Heroic Idiocy

Bill Keller of the Times demonstrates that being a fool is a full-time job. Let's start with the WaPo:

Former NYT editor Bill Keller and his wife under fire for commentary on cancer patient

Lesson No. 1: Publicly questioning the motives and intentions of a woman who is seriously ill with cancer can land you in a heap of controversy.

Writer Emma Gilbey Keller and her husband, former New York Times executive editor Bill Keller, seem to have found this out over the past few days. In a successive pair of columns in different publications, the Kellers opined about the prodigious tweets of a woman named Lisa Bonchek Adams, a Stage IV breast cancer patient in New York — and both reaped a whirlwind of outrage in the process.

Ms. Adam is a 44 year old mother of three who has been grappling with cancer for seven years. For some reason this prompted Mr. Keller to contrast her situation with that of his eighty-year old father-in-law, who was told he had inoperable cancer and died six days later. One of his little life lessons:

It seemed to me, and still does, that there is something enviable about going gently.

Please. Maybe mom should have walked out in the traffic seven years ago.

Ms. Keller worried (in a column subsequently taken down because she quoted Ms. Adams without her permission) that although some seem to find inspiration this is all so voyeuristic. Me, I still have reservations about The Diary of Anne Frank. No I don't.

Well. Beat-downs are available in the Times comment section, by the Times Public Editor, and at Technology and Society. But in order to make sure that no dead horse is left behind, unbeaten, let me highlight this absurdity from Mr. Keller's target-rich piece:

Her relationship with the hospital provides her with intensive, premium medical care, including not just constant maintenance and aggressive treatment but such Sloan-Kettering amenities as the Caring Canines program, in which patients get a playful cuddle with visiting dogs. (Neither Adams nor Sloan-Kettering would tell me what all this costs or whether it is covered by insurance.)

I don't know what "all this" costs either, but the Caring Canines program is a charitable endeavor run in cooperation with Angels on a Leash and the Westminister Kennel Club so I'll guess "not much" for the direct costs of that part of the support program.

And while on the subject of our mutual ignorance, I don't know what it would cost to get Mr. Keller a fact-checker or a subscription to Bing. And later he might want to spring for a trip to the Wizard for a heart and a brain...

 

 

Comments

[MarkO]

" there would be more money for health care for the poor and isn't that a good thing?"

Who needs money? These willing med students could do this for free and the willing hospitals could absorb the costs.

Those who believe in this should act accordingly. I'll be waiting.

[Danube on iPad]

Heard an NFL insider quoted as saying Rob Ryan will not get a head coaching job until he cuts his hair. Good.

[AliceH]

Odd that all these "should be between the doctor and the family" arguments against Insurance Cos aren't acknowledging the lack of any Insurance company objections to further treatment.

Of course those exist, but in this thread merely as convenient abstractions.

As for those twitter stories... next to the near total agreement on convincing "patients" and "families" to limit end-of-life care, there is a strange obsession with discussing how to appear more empathetic and make intra-departmental communications more patient-centered. Not BE empathetic. Not COMMUNICATING WITH the patient.

My take is, with the usual exceptions, it seems most medical professionals don't care much about the person they treat, because they are focused on what they are treating. When there is nothing further to treat, they take themselves out of the picture.

I don't think this is necessarily wrong - lawyers hate overly-involved clients who try to direct legal actions rather than letting "the professionals" decide how to fix "the problem". If you trust your lawyer and doctor, great - but even then, trust but verify is warranted.

[MarkO]

"Rob Ryan will not get a head coaching job until he cuts his hair."

Give me a head with hair. Long, beautiful hair.

What? Is it 1966 again?

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

OL-- I m heartbroken to hear about the social indoctrination that is going on at medical schools. It is the exact line that Keller was spouting yesterday. I'm sure you've reminded your daughter* that without wealth creation there are no societal resources to do basic research and invent and operate these remarkable medical machines and treatments. And, oh, further remind her that socializing medicene will make her MD worthless, as keeping health cost down means that she would be one of the deserving poor. I'm sure you've covered that ground.

