To what end do we save lives?

The end is the same, despite our lofty pontifications and costly interventions. We save lives for the sake of the individual, despite the impact on the herd. We save lives to postpone the tears and nose-blowing of loved ones, despite the knowledge that no tears or hankeys are ever spared. Death is a zero sum game.

We save lives because, for some inexplicable reason, we intrinsically value life- however harsh it may be. We value time. Time on this spinning rock. Yet, ironically, we don't value our own lives enough to quit drinking, quit smoking, quit McDonaldsing, quit winding up in the damned hospital. And we don't value our time on this spinning rock enough to value the spinning rock itself.