Buying the Cow

Posted by at 09:29 AM | Comments (1)

February 18, 2006

On Provokation

Shaykh Faiz Siddiqi, the national convener of MAC told Reuters. "We also want to invite the global community to a civilized dialogue. We want to say we don't need insults anymore. We don't need provocation any more."

This guy is a Muslim leader of some manner, I've given up trying to figure out the heiarchy of who's who. The quote, while well meaning, is disturbing to me. Wouldn't a few weeks ago have been the time to invite the global community to a civilized dialogue? Which party in this little scrap is being uncivilized? I don't see any Danes protesting and burning down Muslim property. No likenesses of Muslim leaders have been burned. If he's speaking to anyone, he needs to be speaking to his own people, encouraging them to stop the violence, and the protests, and get to a civilized dialogue. I think the world community would embrace that.

Additionally he says that "we" which I take to mean Muslims, don't need insults or provocation any more. Granted, nobody needs to be insulted, but some tolerance over various slights should be indicated. And what of provocation? These are adults we're talking about here, not children or animals who are easily provoked. If Muslims think they're being provoked at every turn, then perhaps they are letting themselves be provoked, allowing themselves to embrace violence and destruction. Instead of asking the world not to provoke them, perhaps he should ask his followers not to be provoked.

I've said it before and it warrants saying again, I fear that eventually the world will tire of the constantly outraged Extremist Muslim and his tendancy towards violence and will do something about it. My fear is that whatever that something is will be explosive. When you're fighting a people who embrace the opportunity to die for their religion and think that the "glory times" will come only once the world is "enveloped in flames" you have to be careful. I don't have a good answer on what to do about this situation but I think that eventually it will spin out of control and bad things will happen.

Posted by at 11:31 AM

On Free Speech

I'm sitting at my desk enjoying my "morning" routine of drinking my coffee and reading the news. I rarely watch the news any more, I can get it faster through the internet and don't have to wait through stories I don't care about to get to the ones I do. At any rate, this morning I was reading about the continued protests over the Danish cartoons in Pakistan, Syria, Crapistan, Sandycrackistan, and elsewhere in that Big Desert In The East, and one of the protesters was holding a sign that got me to thinking. The sign read "Free Speech = Cheap Insults". I think this can be interpreted a few different ways, one of which is to say that any freedom of speech will degrade into cheap insults over time. I think what it meant was that in this case freedom of speech turned into a cheap insult.

I think both interpretations are true, however. If you say what you want, and what you mean, you're bound to insult someone eventually. What gets me to thinking is, which is worse; not being able to say what you want, or insulting someone with what you're saying? Does it matter how insulting it is? For me, hearing rap music blaring out of somebody's stereo is pretty offensive, I really hate that stuff, but is it enough that the person who enjoys it shouldn't get to listen to it? I'm certain that this little blog I write on has, is, or will offend someone eventually, but should I be shut down? If an offense does occur, how should the offendee be allowed to respond? A letter? A phone call? Picket my house? Burn my house to the ground and shoot me when I come running out? As much as I'd like to aim a cruise missle at the guy blaring "Pimps up, ho's down" across the freeway, it's just inappropriate. Right?

So, it's okay for these Muslim nuts to be upset with the cartoon depictions of their Prophet, I have that down pretty well. But is it okay for them to take it to weeks of violent protests? Where's the line drawn? Who's more at fault? The cartoonists who drew something that they should have known may have been offensive, or the protesters who are taking their anger to an extreem level? I may be wrong but I think it's the protesters. Being offended is one thing, but letting your unhappiness destroy other peoples property is something entirely more unhealthy. I think a little tolerance, a sense of humor, and some common sense could have side stepped this entire protest business.