* but hey, at least she isn't forcing you to assemble IKEA furniture! ;)

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

Ig@11:12-- bravo, you are a wise and decent man.

[Old Lurker]

Oh she has done that (IKEA) already, NK. And her sister too. That's why I was able to offer you such good advice, but which, like all dads of daughters, you ignored.

As I promised Jimmy above, I will dig into how many of those medical lines were from her Med School profs or whether she picked them up elsewhere. Just in case I jumped to the wrong conclusion and unfairly besmirched the school.

[Jim Miller]

When I glanced over that Bill Keller column, I had a mischievous thought: The column, which urged people to "go gently", was a parable directed at some of his colleagues at the Times. He was, for example, suggesting that Gail Collins might do herself and the newspaper a favor by leaving.

(I know, I know, that wasn't what he meant -- but it was fun to entertain that thought for a few minutes.)

And now, I suppose I should write that post on how the current executive editor at the Times is violating the spirit of the civil rights laws.

[rse]

OL-I think a bunch of us reacted to your story with the recognition that med school is more interested in pushing desired perspectives toward patients and who is entitled to what care and equity of treatment. I can remember when there was no time left over after all the science that was supposedly necessary. Can you ask her one more question for me? Ask her how often they are being told that they can simply look things up and no longer need to memorize large quantities of information.

My next post will be on the alterations in perspectives that the business schools are pushing, but this is today's new post. http://www.invisibleserfscollar.com/supposedly-creating-a-generation-of-solutionaries-by-using-education-to-create-futures-oriented-change-agents/

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

"He was, for example, suggesting that Gail Collins might do herself and the newspaper a favor by leaving.
(I know, I know, that wasn't what he meant -- but it was fun to entertain that thought for a few minutes.)"

And you Mr Miller are a cunning and evil man... I mean that in the best sense. ;)

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

OL-- wait wait.. as a father with a daughter I thought ignoring good advice was my job. No?

[Thomas Collins]

Re OL's 10:50 AM post: If the OLs of the world can no longer pay for the care they want, care for the poor will deteriorate, not improve. But this is a feature for the progs. Bring the OLs down to the level of the poor. This ends up screwing both, but making everyone more equal in misery.

[Janet - the districts lie fallow, while the Capitol gorges itself]

Who needs money? These willing med students could do this for free and the willing hospitals could absorb the costs.

Those who believe in this should act accordingly. I'll be waiting.

Excellent, MarkO.
I thought the same thing about raising minimum wage & the living wage...how bout libs just start handing the cashier an extra $10 whenever they shop? Or they can voluntarily pay all their painters, lawn service people, maids,...more. Nobody is stopping them.
Give the dry cleaning cashier an extra $10...come on...you can do it.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

OL-- I am on a conf call with the CFO of Presbyterian Hosp this week, I'll ask them if they subscribe to the philosophy of hospitals taking less money from the 'rich'.

[Dave (in MA)]

Maybe Ryan is holding out until he can find someone with Ivy League tonsorial credentials.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

TomC-- you and Ignatz neatly summarize the Prog Fascists. They hate freedom, they hate prosperity, hell they hate 'the greater good'. The want to see communal misery... of everyone else that is. They'll live high on the hog as our credentialed bureaucratic masters. Give the bastards credit, they have an evil plan.

[daddy]

Good Morning.

The BBC starts the day by putting out a vanilla report on the Aurora Australis ship finally completing it's cargo mission at Casey Station and steaming out towards Tasmania. The reporter is the BBC's Science correspondent Andrew Luck, one of the Mawson 52, and he tells us the icebergs are pretty.

You get one guess as to whether you think the BBC allowed comments from readers to this story.

[rse]

Janet-the minimum wage debate never focuses on what happens to people when the costs of everyday items go up because of the increases in the hourly wages of all those workers at the fast food places and drug store and grocery.

Only revenue counts to them.

[Meh, too easy.]

L'Chaim.
====

[Beasts of England]

Hey y’all:

I found out the bad news last week, but haven’t really wrapped my mind around it until the last few days. My cancer has returned for the third time. Not pretty. And I’m tired of fighting it. And I won’t. I’m going to take a few weeks to travel, do some stuff with my daughters, and then call it a day...

