I recently read that Alzheimer’s is the #6 leading cause of death in America. Even more concerning…America has a Top Ten for death. That’s awfully morbid, even if it is scientific.
Fact is, we love ranking things in this country. Ten Best this. Top 25 that. We’re obsessed with rankings, yet if we do it in our everyday lives it’s somehow unacceptable. Telling someone, “You’re #17 on my list of favorite co-workers” is frowned upon, especially if your office only has ten employees.
I should say that it’s unacceptable now. But it’s only a matter of time before publicly ranking everything from co-workers to first dates is a part of life. They already have the “Peeple” app that lets users post Yelp reviews for actual people, proving that some app makers have too much time on their hands when they’re not watching TMZ or selling their souls.
Regardless of where our society is going, I’m disturbed that many of us may not be able to remember the “good ol’ days” when we get there. Again, Alzheimer’s is #6! That frightens me, which is why I was excited to see the latest science news. Apparently researchers have discovered that a protein in jellyfish could hold the cure for Alzheimer’s. That’s both exciting and sad. Exciting that we can possibly eradicate a terrible disease. Sad that we’ve had the cure all these years and have been peeing on it. I think it’s time we keep our #1 where it belongs and kick the current #6 out of the Top Ten. Go America.