On Friday, several hundred probationary employees at NCI and many more at NIH were abruptly terminated. It is widely expected that more similar actions will follow. It’s hard to see how these actions will advance the cause of ending cancer as we know it. My heart aches for these people and for the unfulfilled good they were trying to accomplish through their work.
On that same day, I chose to take a brief break from the madness and headed up to Philadelphia for the Eagles’ Super Bowl victory parade. It took me over an hour and a half just to meet up with my sons after my train arrived, as I navigated the happy crush of about one million people, festooned in green jerseys, all celebrating the accomplishments of a mission-driven organization and its incredibly talented players. I decided to go because 58 years of my life elapsed between the Eagles’ third and fourth world championships, and I don’t know when their next one will happen.
My sons (Ken, who lives just outside Philly, and Dave, who lives in DC and drove up on Thursday evening) and I wanted to take a selfie in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s “Rocky” steps. That mission was accomplished and our shared memories are now stored. We then made our way out of the throng (a remarkably happy and orderly group, I might add), walked about a mile to the car, and drove to a great Philly cheesesteak place called Chubby’s for a late lunch. Then, Dave and I dropped off Ken and drove home.
I reflected on the remarkable progress we have made in cancer research over the past 50 years. I thought about the critically important roles of organization, cohesiveness and culture in creating the environment required for enormously talented and dedicated people to succeed. We too have much cause for celebration.
Many of the teams the Eagles vanquished this season were composed of talented players trapped in the misery of toiling for dysfunctional organizations. I hope with all my heart that the body blows being taken by the NCI do not come at the expense of its capacity to provide the research community with the funding and organizational support needed for the breathtaking progress the American people deserve.
Make this world a better place this week.
Lou
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