In addition to the scourge of cancer, I lost (to drugs and soon prison) the only person I ever truly loved in life. Yes, she had some real issues – but she loved me like no one ever has or ever will. She made me want to be alive, she made me want to wake up in the morning. Losing her has been devastating. We don’t choose who we love, it just happens. And my heart won’t ever recover. I’ve cried every damned day for months. It’s just sickening.

I’m not seeking sympathy nor replies or words of encouragement of any kind. This is my final comment and I won’t be checking back in for any reason. I just wanted to say thank you for the intellectual stimulation and sense of friendship that this site has provided to me over the last few years. As the social dynamic goes, I lost most of my friends with the divorce, and with it, the daily ability to exchange ideas and the humorous anecdote. This site has filled that role and has been a joy.

Anyway, I wish each of you the very best in life. I pray for our country and way of life. May God bless us all...

Paul (aka Beasts of England)

[Old Lurker]

RSE "Can you ask her one more question for me? Ask her how often they are being told that they can simply look things up and no longer need to memorize large quantities of information."

Already asked that, rse. She said that they are forced to memorize all the same endless lists that our generation of docs did. These students are of course as "wired in" as you can imagine, but they still do the flash card stuff like the 60's. I asked her if that was true only for "top schools" or whether it was common. She explained that there are standard tests that all US students have to take during the four years at key points, and rote memorization is essential for those.

Then we laugh about a line her dean used in the ceremony that marked their starting med school. He said "You know since I have been a doctor, half of what I learned in Med School is no longer true; and half of what I learned in Med School I have forgotten. I pray every day that they are the same half."

[daddy]

Thank you Hit for giving us that from our tough, beloved Bad.

[Ignatz]

--Odd that all these "should be between the doctor and the family" arguments against Insurance Cos aren't acknowledging the lack of any Insurance company objections to further treatment.

Of course those exist, but in this thread merely as convenient abstractions. --

Not sure I understand that. They seem contradictory in fact.
If we acknowledge a "lack of any insurance company objections to further treatment" then how do they "of course exist"?

And if they are unacknowledged then how are they used as convenient abstractions, especially if what is unacknowledged is a lack of them.
My head is spinning a bit.
****************
I will amend my earlier statement that end of life care in my experience is pretty good to include my friend who was stuck in Kaiser as a state employee. His wife was not treated properly. But even then it was a matter of an individual doctor not the system itself as he had lymphoma for years and was treated in the same place and was quite happy with his care. HMOs I'm guessing are probably less satisfactory than other systems.

[Captain Hate]

Damn Beasts, that hurt to read it. If that was your last post, it's been great interacting with you and I'll miss you a great deal.

[Miss Marple]

"She then tells me that they are taught that if they could prevent the rich from wasting so much money on high cost treatments, there would be more money for health care for the poor and isn't that a good thing? "

Old Lurker, A couple of things. First of all, who decides who is rich? Is it the money they have in the bank, or the fact that they are willing to pay for the high cost care?

Second, the removal of high cost treatments for cancer isn't going to necessarily cover treatments for the poor. Is your daughter thinking all medical costs come from a common pool of money, rather than a mix of private bank accounts, insurance funds, and government sources?
Taking a pass on chemotherapy would normally not add one dollar to the funding of a free clinic.

[Old Lurker]

Ditto that Cap'n.

Words fail.

[boris]

Farewell BoE

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

Godspeed Paul (aka BoE.)

If you have a change of heart, please communicate in any way you wish. It would be a pleasure to hear from you.

[Ignatz]

Jesus, Beasts.
I've been on the other end of where you are as you know.
Please stay in contact. What we think we should do one minute can be 180 degrees from where we need to be or what we think even a half hour later.
You are in my prayers and will remain so and I hope you will stay in touch.

If you want to email me, and I hope you will, use flipper95665 at hotmail.com.

[Old Lurker]

MM, I think it was Clarice a few years back who observed that even our best and brightest kids seem to lack the most basic knowledge of "where money comes from". So lacking that, it is easy to see how they get wrapped up in circles when trying to argue these positions.