Posted by at 11:26 AM

February 16, 2006

Thanks Chico

Thank you Chico for the dozens of letters to the Editor of the Chico Enterprise Record in support of Enloe Medical Center's expansion project and in support of leaving the Flightcare Helicopter where it can best be used to save the most lives. A few letters aside who seem to think that the public outrage over Jon Luvaas' fascist comments are partisian politics, the paper has been full of supportive, heart-warming letters. From all of us who care about peoples lives, and the future of health care in this fine town, a million times, thank you.

Posted by at 07:51 AM

February 15, 2006

On Poorly Worded Comments

Irresponsible. Outrageous. Fascist. Horrific.

There's a few words that can be used to describe the comments made by Jon Luvaas in last week's Planning Commision forum concerning Enloe Hospital's expansion project. For those who missed it Luvaas basically said that things like backyard BBQ's and a sound night's sleep were things that had to be considered when deciding whether or not a patient deserved to flown by helicopter from scene to the hospial for life-saving treatment. He went on to say that an 83 year old heart attack victim did not always deserve immediate intervention because they were near the end of their life anyways.

Luvaas then wrote a letter to the Chico ER on Sunday defending his comments and saying he was mis-quoted. Hey, Jon. Everyone heard you, it was on live TV. You weren't mis-quoted, you stuck your foot in your mouth and revealed how ignorant you really are of the issues surrounding Emergency Medicine. Later in the letter Luvaas tried to clarify his comments, and basically said the same thing again as he did during the forum. So, what now Jon, you were mis-quoted a second time? The Chico ER has it in for you? Or could it actually be that you are so far out of touch with reality, and what Emergency Services does that you have no business commenting on such a project.

The Emergency (especially pre-hospital) setting is no place to be making right-to-life decisions. Those decisions need to have been made in advance, and an Advanced Directive drawn out, or made after the crisis stage has passed and everyone has had some time to get a cool head back on their shoulders. Perhaps life-saving attempts will be futile, but the patient's demise is assured if they're left in the field with no help.

The fact that Mr. Luvaas would consider a person's age in determining whether or not they deserved the full extent of emergency treatment is horrifying. If we were to do that why not extend the list of Mr. Luvaas' undesirables. We could include the handicapped, still-born children, children with developmental delays, criminals, and people with severe mental retardation. What's the point in saving them? Most of them die young anyways, and they consume a large portion of healthcare resources. Thankfully, emergency medicine doesn't work that way. Race, religion, economic status, medical status, and age don't matter. In an emergency, the best care is provided to everyone. The time to make long-term decisons comes later. That's how it should be, and that's how it is.

Posted by at 04:30 PM

On Fanning Flames

A new movie just hit Turkish theaters and it's quite a hit. According to today's Sacramento Bee Turkish movie theaters are packed with Turks anxious to see the film. So what's all he hub bub? The film is a depiction of American soldiers commiting horrible acts against Muslims. Realize, this is a work of fiction, all done with actors, not a documentary.

So, you might say, the Turks make no pretense about hating us, what's the big deal? The big deal is that the two main villians in the movie are American actors. Billy Zane plays an American solider who at one point in the movie is backed into a corner by the vallian Muslim army and threatens to blow up himself and a crowd of nearby children up rather than surrender and account for his evil deeds. Gary Busey plays an American doctor who cuts the organs out of still living Muslim POW's and sells them to Isreal for America. He, at one point, becomes quite upset because the American prison guards are killing so many POW's that he has no organs left to steal.

I cannot, for the life of me, figure out what would induce two Americans to agree to roles such as these. Granted, they're not first-class actors and so maybe hard times call for desperate measures. But perhaps a shampoo commerical could have been available. Muslims don't seem to need any more excuse to pitch a fit and riot, Pakistani Muslims are still rioting violently over the cartoon depiction of Muhammed. Every time something of this line comes up, a riot insues, the riot turns violent, and the violence is directed towards Americans. I think if a single act of violence is directed towards a single American over this movie Zane and Busey need to be held responsible. After all, they had to have known what their part in that movie could cause.

