Starting in the 1920s and continuing into the 1950s American children were the helpless victims of an unbelievable cruelty.
In one year 2.
2 million children were born and several years later 2 million had their tonsils out.
Ether was used for anesthesia.
It is harmful and very dangerous.
There was no pain relief.
Over these years no one questioned this practice.
Tonsils do not cause colds and disease--just the opposite.
When Polio showed up, it was found that kids who had their tonsils out, were almost five times more likely to contract paralysis polio.
I thought I had forgotten this but a recent phone call brought back the memories.
In those years many terrible things were visited upon children and no one cared that it might be damaging or harmful.
Very few knew better.
Parents were easily fooled by "authority".
"This will help your children" was an excuse.
Most of the children were between the ages of four and eight.
One day my parents asked me if I wanted to go to a place where I could have all the Popsicles and ice cream I could eat.
This sounded wonderful.
We got into the car and drove to a brick building somewhere.
We went upstairs to a room filled with beds along one wall.
I was put into one of the beds and saw that there were other children in beds, too.
All of a sudden this person came to the side of my bed and tied my little wrists to something.
Then they placed a metal mesh cone over my nose and mouth.
I was told to breathe deeply.
I smelled the bitter-sweet odor of ether which I will never forget-ever.
I went to sleep.
When I awoke, there was total silence.
Those sweet little voices were gone.
Before there had been the chatter of little kids.
I was in so much pain that I was paralyzed.
We all have to swallow sometime and when I did, my body spasmed along with everyone else.
Then the parents trooped into the room.
They were trying to coax their kids into sucking on ice or eating Popsicles.
I turned my head and refused everything.
There was absolutely no relief for the pain.
The agony was unbearable.
I eventually sucked on a Popsicle..
I could not believe what had been done to me.
We had been betrayed by those we loved the most--our parents.
Where were our loving parents to let this happen? Our tonsils had been removed.
It was believed by idiot adults that tonsils had to be removed because they caused colds and infections which is not true.
I was four years old.