[Thomas Collins]

"I’m not seeking sympathy nor replies or words of encouragement of any kind."

OK, BOE, I'll squelch the sympathy talk, but you'll have to put up with a reply and words of encouragement.

First a general reply: I hope, for my selfish reasons, that you keep posting here. You add substantially to this blog. Besides, how am I going to make arrangements with you to see some of your exes (with written permission from my wife, of course) if you disappear?!

Now a word of encouragement: Whether you decide to keep to your current plan or change course, if you feel you are at all helped by dropping a line here, please do so. You'll be welcome, even if you just post a quick note and decide not to participate extensively in what is under discussion here.

OK, there it is: No sympathy and possibly what some would consider too much snark for a man facing what you are facing. Just know you're with friends here.

[Jeff Dobbs]

Ugghhhhh.

I love you Beasts.

[Miss Marple]

Oh, my.

Prayers for you, Beasts. I am glad I got to know you.

[rse]

Wow Paul. That was stunning to read. May your children cherish this time with you. We all hope your time is not as finite as you now believe.

We promise not to hold you to your word if you can come back and chat with us.

[AliceH]

Fuck cancer.

[daddy]

Beasts,

I have no idea what to say or what to feel or anything.

Bless you our good friend.

[Janet - the districts lie fallow, while the Capitol gorges itself]

Love to you, Paul.

[Old Lurker]

Yes, those are the words.

Love to you, Paul.

[centralcal]

Oh mercy - just had a few minutes to check in and I read Paul's (Beasts) post and I am so dismayed by it.

Like others, I hope this is a momentary deep depression that will lighten a bit as the days progress and we hear from him again.

Meanwhile - crap, crap, crap!

[jimmyk]

Just want to echo what others have said to Beasts. You will be in our thoughts and prayers.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

Senate reports on Benghazi-- Repubs and Dems agree, the attack by AQ on benghazi was predictable and preventable. Epic clusterfuck by all involved especially HildaBeast's State Dept. Get back to work Issa, let the subpoenas fly to State, now that the Senate Dems admit Obummer's whole crew fucked up, there is no defense to responding to subpoenas. http://hotair.com/archives/2014/01/15/bipartisan-senate-report-blames-obama-administration-for-not-preventing-benghazi-attack/

[Account Deleted]

Paul,

My prayers are with you. Farewell and God speed.

[Captain Hate]

Wow, NK; that is flaming skull material. The HMS Pantsuit was just hit by a major torpedo and is retaining taking on massive quantities of water.

[Captain Hate]

This confuses Ed Schultz: http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2014/01/15/jimmy-kimmel-savages-obamacare-and-uninformed-young-people-who-suppor

[Captain Hate]

I'm sure none of you saw this coming: http://dailycaller.com/2014/01/15/springsteen-slap-christies-musical-hero-slams-him-in-song/

[Extraneus]

Good luck, Paul. I hope it's not really good-bye.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

CaptH-- this BI-partisan Senate Report answers someone here's question the other day of why Feinstein is going after HildaBeast. She knew that the Report was soon to be released and it points the finger right at HildaBeast. The best part of that WaPo report is the fact that it took 8 days to review Consulate security cam video, and that review proved that there was no 'anti-video demonstration' going on before the attack. OK the video evidence confirmed the INSTANT reports that this was an AQ attack, 8 days later, so if you give every benefit of the doubt to the Obamaniacs, that it took 8 days to confirm the initial 'fog of war' AQ attack reports, why did they start the video demonstration meme immmediately? Obvious answer, the anti-video meme was a calculated and deliberate AxelPlouffe lie to save the election. And with their media teammates help, it worked. But now the bell tolls, and it tolls for HildaBeast. HMS Pantsuit is taking on water, down at the bows, and will sink to a watery grave.

[matt]

Paul;

who can I discuss Lolas and Chapparals and Ferraris with now?

You are always made a wonderful contribution and have enlivened these spaces tremendously.

Live like there is no tomorrow, dance like no one is looking, love the hell out of your kids.