Posted by at 04:02 PM

February 13, 2006

On Something Good

Every once in a while something comes along that makes you think to yourself "this is something good, I need to be a part of it."

Such an occurance happened to me last week. As a part of the local Masonic Lodge I am also a Shriner. The two fraternities exist together as the Shriners are the philanthropic branch of Freemasonry. It also happens to a lot of fun. Shriners exist to fund and support the Shrine Hospital in Sacramento and elsewhere. At this hospital children with orthopedic injuries, spinal injuries, and burns can go to get care from the best doctors anywhere, at absolutely no cost to them or their families. If necessary Shriners will fund the care, transportation, rehab, and provide a place for a parent to stay so that the family can stay togeher during hospialization. Free. Always free.

Anyways, I was approached by Brad Azevedo last Tuesday about putting on a Shriners screening clinic. In this children from the area can come to meet a Shrine doctor so that it can be determined if the Shriners can help the child. I've never put on a screening clinic or ever even seen one, despite the fact that I was a patient at Shriners about 10 years ago (I couldn't wait for a clinic, I was admitted directly). I balked at first, thinking about how little free time I have already but soon agreed to help plan the event, knowing that this would be something ultimately good...and knowing the Shriners, very very fun.

So, the moral of this story is this: If you know a child, or know someone who knows a child, that you think MIGHT be able to be helped by Shriner's Hospital, send them to the Masonic Lodge on East avenue just East of the Railroad tracks on the 8th of April in the morning. More details will follow, or contact me, or contact the lodge (I'm at jordanfrazer@sbcglobal.net). The atmosphere will be unlike any medical clinic you've ever known. Shriners like having fun, and so there will be clowns, go-carts, possibly clowns, games, all sorts of fun things for kids. It will be a great time for a great event.

Posted by at 10:31 AM

February 12, 2006

On Brokeback Mountain

I had the opportunity to go and see Brokeback Mounain earlier today with my wife. Besides getting incredible critical reviews, which I never take much stock in anyways, I had several friends recommend it to me.

I must say it was one of the best films I've seen in a long while. I've been weary of Hollywood and what it's been turning out lately, it seems that they haven't had an original idea in a long time and the remakes continue to be worse and worse. This was an innovaive, intreaguing, well-done movie all in all. The scenery and the cinematics were beautiful. Some of the landscapes are breath taking. It's definately not for anyone who feels that their delicate sensibilities would be damaged by a portrayal of a homosexual relationship, though. Without being lewd Brokeback depicts several man-on-man love scenes, which drew some gasps from the audience. Funny how woman-on-woman scenes don't do that. As the story rolls on you really get to know the characters and empathize with their trying to balance a love for each other and a "normal" life in 1970's Wyoming and Texas.

My complaint about he whole thing was that the ending was predictable, though inevitable, and the message hit you like a ton of rocks. That and Heath Ledger has a baby face and it's hard to make him look like he's in his 40's towards the end of the movie. Otherwise, a great flick. I'll give it an 8/10.

Posted by at 11:45 PM

February 11, 2006

On Deserved Congratulations

Congratulations are in order for Enloe Medical Center. Recently the Planning Commission has approved their Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for their hospital expansion. This is a major step towards a new facility that will be able to provide the kind of high-quality medical care that this region needs and deserves.

I am upset with a couple of the conditions of the approval, however. It seems that the city wants Enloe to build curbs , sidewalks, and gutters down 5th and 7th avenues. These streets, as almost anyone who's driven down them knows, are constantly flooded and mucky in the winter, ridden with pot holes, dark, and dangerous. This has been a condtion that's been going on for years and the city has chosen to do nothing about it. Now, seeing an opportunity arise, the city has passed the buck onto Enloe to fix. Enloe Medical Center may be one of the largest employers in the area but they are not a bottomless pit of money. Any cost incurred in doing road-work that the city should have done years ago will immediately be passed on to healthcare consumers, who are generally the ones least able to pay for it (the elderly, infirmed, poor, etc.). Road work needs to be funed by city taxes so that everyone from the rich on down can help pay for them.

