Post B # 3

"'And one more thing. No one finds out about this, you hear me? No one. I don't want anybody's sympathy.' Then he disappeared into the dim lobby. He chain-smoked the rest of the day in front of the TV. I didn't know what or whom he was defying. Me? Dr. Amani? Or maybe the god he had never believed in (157)."
Amir's father develops oat cell carcinoma, from his long-standing habit of chain-smoking. It is advanced, and "chemotherapy would only be palliative (156)." It is obvious that death is near for his father, and he does pass on in just a few days after he is diagnosed.
I compared Baba's cancer to the life of Kiefer Sutherland, the star of the popular t.v. show 24. Both characters are hard partyers, and are chain smokers and/or heavy drinkers. Kiefer has been living life in the fast lane since his teenage years, when he started smoking. He hasn't tried to quit once since then, and is still a chain-smoker at age 43. Because of his smoking, he looks like he is about 58 (which ironically seems to fit him well for his role in 24).
He is also a heavy drinker, and recently was released from a 48-day stint in jail (should it have been 24 hours instead?). He was a reported role-model in jail, and served the rest of the inmates food, and did lots of laundry. Along with being hard partyers, both Sutherland and Baba are both extremely compassionate, and make an effort to maintain their pride.
Baba is a very forgiving man. Earlier in the story, one of the servants is wrongly accused of stealing Amir's new silver watch. Not knowing this, Baba forgives him.
The lifestyles of Baba and Kiefer Sutherland are remarkably similar. Although he is currently in an 18-month alcohol treatment program, my guess is that he still smokes many cigarettes daily. I just hope that he doesn't meet an untimely death because of it, like Amir's father. The world would lose a hero, just like Amir lost his father.