I will miss you deeply. Godspeed, and I will have you in my prayers.

[JIB (in Typhus hell)]

Beasts aka Paul,

Does this mean our meetup in Tuscaloosa for the Tide v. Gators game is off? No way. I was going to bring a few bottles of your favorite Claret and jug of Bulleit. And I hate drinking by myself.

Take heart, we all care for you and will be praying for your reconsideration and remission. Do not give up the ship!

[Janet - the districts lie fallow, while the Capitol gorges itself]

Who needs money? These willing med students could do this for free and the willing hospitals could absorb the costs.

Those who believe in this should act accordingly. I'll be waiting.

another idea with Mark's post - how bout we match up a lib with an illegal. The lib could guarantee the illegal pays taxes & the lib could pay their college education & their rent if the illegal didn't have enough money. The lib could pay for their medical care. They could sponsor them while the illegal waited in line, like legal immigrants have to, to become citizens.
We could call it the "Livin' The Dream Act"

[Account Deleted]

OL,

You may want to make a diary entry re your daughter's remarks concerning "more" being available for the "poor" when the rich stop insisting on purchasing what they want. She doesn't understand the banality of evil and it will be interesting to see when actual exposure to the poor, with all their inability to control the impulses which lead to their most common and preventable serious diseases (diabetes and heart conditions due to poor diet and refusal to exercise) make her fit for recruitment as an Einsatzkommando in Dr. Zeke Mengele's Kevorkian Korps.

Perhaps she will be fortunate and deal only with the 20-30% of the poor for whom the condition is transitional or incidental but a year as an intake specialist at an ER or free clinic would have relieved her of a bit of the ignorant sympathy necessary to arrive at her "static pie" analysis of medical care.

[Jane]

Holy shit Beasts! What Alice said.

Don't leave JOM. Post when you want, but stay here for as long as you can. We want to know how you are doing.

[lyle]

Wow, Paul. I am so very sorry to hear this. I never thought possible reading the internet could deliver what felt viscerally like a punch in the gut. But this did. Godspeed, man.

[Danube on iPad]

Thanks for all your wonderful contributions, Paul. Roll Tide.

[Danube on iPad]

"...aren't acknowledging the lack of any Insurance company objections to further treatment."

In a free market the consumer could bargain with competing insurers to secure the array of objections he is willing to accept. I doubt we'll ever get there.

[JIB (in Typhus hell)]

According to the Senate report there were 4 AQ affliates involved with the Benghazi attack. Does 'Abbot" Kirkpatrick know this?

Then there is this little nugget from Steven Hayes: "Awful. 15 people who cooperated with the FBI's #Benghazi investigation have been killed (though Sen report says unclear if directly related)"

Without being pithy, I wonder who took them out - our side or their side?

[Old Lurker]

Funny you say that, Rick.

When we visited her last week she was still reeling from one such interaction. They were being taught how to take patient histories etc, and the school had arranged for some real patients in the hospital to be part of the training. The patients knew their roles, but the students were denied access to the actual charts and were to do the interviews as if these were first time admissions.

They already had been told that getting to the real facts was harder than just asking.

Daughter's patient was a kindly little old lady, and daughter treated her like her grandmother and proceeded down the list of questions. When they got to the "how much do you drink" section, daughter knew to be polite but probing and to round up the admitted answer. She did that and was very proud of how well she had maintained a pleasant tone while asking such questions.

Then they wrote up their reports and only then looked at the actual chart. Daughter's kindly little old lady was a quart a day vodka drinker who was at the end of her most recent of many detox admissions.

I wish I had video tape of daughter's face when she exclaimed "she LIED to me!"

Baby steps.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

OL-- well if OLDaughter does some ER intake at Kingsbrige Hospital in the Bronx or Downstate Medical in Brooklyn she'll get a real eyefull of 'patients' handcuffed to gurneys, with 9mm packing NYPD ...ahem.... attendants.

[centralcal]

Not 100% sure, but I think this is our friend BOE

"Ferrari Bubba" at Iowahawk Cruise In

[Danube on iPad]

When they ask me how many drinks I have per day, I say "either none or eleven; it all depends.