Also, it's rumored that the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is considering suing Enloe Medical Center to challenge it's EIR, stating that the EIR does not go far enough in protecting the environment around the hospital. Their suit, in reality, has nothing to do with the enviornment but would rather be a burr under Enloe's saddle to provide SEIU leverage in certifying the challenged election. While this suit will probably be defeated, it will still cost Enloe money to fight it. Money that could be better spent on improved facilities for sick kids, old people, and the handicapped. I would hope that any cost incurred by Enloe for this suit will be counter-sued for as not to pass it on to the healthcare consumer.

It amazes me the politics that go around something as seemingly common-sense as a hospital attempting to expand to meet the needs of the community it serves. Everyone wants in, everyone wants a little piece of the pie. In the end it only costs money for the people who can least afford to pay for it, ie: the common tax payer.

Posted by at 10:44 AM

February 10, 2006

Just funny

Do you feel the need for a chat with a liberal nut. Just type and have one.

Posted by at 04:26 PM

February 08, 2006

More Cartoon Protests

The days roll on and rather than getting better the protests over the Danish cartoons published in September is getting worse. The protests are becoming so violent in some areas that police are using deadly force to quell the. Four died today.

At first I thought it was pretty ironic that Muslims were reacting violently to cartoons depicting them as a violent people but there's actually more to it. It seems that it is blasphemy for anyone to draw any picture of the Prophet, no matter in what light, and that's what's being protested. What's wrong with saying "That sucks guys. In our religion drawing a picture of the Prophet is blasphemous, you're going to hell." and leaving it at that. I don't think it's Mans responsibility to be God's watcher. That's like the kid telling the parent what to do.

Muslim extreemists seem to think that it's the responsibility of the world to conform to them, rather than their responsibility to get along with the rest of the world, which is a pretty twisted view on things, in my opinion. Eventually I think the world will tire of all the rhetoric, bombings, and terrorism and Muslims will find themselves on the run. Unfortunately a lot of good, decent people will be affected at the fault of a few radical few.

Already in a bold statement of "not in our house" Israel has discovered, targeted, bombed, and killed a member of the Islamic Jihaad, a terrorist group. Islamic Jihaad has claimed responsibility for a number of bus bombings in the Gaza strip and Palestine. It seems that Israel has already begun to tire of the radical Islamic BS and is doing something about it. They've drawn the line and are telling the terrorists "that ain't how we're going to roll".

Posted by at 08:55 AM | Comments (1)

February 07, 2006

On Inappropriate Times

At Coretta King's funeral today former president's Carter, Clinton, and Bush attended, as did current president Bush, as well as a number of other political and civil leaders. Such a show of support for a passed leader was encouraging until the eulogies began. Mr. Clinton used the opportunity to plug his wife as the next president (shudder), Mr. Carter used it to attack Bush on domestic spying. A number of other speakers used the opportunity to read speaches and poems attacking big business, foreign policy, the war in Iraq, and other issues.

Is there no shame? In a time when solidarity could have been fostered the libs used the opportunity to depen the divide between Americans. I could almost see a statement concerning the treatment of minorities and civil rights but this was no time for talking about Iraq and other issues. President Bush seemed to laugh it off, however, in a show of good sportsmanship. Still, it bothers me that such a time when a leader's loss should be mourned, some took it as more of an opportunity to further their political causes.

Posted by at 10:22 PM | Comments (1)

On Enloe Expansion

I have to applaud Enloe Medical Center in it's attempts to be a good neighbor to the people living around the hospital while it's trying to expand. Enloe has held a number of meetings and listened to hundreds of concerns of community members both for and against the expansion. During the most recent meeting a number of conditions were set forth by the neighbors. The conditions were as follows:

Improve street infrastructure as the project is built.

