Reading Atul Gawande’s book on the practice of medicine, Better. His discussion of the extraordinary efforts and performance of the hugely-overstretched medical teams with the US military in Iraq raises a disturbing question. The systemization of medical delivery has resulted in lives being saved that in any previous war would have been lost. A consequence is, soldiers with horrendous injuries survive–to live a life with no legs, a missing hand, disfigured faces, and so much permanent internal trauma that they can’t lift themselves. When I imagine myself 22 and with such injuries–would I thank the doctors and the medical technology that saved me?