I have read that one of the most common failings among GPs is that are not trained to detect alcoholism.

[Danube on iPad]

Charles Hurt savages Gates:

http://p.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/jan/14/hurt-dereliction-of-duty-is-gates-unprincipled-dup/

[Jeff Dobbs]

OL:
The party line they all have is that the poor deserve to have access to all the latest technology that rich people get. Of course my immediate question is "but who should pay for that?" to which she acknowledges the problem but the default answer is "the government".

It might be worth a reminder that "the government" (in the form of it's present chief executive) views doctors as greedy tonsil-grabbers and limb amputators.

Government will help "pay" for the poor to have access to all the latest technology at least in part by "helping" doctors, through force of law, to become less greedy.

After all, who shouldn't aspire to be less greedy?

"These willing med students could do this for free and the willing hospitals could absorb the costs."
--stuff MarkO said (and Barack Obama agrees with!)

[jimmyk]

DC district rules for Obamacare subsidies (h/t Alice):

https://ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2013cv0623-67

In sum, the Court finds that the plain text of the statute, the statutory structure, and the statutory purpose make clear that Congress intended to make premium tax credits available on both state run and federally facilitated Exchanges. What little relevant legislative history exists further supports this conclusion and certainly--despite plaintiffs’ best efforts to suggest otherwise--it does not undermine it.

A bit of snark there in the last sentence. The judge, Paul Friedman, is a Clinton nominee.

[sbwaters]

Paul, aka Beasts!

Hugs and warmth!

We'll be here to help you pass the time whenever you don't want to be where you are.

[**Bill in AZ**]

Daughter's kindly little old lady was a quart a day vodka drinker who was at the end of her most recent of many detox admissions.

Was it Hillary!

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

Bill@1:26-- heh.

[cathyf]

One of the most striking aspects of PUK's telling of his mom's death was that they did NOT give her palliative care. When the doctors TOLD him that his mother could not have dialysis because she had congestive heart failure, they promised that they would make her comfortable. But that promise was merely to placate him and stall until his objections didn't matter. What the "nursing" staff ACTUALLY did was to stick her in a corner and totally ignore her. Forget painkillers, she only got a drink of water because PUK gave it to her.

That's an aspect that doesn't get discussed too much. It takes a certain sort of person to take on the role of Mengele's assistant, and it's the type of person that you want as far as possible away from you and anyone you care about.

[peter]

I can't read the whole thread.too much work but skimming through I caught hit's tribute to bad and Beasts signing off. Sigh. Prayers to Bad's soul and to beasts.

[Old Lurker]

"kindly" would disqualify Hillary from that, Bill.

[derwill]

Oh, my gosh, BOE. This really hurts--for though we've never met, I still feel as if I know you well. You will really be missed. May God be with you, and bless you, and welcome you into His arms when your time comes.

[Danube on iPad]

Meanwhile in Pennsylvania:

"State police said three suspects arrived at the home of David Braman, 69. The suspects, Francois Muchanic, 31, of Susquehanna, Dylan Brewer 20, of New Milford and Evan Hess, 20, of Forest City were driven to the residence by Muchanic’s girlfriend, Erica Major, 30, of Susquehanna.

"Muchanic knocked on Braman’s door wearing a ski mask. The victim opened his door carrying a loaded 357 Smith and Wesson revolver. Muchanic told Braman he was having car problems and needed to use his phone, according to state police.

"Trooper Mark Mulvey said Braman tried to close the door when he realized Muchanic was wearing a ski mask. State police said Muchanic then forced his way into the home and began assaulting Braman and knocking him to the ground.

"Braman fired three shots at Muchanic and hit him once in the groin."

The guy is in delightfully critical condition, and all four are in custody.

(via Hot Air)

[Old Lurker]

Tell me again why we fund the UN?

"United Nations climate chief Christiana Figueres said that democracy is a poor political system for fighting global warming. Communist China, she says, is the best model.(snip) Figueres added that the deep partisan divide in the U.S. Congress is “very detrimental” to passing any sort of legislation to fight global warming. The Chinese Communist Party, on the other hand, can push key policies and reforms all on its own."

