In early 1993, I went to Denver, Colorado, to work with a chiropractor who was using a particular type of technology not available in Australia. Sometime early in my time there I happened to hear a radio personality by the name of Rush Limbaugh. This was during the beginning of the Bill Clinton Presidency. Limbaugh was obviously on the other side of the political spectrum from the Clintons, but he enjoyed injecting humour and sarcasm into his program.
In the 1990s talk radio was in its infancy and Limbaugh was one of the few nationally syndicated personalities. When I came back to Australia, I forgot about Limbaugh because you could not get overseas radio; the internet was still in its infancy.
In the last few years, I have managed to catch Limbaugh occasionally because now with internet radio and podcasts, you can listen to programming from any part of the world. So it was sad to hear this year that Limbaugh was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. Even more heartbreaking was hearing several days ago that his condition was now terminal.
Whether you love him or hate him, Rush Limbaugh was always respectful, never swore on air, as is so prevalent with many radio personalities. Without a doubt, he has been the most successful radio personality in history. He has amassed a net worth of over $600 million. Coming from humble beginnings, that is quite an achievement. Despite success and wealth, we find that cancer is not deterred by one’s trappings of life, and it plays no favourites.
Virtually every family has had a member who has been diagnosed with cancer. Whether you are white or black, right-wing or left-wing politically, a vegetarian or meat-eater, can run marathons or live a sedentary lifestyle, cancer can strike without warning. While it is not necessarily a death sentence and many survive it or learn to live with it, it still ravages a person’s life. Many times the treatment, including radiation, chemotherapy, surgery or immunotherapy, can be worse than the symptoms of the disease itself.
Recently, someone I know passed away at the age of 59. This person had been battling cancer for eight years. Despite her best efforts with surgery and chemotherapy, she succumbed to the illness at a relatively young age. This is one of the sad facts of life.
We should note, however, that cancer survivability has increased dramatically in the past 50 years. Survivability or cure for cancer means being alive five years after the diagnosis. We are currently obsessing about Covid-19 which has survivability of 99.98 per cent for those under 60. Meanwhile, cancer’s survivability is 71%. Each year in the U.S., more than 600,000 Americans die with cancer. Compare this to 225,000 who have passed away from Covid-19 so far.
We often have issues with certain people. Rush Limbaugh––because he is such a media target–– is often the brunt of ridicule. We should, however, remember that the same devastating illness that has befallen Limbaugh can strike anyone. We must humble ourselves in the face of an affliction that is a shared human experience. If you detest someone and derive pleasure from their misfortune, just remember; you are not immune from the ravages of a disease like cancer.
By the way, Limbaugh continues to do his radio show daily. He is indeed a brave soul.
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