Complete installations to slow down traffic within five years.

Add "liner buildings" to the parking structure, consisting of stores and offices.

Move the helicopter base to the airport and allow hospital landings only for "true golden-hour emergencies."

Give the association a vote on designing the park and liner buildings.

Involve the association formally in planning ways to comprehensively reduce the need for parking around Enloe.

Make the Enloe Conference Center available for community functions.

Limit future hospital expansion to the area immediately surrounding the present hospital site.

Make one member of the hospital board of trustees a representative of the neighborhood.

I must say that none of these are over the top and should be considered if Enloe wants to retain it's good neighbor image. Save one. The proposal that Enloe move it's Flightcare Helicopter away from the hospital is insane. The very idea that it would be considered by Enloe should be insulting to anyone who ever consideres themselves at risk of having an emergency (ie everyone). The stipulation is that the helicopter could use the roof in a true "golden hour" emergency, in other words the ones where time is of the essence.

This kind of proviso is dangerous in so many ways. While Flightcare nurses and paramedics are of the highest caliber on staff in the Emergency Services Department they neither have the resources or the authority to make that kind of decison, that's for a physician to decide. Often disease and injury are sneaky, a patient may look fine and actually have much more damage than can be detected without MRI, Cat Scans (CT), extensive labs, and radiology. By landing at the airport these patients' care is delayed and lives are at risk. If just one patient has a less favorable outcome due to a delay in patient care that could have been prevented by having the helicopter on the roof then that is one too many. How can the neighbors of Enloe put lives at jeapordy?

Enloe has a responsibility to be a good neighbor to the residents that live around the hospital. It has a greater responsibility to the communities it serves to provide the highest quality healthcare it can and do all it can to improve patient's outcomes. Allowing the helicopter to move away from the hospital Enloe would be putting patient lives at risk, and that breaches the unwritten contract it holds with the communities it serves.

Posted by at 04:28 PM

February 06, 2006

On Islamic Rage

Violent protests continue today over and "offensive" Danish cartoon depiction of the prophet Muhammed by Muslims across the world. While some will see these protests and the violence brought with them as the work of an isolated sect of Islam that embraces violence and rage I suspect many more will generalize all Muslims as being violent and ready to over react to the least slight.

And why not? The news is littered with accounts of people being hung, burned, beheaded, and poisoned in the name of Islam. Iran has denounced the cartoon and severed trade ties with Denmark over the incident. Apparently its blasphemous to draw a cartoon but perfectly okay build a nuclear bomb with the intent of using it against "infidel" countries.

Do these people even know what their protesting? I think the outrage over the cartoon has passed and now protesters are just digging up other reasons to destroy stuff. While in one verse protesters chant "God is Greatest" in the next they chant "Death to America". News flash, America doesn't have anything to do with that cartoon. One has to wonder if these protesters just really like being angry.

These people take themselves way to seriously. Jews have had it way worse than Muslims for way longer and yet you don't see throngs of Jews taking to the streets and bombing buildings. What if every time a Christian was beheaded in Iraq we burned down a few Muslim neighborhoods? Muslim leaders say they want acceptance but from the look of these protestors they want domination, or at least an excuse to stay angry.

I hope these protests end quickly, and I hope while Americans and Christians learn more about Islam and learn to accept it Muslims are doing the same for us.

Posted by at 07:59 PM

On France and Iran

France has said that it will not confront Iran over it's nuclear program. Well there's a shock. France wouldn't even agree to confront Germany in it's Take Over France program in the 40's. From now on it should be a rule that the world expects complete pacifist inaction to every situation, no matter how dire, from France unless otherwise notified. If we don't hear from them, we'll assume we know the answer.

Something has to be done about Iran. Allowing them to develop a nuclear weapon is one of the worst things that the world could stand by and allow to happen. With a nuclear warhead and a platform with which to launch it with Iran could kill millions of Americans, Brittons, Germans, Russians, etc. Basically any country it considers "infidel" or othewise unworthy of existance. They have demonstrated to use force without control over even the most trivial of slights against them. Look at what's happening across Europe and now Asia over a cartoon! More on that tomorrow.

