Blood testing for the poor/was Re: [extropy-chat] Charity

[Technotranscendence]

On Wednesday, January 21, 2004 10:19 AM Natasha Vita-More
natashavita at earthlink.net wrote:
[snip of perceptive comments]
> Lastly, thinking about and producing projects
> of good will that help others, "charity," is
> important for our organization - Extropy Institute.
> Who cares what political affiliation the
> givers belong to.

None of my points were about political affiliations at all.  I think
anyone can be charitable.  I argued against coercive charity -- which I
believe to be an oxymoron and actually anti-charity; I cannot honestly
reconcile any initiation of coercion with Extropianism -- and against
the view that libertarians must be anti-charity.

> I'd like to see someone suggest such
> projects that we can provide to others.

I've actually be rolling one over in my mind lately.  I've been
wondering about the efficacy of routine blood testing in life extension.
Routine blood testing, either in its present form or with some
technological tweaks, is relatively inexpensive.  It also seems a great
way to spot pathologies early, so that preventative measures can be
taken before things get too serious.  Typically, preventative
measures -- especially, diet, exercise, and other lifestyle changes --
are relatively cheap -- i.e., affordable by most people or easy to fund
for the charitable among us.

What am I driving at?  Well, how about coming up with an inexpensive,
easy, voluntary (voluntarily funded and voluntarily used (i.e., no one
is forced into it)) program of blood testing for the poor, since they
tend to be the most at risk for many health problems.  They also tend to
be the least able to afford expensive medical treatment and drugs.

The program can be targeted, too, given that certain groups and
localities are prone, for whatever reason, to certain pathologies, such
as specific cancers or type II diabetes.

Any comments?

Cheers!

Dan
  See "The Hills of Rendome" at:
http://uweb.superlink.net/neptune/Rendome.html