Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, a Man Who Would Cure the World

by Tracy Kidder

The world is full of miserable places. One way of living comfortably is not to think about them or, when you do, to send money.

Paul’s face grew serious. “I think whenever a people has enormous resources, it is easy for them to call themselves democratic. I think of myself more as a physician than as an American. Ludmilla and I, we belong to the nation of those who care for the sick. Americans are lazy democrats, and it is my belief, as someone who shares the same nationality as Ludmilla, I think that the rich can always call themselves democratic, but the sick people are not among the rich.” I thought he was done, but he was only pausing for the interpreter to catch up. “Look, I’m very proud to be an American. I have many opportunities because I’m American. I can travel freely throughout the world, I can start projects, but that’s called privilege, not democracy.”

(Africans must learn to curb their sexual appetites, the banker remarked, and Farmer replied, “I want to talk about other bankers, not the World Bankers, but bankers in general. My suspicion is they’re not getting a lot of sex, because they spend a lot of time screwing the poor.”)

the distinction between prevention and treatment was artificial, created, he felt, as an excuse for inaction.