Chapter 37 Section five

This is a public meeting of the Senate, open to everyone.The conference hall with only 300 seats was full, and many people who did not find a seat stood by the wall and crowded in the aisle.New Eden's 24 legislators were seated in the front row, and the meeting was presided over by Kenji Watanabe. "Our budget hearing continues today." Kenji hit the gavel to silence everyone, "Dr. Robert Turner, President of New Eden Hospital, attended today's hearing. Achievements in the field and present next year's budget." Dr. Turner stepped onto the podium and nodded to the two Tiassos standing beside him.They immediately placed a projector and electronic display on the podium, ready to provide visual aids for everyone.

Dr. Turner began to speak: "In the past year, we have made remarkable progress, especially in the construction of medical hardware facilities and the control of diseases, but the RV-41 virus still plagues our people. In the past 12 months, we have fully grasped the The living conditions of this complex biological tissue have improved our detection methods. Through the test of the new method, we can accurately determine the carriers of the virus. "Seven months ago, we conducted a survey on all the residents of New Eden. During three weeks of testing, 96 people were confirmed to be infected with the virus.After the testing work, we found another new case of virus carriers.During this period, 3 people died from the RV-41 virus, and the number of infected people is now 94...

"RV-41 is a terrible virus that eats the heart. It shrinks the heart muscle and eventually kills the patient. So far there is no cure, and we are now experimenting with various methods to prevent and slow down the disease We have had some modest success recently, but I am sorry to report that until we have a breakthrough in our work, we can only assume that everyone who suffers from this disease will die from it." "The on-screen diagram shows the symptoms of the various stages of the disease. The virus is transmitted through blood and semen, and we haven't found any other routes of transmission. Again—" Dr. Turner raised his voice to let the Everyone can hear, "The only transmission routes we have confirmed are blood and semen. Current data show that other body fluids, such as sweat, mucus, tears, saliva, and urine cannot be the transmission vector of RV-41."

There was a lot of discussion in the conference hall, Governor Watanabe knocked on the gavel several times to keep everyone quiet.Dr. Robert Turner cleared his throat and continued: "This particular virus is quite cunning and very adaptable to the human body. As you can see from the chart, the first two symptoms appear to be benign. The virus has just begun to invade There is not much harm when it enters the blood cells in the body. During this period, it may be destroying the immune system of the human body. We are not sure about this, because all clinical data show that the immune system of the human body is still healthy and normal.

"The immediate cause of the failure of the immune system is unknown. Our bodies are quite complex and have unexplained processes - this is an area we need to delve into further. When there are signs that the immune system is weak, It means that the RV-41 virus begins to erode the body, and the virus concentration in the blood increases sharply. At this time, the disease is in the most infectious period, and the immune system is completely destroyed." Dr. Turner paused, sorted out his speech, and continued: "It is incomprehensible that the human immune system has never been able to resist the invasion of this virus. Once the immune system is destroyed, the heart muscle immediately begins to shrink, heralding death. coming.

"The late symptoms are that the RV-41 virus has completely disappeared from the blood. Where did they go? Are they hiding somewhere we don't know, peeking at the gradual necrosis of the myocardium? Is the atrophy of the myocardium a sequela of the early destruction of the immune system? These None of us can answer right now." The dean stopped to drink some water, and continued: "In the past year, we have worked hard to explore the source of this virus. There are rumors that the RV-41 virus is from New Eden itself, and it was placed here for some kind of cruel experiment. This kind of claim is purely out of thin air. Apparently we brought this virus from Earth. Two passengers on the 'Santa Maria' died of RV-41 within three months. The first died on the way from Earth to Mars, unfortunately , this fact is not so happy. But we must see that our friends and colleagues on earth are also fighting against this disease.

"As for the origin of RV-41, I can only guess. Unfortunately, the medical database we brought from the earth does not contain enough information, so we can only guess... However, I would like to point out that the RV-41 virus and 21 The closed genetic engineering of a human vaccine that appeared in the early 1900s bears a striking resemblance. "Let me explain in more detail. After we successfully cured the worst AIDS virus in the 20th century, bioengineering medical technology has made major breakthroughs and developments, and is widely used to treat all diseases. After the 'Great Turmoil', research funding was cut Severe cuts were made, and many medical experiments were halted. It was assumed that dangerous viruses stored in quarantine zones all over the world were completely destroyed, unless...my hypothesis began.

"The virus that emerged in our New Eden is strikingly similar to the AQT19 virus that was in the laboratory of Lafon, Senegal in 2107. I think that the AQT19 virus can only appear in the environment with the same natural transmission route. I personally think that the abandoned laboratory in Senegal The AQT19 virus in the human body was not completely destroyed, and this particular virus somehow survived, mutated and gradually grew over the last century-perhaps inhabiting apes-and finally found a way to enter the human body. way, it is we who created this disease that kills us." There was an immediate commotion in the conference hall.Chief Watanabe kept banging the gavel to keep everyone quiet, hoping that Dr. Turner would keep his point.The doctor began to discuss the research project funding for the next year, emphasizing that the funding should be tripled compared with the previous year.Grumbling voices filled the Senator's bench.

