And Power Corrupts … : Religion and the Disciplinary Matrix of Bioethics

Abstract

This chapter argues that bioethics should properly be understood as a disciplinary matrix that serves the modern Leviathan of state and market. The purpose of doing so, of course, is to narrate a rather different vision of “public bioethics”. For without a more accurate accounting of the nature and function of public bioethics, it will not be possible to begin to posit how “religion” might even begin to position itself in relationship to it.

Autonomy: How it has become problematic for medicine

“…"The standard narrative of the genesis of bioethics is that it originated with theologians, but substantial theological discourse was quickly replaced by more advanced discourse in philosophy." 5 Crick reflecting on his DNA findings remarked, "I think that in time the facts of science are going to make us less Christian." 6 To better understand the current situation of biomedical ethics, I will begin by considering how we ended up in our current situation.…”

“…To understand these changes let's compare the language of respect and autonomy in the Belmont Report and Principles of Biomedical Ethics, an approach borrowed from Lysaught. 20 Belmont's first principle was respect for persons. In distinction, Beauchamp and Childress' first principle was autonomy.…”

Exercise for Patients With Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy

“…The American College of Sports Medicine indicates that any exercise performed between 40% and less than 60% of the heart rate reserve (Borg ratings of 12-13) is of moderate intensity, and exercise performed at 60% or greater of the heart rate reserve (Borg ratings ≥14) is of vigorous intensity. 3,4 Therefore, the exercise program by Saberi and colleagues was of vigorous intensity, which actually increases interest about their findings.…”

“…Because of this, metaphors are particularly susceptible to conscription by institutions, which may result in limiting practitioner reasoning or patient autonomy and silencing novel or unusual language, particularly words and phrases that might challenge evidence-based norms. 4 If research determined that certain metaphors were more effective than others, it is possible that practitioner imaginations could be stultified by such evidence-based parameters, urging conformation to a normative metaphor that some practitioners may find unhelpful or even objectionable. The metaphors patients use could adapt to this evidence-based language, impeding their linguistic autonomy.…”

“…Pharmaceutical companies, for instance, allocate significant resources to promoting medical metaphors, such as the "chemical imbalance" framework for mental illness, that encourage continued use of their products. 4 Rather than abdicating the field of medical communication to others,…”