Former President Jimmy Carter was admitted to the hospital Monday to undergo brain surgery. The procedure is meant to relieve pressure caused by bleeding brought on from recent falls, a spokesperson for the president said.
President Carter is the oldest living US president. Though he only served one term, he has endeared himself as an American icon because of his charitable work both through the Carter Center and Habitat for Humanity.
Carter is also a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize for his work to eradicate disease throughout the world. He said during his speech in 2002, “ Among all the possible choices, I decided that the most serious and universal problem is the growing chasm between the richest and poorest people on earth. Citizens of the ten wealthiest countries are now 75 times richer than those who live in the ten poorest ones, and the separation is increasing every year, not only between nations but also within them. The results of this disparity are root causes of most of the world’s unresolved problems, including starvation, illiteracy, environmental degradation, violent conflict and unnecessary illnesses that range from Guinea worm to HIV/AIDS. Tragically, in the industrialized world there is a terrible absence of understanding or concern about those who are enduring lives of despair and hopelessness. We have not yet made the commitment to share with others an appreciable part of our excessive wealth. This is a necessary and potentially rewarding burden that we should all be willing to assume."
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