Dr. Robert Turner was followed by several speakers, and everyone knew that E. McMillan was to give a big talk that day. The governor-general election began in the residential area three months ago, and McMillan was Watanabe's opposite candidate.While the current governor and his party's nominee for governor, Dmitry Ulanov, both agreed to spend the new tax on increasing the health care budget, McMillan opposed any increase related to Dr. Turner's research project in his report. expenses. In the first round of the campaign in the residential area, Watanabe defeated McMillan powerfully.Since then, McMillan has moved his residence from Beauvais to Hanko.He was elected senator from the Vegas district and took a lucrative and powerful position in Toshio Nakamura's expanding business empire.This is the best combination - Nakamura needs a "stand-in" who can be accepted by the public to act for him in the residential area; and McMillan, who is ambitious and has no principles and values, just wants to be a powerful ruler.

E. McMillan began to read his speech: "Dr Turner's speech gave us a quick start, and then we would generously raise funds for his projects, which seemed too easy, such is the evil of budget hearings! Every department head can make a strong suggestion, but if we only listen to one side in isolation, we will lose the overall consideration. I am not trying to tell everyone that Dr. Turner's project is worthless, on the contrary, it is a Well worth studying. However, now I would like to discuss with you about the priorities." After moving to Hanko, McMillan's presentation style improved a lot.Obviously he was well trained, unfortunately he was not a natural orator.His gestures are pompous and comical, and his main argument is that RV-41 patients make up less than 5 percent of the population in New Eden, and it's not worth the costly expense for this tiny minority.

"Why should we deprive the interests of the vast majority of people in the residential area for the sake of this small group of people?" He said, "What is more important is to increase the funding that is closely related to each of us, which is related to our survival. .” In his speech, McMillan mentioned the Reggie creature that appeared in another residential area, and deliberately exaggerated that Reggie's "attack" on the detection team was a long-planned conspiracy to provoke a species struggle.He also said the reki creatures would be followed by "even more terrifying creatures" threatening the safety of human settlements, especially women and children."Everyone benefits from spending money on defense," he said. McMillan also cites environmental research as another important action related to the "common good of the neighborhood," which is even more important than Dr. Neal's medical program.He praised the efforts of weather engineers and said every resident should be aware of the weather outlook. His speech was interrupted by bursts of applause in the conference hall.He concluded by talking about the RV-41 patients and proposing a plan to "do more with less" and fix "their terrible and tragic fate." "We'll build them a new village," he said aloud, "behind New Eden. There they can live out the rest of their lives in safety." He said: "I think we should strictly control the funding for RV-41 in the future. Isolating these people to prevent infection will be the best way for all residents, including these patients, before the research is successful." , which benefits everyone - isolating carriers and preventing accidental transmission." The Nicolls sat below.Richard had no interest in political rallies, and he hadn't planned to come, but he came anyway after his family strongly persuaded him to do so.McMillan's speech made Richard sick, while Nicole was shocked and terrified by his speech: his speech was generally welcomed by the people.McMillan finally finished his manuscript. "I wonder who wrote this speech for him," thought Nicole, underestimating Toshio Nakamura. At the end of McMillan's speech, Ellie quietly left her seat.A moment later, her parents were startled to see her sitting in the Senate bench very close to the podium.Everyone thought that McMillan was the last speaker, and when they were about to leave, Ellie stepped onto the podium.Kenji Watanabe introduces Ellie, and the audience returns to their seats. "In civics class at school," Ellie began, but her voice was a little tense, "we've been learning about the Constitution and Senate procedures in residential areas. From that, I learned that every New Eden resident is entitled to a hearing in this public hearing." Speaking at the meeting..." Ellie took a deep breath and continued as her mother, Nicole, and teacher, Eponina, leaned forward nervously, holding onto the railing in front of their seats. "Today, I want to say," Ellie's voice became forceful, "because I believe I have a unique perspective on RV-41 victims. First, let me state that I am very young; Haven't been in contact with any human beings outside of my family. Because of these two things, I value human life. I am very careful with my words, we should cherish the most valuable things. Sir Dr. for our health all day and all night He worked so selflessly and it was clear that he valued human life very much." "Dr. Turner didn't tell us in his speech why we should invest in his project. His goal was purely to take hold of this disease and conquer it, and he thought you all understood. But, listening to Mr. McMillan After the speech," Ellie glanced at McMillan at this point, "I wondered if you really understood what the doctor meant? We must continue to study this terrible disease until we control it. Human life is very important. Precious, each individual is a unique miracle, a complex combination of special intelligences, dreams and experiences. Nothing in the settlement is more important than keeping people alive.” She continued: "From today's discussion, we know that Dr. Turner's research project requires expensive funding. If we have to raise taxes to pay for research, then each of us will have to give up some of the things we want to do. However, What is this small sacrifice to life, the most precious treasure of mankind? "My family and friends sometimes say I'm hopelessly naive, and that's probably true. But maybe it's just my innocence and naivety that allow me to see things clearly, and I think in a situation like this, there's only one need Question we answered: If you, your family members were infected with RV-41, would you support Dr. Turner's project?  … Thank you very much!" There was an eerie silence in the chamber as Ellie stepped down from the podium.Then, the audience erupted into thunderous applause.Tears poured from the eyes of Nicole and Eponina, and Dr. Robert Turner, who was sitting on the senator's bench, stretched out his hands to Ellie excitedly.