Impairment and Correction

Everytime I hear the terms 'ADHD' or 'attention deficit disorder' my skin starts to crawl. And then when assertions that "we don't know how to teach boys" follow, it really steams me up. When I hear tell of children on drugs it makes me ill.

I know the drugs work. That's what's scary. That we can have drugs for every definable disorder assumes something I'm not ready to concede, which is that health dictates behavior.

If a perfectly healthy human is capable of speaking Japanese, should we medicate everyone who doesn't? If a perfectly healthy child is capable of learning to standardized tests in elementary school, should we medicate everyone who doesn't? It's the same question and the answer is obviously no. Both situations beg the questions of what should be learned, what should be taught, and how society should function around those who don't learn. What I percieve is that our standards are artificial, and that is dangerous and corrosive to American society.

Imagine that twitchy boy. He's on a farm. In front of him is a book on how to get eggs from chickens and how to prepare them. Nobody will cook for him. Will he starve? Will his attention deficit disorder be so severe that he cannot have enough patience to crack an egg to eat? Of course not. ADHD, not that I'm an expert and know for certain, is not that severe a condition. It is an impairment, like intoxication. But if it is a congenital impairment is the medical solution proper?  I'm skeptical because I believe that finding the kid a path to put his twitch to use is possible, and because I believe that he should be able to overcome without the use of drugs.  But I do believe that the kid should have a choice.

See, here's the great qualifier. I'm myopic. Without glasses or contact lenses I'm useless for all sports except for board games. I think it's socially important to play sports. I know that if it hadn't been for sports, my understanding of honorable competition would be a lot narrower than it is, my character would be, relatively speaking, flawed. I'm a better person because my impairment was corrected. Of course, wearing glasses has its own problems. But I think they are a bit less serious than those of taking drugs.

You see? I'm in a dilemma. Maybe a doctor could help me resolve it.