Posted by at 02:40 AM | Comments (1)

On the Super Bowl

My only comment on the Super Bowl is that I can't wait to see what PETA has to say about Aretha Franklin's beautiful fur coat. Should be a classic.

Posted by at 02:38 AM

February 04, 2006

On Offensive Gimicks

Enloe Medical Center recently started up it's new "It's Okay to Ask" campaign in which it encourages patients to ask their care providers when the last time they washed their hands was. I cannot begin to describe how offensive I find this. I compare this to asking a chef at a restaurant to see the recipe he's working off of, or a cab driver to see his driver's license. May I ask you when the last time you took a shower was. Do you brush your teeth twice a day like you should? When was the last time you scrubbed your toilet? Such questions are simply rude in polite society, and I like to think we'res till a polite society. Though you may not see your provider wash their hands before working with you, you can bet that they are. Healthcare providers are people to, and we don't like having other people's germs on us any more than you do.

In my opinion the campaign is a gimick to increase PR. Enloe has gotten some bad press lately over Union battles, it's expansion project, and after a number of patients claimed that the hospital infected them with MRSA. For more on MRSA read the extended entry. The campaign makes people feel good, gives them a sense of power, and someone to blame when things go bad. After all, the fact that a person lives in squalor, hasn't bathed in days, hasn't cleaned their house in weeks, and is covered in grime doesn't have a thing to do with their spreadig infection. It's clearly the fault of a nurse who didnt' wash their hands.

If you go into Enloe you'll see posters with a hand making the "OK" sign with big letters saying "It's Okay To Ask". You might even see some employees wearing badges that say the same thing. That's fine for them, and you're free to ask them if they've washed their hands if it makes you feel better. If you see me, you may even ask me if I've washed my hands, and depending on my mood I might just answer (the answer will be yes). It's your right to ask me anything you want. It's my right to answer or not. Because, even though you CAN ask, it's far from OK.

For those that don't know MRSA is a Staph infection that is resistant to the antibiotic most commonly used to kill it. Staph is everywhere, on everything, and serves a purpose on our bodies to prevent other, more harmful bacteria from gaining a foot hold and making sick. However, when it get's into an open wound and is allowed to grow their it becomes a nasty infetion that is tough to get rid of. The MRSA strain of staph is just as common as it's more benign cousin. It's on door knobs, kitchen counters, tables, just about everywhere. Soap and water kills it. Most people are carrying it around with them right now and don't know it. However, when they go into the hospital with an infection (say bronchitis) the hospital tests specifically for it. When it's found the patient is put on isolation precautions and a big deal is made of it. This doesn't mean that the patient caught the MRSA in the hospital (though that's possible too) but that it just happened to be discovered there. People seem to associate MRSA with Flesh-Eating (necrotizing) bacteria, and the two are hardly the same.

Posted by at 11:29 AM | Comments (1)

February 03, 2006

On Burned Bridges

Gov. Schwarzenegger appeared at a highway construction site last month to shake hand with workers and get some face time in after signing a bill that would speed up the I-405 construction that is long over due and badly needed. The Governor making face time is nothing new, he's known for doing so, but this was a bit different. All he did was show up, talk a bit, and mingle. There were no fireworks, props, Humvee's, or other antics that he's been come to be known for. Personally, I think it's refreshing. All of that stuff, while impressive to the eye distracts from the message and gets away from the point.

