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February 17, 2003:
Observations on January 28, 2003.
This is the evening of our president's state of the union address.
It is scheduled for 9;00 PM. On the six o'clock news we learn
that there is a firefight in Afghanistan between US troops and
a bandit gang. 18 bandits were killed. From the description of
the ordinance used, I speculate that the operation only cost
a bit over a billion dollars.
Perhaps we should hire the mafia for this kind of work.
Gaffer:
Female Problems:
For women, especially ones who have born children, as they get
older their guts literally begin to fall out. This is a very
common and serious problem that most men and younger folks do
not even know about. The uterus and the bladder begin to descend.
If not treated, the condition can be very debilitating, possibly
even fatal. The treatment usually consists of surgical intervention.
I should not need to point out that women going through this
need huge amounts of caring support. No only are they in physical
discomfort, emotionally they feel particularly vulnerable and
unattractive. I wish more men were capable of giving the kind
of support needed. Most are not. Women give support naturally
when needed. Shouldn't they have a right to expect it in return?
Evie:
So What?
One rap on Amazon.com is they sell review copies of books. A
review copy of a book is a copy that was given to a media person
by a publisher in the hope of getting a favorable review. Some
media people make a business of selling those copies to or through
booksellers. Some unscrupulous reviewers even solicit books for
that purpose. So, let's get straight about this. There is not
a bookseller in this country that would not sell review copies
if they could get them at a good price. If you get a free or
almost free copy of a book and selling books is your business,
should you throw it away? It's the shifty reviewers who fuel
that fire, not the booksellers.
Louie:
Beyond the Pale:
There is a point in medical treatment where some doctors, especially
surgeons, go too far. For most doctors in the beginning phases
of a medical condition the treatment will be about the patient.
It is about healing and relieving pain. When the treatment is
effective everything is fine.
In some cases however, treatment is not going to be effective.
The condition is terminal and the doctors come to realize it.
At this time, it is the very difficult duty of the attending
physicians to make that clear to the patient. The task of the
doctors then becomes one of controlling pain and only that. Unfortunately,
this does not always happen.
The crossover point from normal treatment to terminal treatment
is exactly that point where some doctors will lose their perspective.
Instead of being about the patient, the treatment becomes about
the fight. It becomes a very personal challenge. The doctor does
not want to acknowledge defeat. His ego is involved. The patient
becomes an object, a battleground if you will. Then the fight
becomes a struggle to keep the game going. Instead of a compassion
for the patient, the physician develops a passion for the contest.
Then it becomes somewhat like the greatest Nintendo ever.
Gaffer:
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