Doesn't China bring a coal fired plant on line one a week or some such ting?

[**Bill in AZ**]

"kindly" would disqualify Hillary from that, Bill.

ahhh... I got missed that for the "She Lied!!"

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

OL-- isn't the more pertinent point that the global Prog movement (and the UN is one of the vanguard) are Fascists who crave dictatorial control. Small Fry Fascist bureaucrats at the EU, EPA and UN crave the power that the ChiComs have.

[Qrstuv]

Beasts, I too would miss you greatly. And you have my sympathies and prayers, like it or not.

[Danube on iPad]

Appears Justin Bieber could be looking at jail time and deportation:

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2014/01/15/justin-bieber-bust-could-mean-jail-time-deportation-worst-case-scenario/

One favor, Sredni Vashtar.

[lyle]

Don't worry your pretty little head too much, Christiana, there's still plenty of commies in the EPA to get cracking on the job.

[narciso]

So sorry to hear that beasts, prayers for you, I coined 'Abbot' Kirkpatrick, but he acts like one of those films, meeting the mummy for instance,

[pagar]

Rather than try to say it better, I'll copy Jimmyk.

"Just want to echo what others have said to Beasts. You will be in our thoughts and prayers."

[narciso]

So the Journal does report that some former and current European intelligence officers are in contact with Assad's govt, re the jihadist problem, not us, it's just 'mischief'

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

Paul-- our good friend from Chicago Town MelR sends his prayers. You have more friends than you know BoE.

[Captain Hate]

Best Product Review Evahttp://www.amazon.com/review/R3FTHSH0UNRHOH/ref=cm_cr_pr_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B000EVQWKC&linkCode=&nodeID=&tag=aarrr:

[Captain Hate]

Oops: http://www.amazon.com/review/R3FTHSH0UNRHOH/ref=cm_cr_pr_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B000EVQWKC&linkCode=&nodeID=&tag=

[Miss Marple]

Sredni Vashtar journeyed forth,
His thoughts were red and his teeth were white.
His enemies asked for peace but he gave them death.
Sredni Vashtar, the beautiful...

Only my sister and I know about Sredni Vashtar around here! I am spooked to see it in print!

[Danube on iPad]

A new Fnork is born:

"Increasingly frustrated with the size and direction of the Republican Study Committee, a handful of House Republicans have recently found respite in a smaller, private club founded by one of Congress´s leading young conservatives. The House Liberty Caucus, chaired by Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan, quietly launched last year with five or six lawmakers attending a hastily choreographed meeting. Now the group holds a biweekly, invite-only luncheon that draws some two dozen lawmakers and is rapidly becoming an ideological home base for those "core" House conservatives who say the RSC´s swelling membership is diluting its ideological intensity."

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

The Clintonista Dems are hoping for a more 'Humble' Obama-- HAH! Benito Obamalini will just strike that Il Duce pose and give the finger to everyone-- except the Mullahs and the MB-- they are his blood. http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/195474-dems-hope-obama-meeting-means-more-humility-in-2014

[Mahon]

There is indeed something to be said for "going gently" under some circumstances(as my father did). The question is Who Decides? - patients and their doctors, or Progressive elitists unfamiliar with the case but desperate to defend their latest power grab?

[lyle]

The amount of humility that Zero possesses cannot be measured. Microns are too large of an increment.

[Eric in Boise]

BoE,

This lurker will miss your humor and your informative posts. I echo what others have said about hoping you check in. I will send prayers your way regardless.

[JIB (in Typhus hell)]

CH,

The funniest part of that review is that over 300 people DIDN'T find the review helpful:) Probably human gargbage disposals.

[cathyf]

If this is goodbye, Paul, I'll just repeat it as God be with you.

But otherwise, it has always seemed to me much better to go out in curmudgeonly glory rather than gently.

[Kevin B]

Why do people still fall for the fixed sized pie fallacy?

Rich people don't take all the healthcare resources from the poor, rich people create all the health care resources for the poor.

