.
Dr Blur: Take a seat. Well, I’m afraid the news is not good. Neither of you are a close enough match to donate cells to Felix. The only other possibility is if Felix had a younger brother or sister who might be a sufficiently close match.
Mr and Mrs Nobodie: I get to have sex! [They look at each other.]
Mr Nobodie: I thought you hated sex.
Mrs Nobodie: I thought you hated sex.
Dr Blur: And now you can find out for certain. But don’t forget, if you have a second child, there’s no absolute guarantee that his or her cells will be a match for Felix.
Mr Nobodie: Let’s go and overpopulate the planet!
The question for this dilemma is whether the doctor gave the Nobodies good advice. The new child is merely being used for spare parts, which is, it seems, why Dr Blur is concerned about the Nobodies’ attitude to a sibling for Felix. The Nobodies do want a second child, but nonetheless it’s a little disconcerting to think that the primary motive for breeding again is the production of an organ donor.
One thing which the dilemma omits is whether the removal of the cells from the new baby’s optic nerve will affect it adversely. I can’t imagine that any parents, except the most bloody-minded, would have a second child to save the first at the expense of the new infant’s life. Although Felix would be blind (not a state that I’d like myself), his life doesn’t appear to be threatened by his condition.
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