Informed Hope

I have a confession to make.  I have a crush on Michael J. Fox.  It sort of makes sense that I would have an affinity for him now that he is an outspoken activist for stem cell research. But,  I have had a crush on him since the 80s when he was Alex P. Keaton.  Despite my disagreement with Alex P. Keaton's politics, his interactions with the Courtney Cox character on the show made my heart beat faster.  Some guys just know how to be romantic.

Now, after reading his biography recently, I feel no shame in saying that my crush is absolutely justified.  Here is a man who is dedicated to his family and kids.  He is optimistic and has a wonderful self-deprecating humor about himself. And, best of all, he has faced a devastating illness with grace and courage.  He's truly someone to emulate.

In his book he discusses faith versus hope.  Faith is blindly leaping into the depths with the idea that someone will be at the bottom to catch you, based on an idea or someone else's assurance.  And hope can be false hope that it is based purely on blind faith.  However, education leads to informed hope.  Michael J. Fox has educated himself about stem cell research and the possibilities that are informed by scientific research and successful experimentation.  Informed hope is not a false hope or a blind faith.
I have never been focused on a cure for multiple sclerosis.  I have an informed hope that it will be cured in my lifetime, but probably not in time for me to benefit from it.  My informed hope focuses on being able to  live a full life with a chronic illness and a possible handicap.

 But I may be selling the scientific community little short.  And maybe living with informed hope that someday there will be a cure for multiple sclerosis is one of the things that helps me live a full life. 

I also have informed hope that the world will move forward.  Stem cell research will be the wave of the future.  Someday embryonic stem cell research will be the norm and we will look at the controversy the way we look at the controversy over mixed-race marriages.  The universe is not set up to allow us to go backwards.  Forward momentum is inevitable.

In quantum mechanics, there are particles which move faster and become louder to protestbwing destroyed.  Maybe it's quarks.  That's how I see the push against forward motion.  People don't want to give up their old believes because they bring a sense of safety.  Moving into uncharted territory is scary and so when we don't want to do it, we protest louder and louder and jump up and down and wave our arms and tell everyone how horrible this new thing is, in the hopes that we can remain safe and comfortable in the old ways
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But I will say again, forward momentum is inevitable.  It is not a leap of faith going blindly into the fire.  It is an informed hope based on education and knowledge that changes will happen and science will discover new things and that someday there will be a cure for multiple sclerosis.