Rich old people who want to live forever spend their wealth on expensive cures for what ails them.

Rich sick people spend their wealth on treatments which might give them better health.

Rich people with sick relatives spend their money on endowing wards or schools or even whole hospitals or just a new diagnostic tool for a local community.

And all this wealth going into the system attracts people who want to grab a piece of it, so pharma companies and med tech companies and the number of kids going to med school all expand and the expanding supply brings down the price so that these days anyone can get a stent for their athero sclerosis.

Will we ever be rid of this foolish desire to equalize the size of each slice rather than expand the pie so everybody has more?

[MarkO]

"Only by living at the edge of death can you understand the indescribable joy of life."

Shogun

James Clavell

Godspeed, Paul.

[clarice feldman]

Thanks for the reminder re bad, hit, There's a reason you're my favorite.
OL. sorry..At least being of a waspish disposition you don't throw stuff at the dinner table, I imagine.

Dr. J, thanks again for the reference, my family is very appreciative after contacting her.

[Porchlight]

Paul, I am so sorry. I will pray for you and I fervently hope you will change your mind and check back in now and again.

You have brought so much to JOM. I hope you enjoy every minute with your daughters. God bless you.

[JIB (in Typhus hell)]

Interesting match up in Florida's 13th. David Jolly, longtime CoS to Bill Young, won the GOP primary last night and will now face Alex Sink. Sink was our CFO in Florida before she lost to Rick Scott in the Governor's race. She is carpet-bagging from Tampa to St. Pete to face Jolly and will be well funded by the DNC.

This should be a safe seat for any Republican running on repealing ObamaCare especially if Sink endorses it. But stranger things have happened when we hve elections in Florida.

Plus given the district's history and Young's popularity how much with the RNC give Jolly?

[Marlene]

Oh! BOE,please find comfort in your travels and with your daughters.
Peace be with you.

[cathyf]

She then tells me that they are taught that if they could prevent the rich from wasting so much money on high cost treatments, there would be more money for health care for the poor and isn't that a good thing?

Two years ago, during a Republican primary debate, George Stephanopoulos brought up the topic of contraception totally out of left field -- totally out of left field in another solar system! At the time, the retail price of a generic birth control prescription was ~$9 at Target or WalMart. The wholesale cost was less than $3 pack, even though Planned Parenthood of Texas was billing the state $28 for it -- and sometimes billing the $28 for pills that the clients didn't even take. (One of the things that Texas is suing PP for.)

Two years later, and one year after the promulgation of "free" contraception, the price is up to ~$90/month.

There are 15 million American women on the birth control pill. This wastes $1,000 per year on EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THOSE 15 MILLION. Paying $1100/year for something that should cost $100/year. $1000 multiplied by 15 million is fifteen BILLION-with-a-friggin-B friggin DOLLARS!!! Per friggin YEAR!!!

This line that your daughter is spouting is an ugly vicious lie. The problem is NOT the rich taking health care from the poor, it's the healthy taking healthcare from the sick! The fundamental math of insurance is that many people each pay in a little money (in premiums) while only a few people collect a lot of money (in claims). Compared to the costs of any of the hideously expensive diseases that a person can get, virtually EVERYONE is poor.

Insurance works to shovel large amounts of money to expensive treatments because only a small number of people actually NEED expensive treatments. Crony populism* works the opposite way -- you give small trinkets to a large number of voters to buy their support. (And the poorer you keep them, the cheaper you can buy them for.)

*(I have made a New Year's resolution to eliminate the term "crony capitalism" from my vocabulary, as it is a slander of capitalists precisely engineered to advance the interests of the crony populists.)

[bgates]

Paul, I am so sorry. I will pray for you and I fervently hope you will change your mind and check back in now and again.

You have brought so much to JOM. I hope you enjoy every minute with your daughters. God bless you.

I can't say it any better than this.

[MarkO]

I thought insurance was intended to cover serious and dire expenses. The other stuff, the inexpensive stuff, is easier to handle.

But, if when we need expensive medical attention we are simply to go quietly and save money, what is the point of insurance?

These "go quietly" arguments are based on a single payer economic model.