Fernando Losada of the California Nurses Association was not as impressed. On the appearance he said that the new image was a change in form, not in substance. Perhaps he's right. But, then again, perhaps he's wrong. It doesn't matter though, does it? The Governor burned his bridges with the CNA and other unions last November with his special election. Those bridges can't be rebuilt, and it's probable that the Unions don't want them rebuilt. Having Schwarzenegger for an enemy is great for CNA and other Unions as it gives them something to go on the news about on a regular basis, which is essential for their success. To quote a co-worker's comment, "It wouldn't matter if he bent over and peace and sunshine erupted from his butt, I still wouldn't like him."

I can see not liking a political figure for their policies but to just not like them because they are not of your party, or because your Union tells you not to, or because of some other foundationless reason is just plain dumb. What happened to free thought? I didn't like Clinton for a lot of reason, but I had to appreciate what he did for our economy. I do like Bush in some respects, but his foreign-policy needs some work. Being a Bush or Schwarzenegger hating robot deprives you of your God-given right to think and act the way you want to, not the way you're told to.

Posted by at 11:33 AM

Something Humerous

Andy Rooney's tips for telemarketers and junk mail....

Three Little Words That Work !!

(1)The three little words are: "Hold On, Please..."

Saying this, while putting down your phone and walking off (instead of hanging-up immediately) would make each telemarketing call so much more time-consuming that boiler room sales would grind to a halt.

Then, when you eventually hear the phone company's "beep-beep-beep" tone, you know it's time to go back and hang up your handset, which has efficiently completed its task.

These three little words will help eliminate telephone soliciting.

(2) Do you ever get those annoying phone calls with no one on the other end?

This is a telemarketing technique where a machine makes phone calls and records the time of day when a person answers the phone.

This technique is used to determine the best time of day for a "real" sales person to call back and get someone at home.

What you can do after answering, if you notice there is no one there, is to immediately start hitting your # button on the phone, 6 or 7 times, as quickly as possible. This confuses the machine that dialed the call and it kicks your number out of their system. Gosh, what a shame not to have your name in their system any longer !!!

(3) Junk Mail Help:

When you get "ads" enclosed with your phone or utility bill, return these "ads" with your payment. Let the sending companies throw their own junk mail away.

When you get those "pre-approved" letters in the mail for everything from credit cards to 2nd mortgages and similar type junk, do not throw away the return envelope.

Most of these come with postage-paid return envelopes, right?

It costs them more than the regular 37 cents postage "IF" and when they receive them back.

It costs them nothing if you throw them away! The postage was around 50 cents before the last increase and it is according to the weight. In that case, why not get rid of some of your other junk mail and put it in these cool little, postage-paid return envelopes.

One of Andy Rooney's (60 minutes) ideas.

Send an ad for your local chimney cleaner to American Express. Send a pizza coupon to Citibank. If you didn't get anything else that day, then just send them their blank application back!

If you want to remain anonymous, just make sure your name isn't on anything you send them.

You can even send the envelope back empty if you want to just to keep them guessing! It still costs them 37 cents.

The banks and credit card companies are currently

getting a lot of their own junk back in the mail, but folks, we need to OVERWHELM them. Let's let them know what it's like to get lots of junk mail, and best of all they're paying for it...Twice!

Let's help keep our postal service busy since they are saying that e-mail is cutting into their business profits, and that's why they need to increase postage costs again. You get the idea!

If enough people follow these tips, it will work----

I have been doing this for years, and I get very little

junk mail anymore.

Posted by at 10:33 AM

February 02, 2006

On Contract Negotiations

Enloe Medical Center finds itself entangled in two Union negotiations currently. It's contract with California Nurses Association recently expired after repeated negotiations failed to bear anything, let alone fruit. At the same time Enloe is taking it's appeal not to have it's service employees (clerks, drivers, etc.) represented by SEIU. I can barely speak to the SEIU negotiations except to say that when I was being pandered by SEIU while I was working as an EMT I found their tactics distasteful and bordering on illegal.

