everyday heroes: fairness

Okay, so today's everyday heroes aren't really ...um, how shall I put this? Real? Yeah, they're fictional. Then again, way back when, Matilda Mae (from Shel Silverstein) was an everyday hero of mine, ...and so was MacGyver, so I suppose there's some precedent for using imaginary people as heroes --at least for me. Is there some kind of rule I can't do that? Not waiting for an answer ...

Anyhow ...

Once upon a time, when the Americans with Disabilities Act had some teeth, there were three kids and an eye doctor. That eye doctor? She's my hero. Actually, the kids are pretty cool, too. 

(These four always volunteer when I explain the fairness of providing accommodations --i.e., a change in equipment, format or the environment in order for people with disabilities to do what everybody else does --to people who don't have disabilities. What selfless heroes! It's a hard concept for people to understand. They are particularly helpful when people without disabilities say, "Hey! How come they get all that extra stuff??? That's not fair!" But I digress. Back to our story ...)

Well, these three kids had six eyes between them --two each, in case you are mathematically-challenged or think this is science fiction. Two of the kids, and therefore four of the eyes, worked fine. They could see things up close. They could see things at a distance. They could see all kinds of things. But the other kid, and the other two eyes? They couldn't see much at all.

That's where our eye doctor comes in. Now our eye doctor has to make a living. She's very nice and all, but she does have to charge for glasses. Let's say she charges $600 --glasses, & she throws in the exam for "free". The people who pay for the glasses have, what do you know, $600. What are the odds?

There is a choice to make. This has suddenly become Choose Your Own Adventure, but without the adventure. The choices are these, and we want to be fair:

• Buy the kid who can't see the glasses for $600, so that all of the kids can see clearly; or 
• Decide, "No, we cannot afford glasses for everyone, and we don't want one kid to get special treatment. The other two will feel bad!"

What should the eye doctor do? What is fair? 

I'm curious to hear what you think ...