Recently I re-read Huxley's 1932 classic, found a 1967 yellowed paperback (75 cents!) hanging around the house. I give it a mixed review in terms of how well it holds up today, but certainly we have seen very recently how technology both helps and can be used to brainwash some people through modern social media in the 21st century, especially with regard to the pandemic.
However, I was more intrigued with the foreword that Huxley wrote in 1946 which appears in my copy. The gist of his message is that he would offer the principal character, the Savage, a third choice of future life. In the book it is a choice between living in a utopian, high-tech world that would drive him insane, versus going back to his primitive Native American village free to experience more significant attachments to other humans but ultimately a very tough and abnormal existence. Huxley's proposed third choice would be a hybrid existence in the primitive village but with some elements of science and technology available. Huxley thought about writing a new version of the novel but ultimately decided against it. It was no coincidence that he wrote this new foreword right after World War II ended with the use of the atomic bomb, perhaps technology's most devastating innovation.
Our brave new world in COVID-19 is just starting. Now, technology has allowed vaccines to be available down to age 6 months. Effective treatments are available, though less so for children under age 12 years. On June 28 the FDA/VRBPAC will meet to plan our path forward for vaccines for the fall. We are at a bit of a quiet time with new infections - lots of them, but milder symptoms overall. It is very clear that the unvaccinated are at much higher risk for severe disease and death, even if they have experienced prior and recent infection. The subvariants continue to outpace science and technology.
Along these lines, you might be interested in a discussion about right and wrong information in this NEJM opinion piece (subscription required) and a nice JAMA editorial about where we are in the pandemic and why.
On a personal level, I am also entering a brave new world. My staged retirement plan was scuttled by the pandemic, but as of June 30 I will be officially retired. Beyond catching up with family and friends and getting started on the 100 or so projects my long-suffering wife has planned for me, I don't know what else is next. I don't think it will be possible for me to keep this blog going in its present form; I need more direct connection to clinical practice to keep it grounded. So, I will be suspending the blog indefinitely. It may reappear in a different format and purpose if I find the need to keep sounding off.
Thanks to everyone following this blog. I wish you all peace and happiness.