BIOPOLITIKS: An Abstract
Redefining the way that governments and political systems interact with individuals and populations regarding public health
The Abstract
Biopolitics is a concept that examines the intersection of politics, governance, and healthcare. It explores how political power and institutions influence the management and control of populations and individuals, particularly in the context of public health.
It involves the exercise of political power to impact the biological aspects of human life. In the medical context, this means that governments and governing bodies are concerned with not only the health and welfare of individual citizens but also the health of the population as a whole.
Michel Foucault first coined the term in the late 1970s. He described it as the relationship between government powers exerting influence on the biological aspects of human life. His studies explore how contemporary government policies increasingly seek to influence key biological factors in populations that serve broader economic and social goals. The term has been used by many different characters from scientists to philosophers. All examine the role of government in influencing biological factors of human life, particularly in the management of populations.
Foucault’s version has stood out among the rest, however. It studies how the withholding of death through the advancement of medical procedures and pharmaceuticals has shaped modern human behavior. Leading to the rise of new financial products fit to tailor new personal financial trends, etc. (ex. insurance, savings instruments). These instruments were created considering the now-adjusted longevity of human populations as he describes in his lecture series, “Society Must be Defended”, published in 1976.
These distinct uses of the word are politically ambiguous, which in a sense represents the transcendental significance of human health. Disease, as we witnessed during the COVID Op and the myriad of other health contingencies throughout human history, doesn't discriminate personal politics.
The greatest modern example of negative biopolitical policy implementation, utilizing Foucault’s definition, is the COVID Operation, bar none. Biological factors and human health were leveraged to influence global political and economic decisions, ultimately serving broader political and economic objectives. It was the ultimate population management control operation in recent human history which we all know had nothing to do with public health.
Government authorities and adjacent institutions utilized biological factors to coerce people into giving up their most basic and fundamental rights. This event has marked a before and after in the globe.
For this reason, I believe, biopolitics is the most relevant issue of our time.
A New Vision
In a speech earlier this year at CPAC-ICS in Washington DC, I mentioned that “We are at a turning point in history”.
I believe in a new reformed version of the concept first coined by Michel Foucault. A new Biopolitiks. Also politically ambiguous; parting from the principle that health supersedes all politics. A new way of defining the relationship of human health and policy. Understanding that without health, there is nothing.
To understand why it is spelled with a K we must dive into its origins. The letter K is derived from the Greek “kappa”, influenced by the Semitic “kaph” which is the symbol for “open hand”.
This is precisely what this modern twist on the concept represents; an open hand or invitation, if you will, to scientists, politicians, and civil society alike to participate in the transformation of the relationship between human health and politics.
Biopolitiks can take on many forms, it is not limited to policy, it is an integral philosophy that applies to business, the practice of medicine, and the way humans interact with their own health. It represents a collective mission to dismantle the sick-care paradigm and replace it with a forward-thinking and patient-centric philosophy that focuses on true health. It’s a mission that extends beyond the walls of clinics and hospitals, or even the halls of the great political chambers of the world. This is a broad commitment to empower individuals with the knowledge and tools needed to see the world from a new perspective on health.
This will be the guiding principle of this newsletter; understanding the world from a biopolitikal perspective. Expect critical analysis of current events but also positive outlooks on the future of health. This approach will allow you, the reader, to see how the latest events will affect not only individual health but also that of populations at large.
We the people, as committed fellow physicians, scientists, etc., who have risked our jobs and even our lives, to speak the truth through the dark years of the pandemic and who have a keen and genuine interest in changing the future of health care for the benefit of the world population, have to participate as experts in our fields and get involved in Biopolitiks and help make the best decisions, collectively, for future generations.
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About Me (Dr. Alejandro Diaz):
I am a consulting Pediatric Allergist / Immunologist and Global Health Expert with extensive international experience. I have delivered conferences in over 27 countries around the globe on topics of medicine, migration, biosecurity, and related topics. This includes prestigious venues such as the White House, the US Capitol, the Romanian Parliament, the European Parliament in Brussels, the Mexican Senate of the Republic, the United Nations in Geneva, Japanese Parliament, among others.
My career encompasses diverse roles in healthcare including private practice, health systems, and advisory positions for medical service companies, governments, and government entities worldwide.
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