I can, however, speak on CNA negotiations as I'm now a nurse and a part of that Union. Let me first say that I am NOT a Union Guy. I don't trust them, and strongly doubt that they have my interests first and foremost. That being said, I doubt that Enloe does either. The key issues in the contract in my opinion are thus:
1. Emergency nurses should not float the hospital. In other words, when the ER is not busy (which is never lately) nurses from that department could go to another department to care for patients. This sounds good in theory but ER nursing is vastly different than ICU, floor, maternity, ambulatory services, surgical, or any other nursing that we could be called on to do. Once a nurse specializes in a unit they become almost worthless to other units due to unfamiliarity with the floor, the patients, and the role a nurse plays in that patients care. But, the staffing ratios look good. But imagine it's a slow day in the ER and your kid's school bus rolls over. Now it's a very busy day in the ER but, alas, all the ER nurses are someplace else, and it will take at least an hour for them to give report on their patients and come back to the ER. Scary.
2. Wages. I won't say that nurses don't get paid well but compared to other similar hospital Enloe pays below the norm. All hospitals do market surveys to compare their wages to other hospitals in the area. This is fine except that Enloe is the Trauma Center for the region and provides countless other services that other hospitals don't provide. When other hospitals find themselves overwhelmed by a sick person, they send that person to Enloe. Wage comparisons need to be done based on services provided, not just on geography. This means that Enloe needs to compare itself to Redding, Sacramento, and SF hospitals, and that means they're going to have to hand over more money.
3. Benefits. We work for a hospital, there is no reason why our benefits should cost so much and provide so little. Medical benefits need to be a perk for working within healthcare, not a hard-earned comodity.
4. Retention bonuses. Every hospital administrator will talk a good lot about how important skilled, experienced staff is. They're the one's who precept and mentor the new guys at a lot of personal sacrifice. Enloe needs to reward nurses who stay with Enloe by providing preceptor pay, and pay for additional certificates in addition to their base license. This will promote the very best to come to Enloe and the very best to stay at Enloe.

Enloe swears it doesn't have the money for these increases, and they will be expensive, to be sure. But, considering how much the highest Administration makes per year, I think they could find the dough. Yea, the CEO might need to hold off on that Jaguar for another year, but that's the breaks. CNA promises they'll get these things for us. I doubt that. If CNA got nurses everything they wanted, they would eliminate their own need to exist, and that's bad business. CNA will get us something, I'm sure of it, but we'll still be just a bit hungry. I'm sure they'll promise to get it for us "next time" and will quote Enloe's unwillingness to barter any further. And I'm sure for all their hard fought efforts CNA will raise our dues. I just wonder if the raise we get in our pay will cover the raise in our dues.

It's a ugly position either way. Ideally Enloe would concede to a few things and offer some of these things on it's own, eliminating the need for the Unions all together. And ideally Enloe would continue to treat it's employees fairly, eliminating the need to ever bring a Union back. Ideally CNA would bargain in our interest alone, not it's own. And ideally they would let us keep what we fought for, without taking their chunk first. But that's just not going to happen.

Posted by at 09:50 PM | Comments (3)

On Nightmares

I thought that I could never go through an experience as bad as buying my first house. How wrong I was. Now I'm trying to find a lot to build a house on. More specifically I want a large lot (2 acres at least), in or near Gridley, that I can build a house on. Prices for lots vary with absolutely no consistency or logic to their pricing. One lot, in a dumpy part of town, covered in trash, with a run-down house on it that will probably proove to need demolishing is going for $200,000. A guy in Live Oak wants $1M for 10 acres of bare ground. A place with a livable house runs for about $600,000. What a mess! When on earth did prices inflate this much? How can anyone afford to buy these places and pay for them. I have a good job that pays way more than what most people make and I can't afford these places. Anyone have any advice? A piece of land they want to off load? A sack of gold to donate to me? I'm accepting.

Posted by at 09:39 PM

February 01, 2006

On Epidemics (supposedly)

I hear the term epidemic used to describe the obesity problem in this country a lot. The term concerns me because it's not an accurate term. According to the CDC website an epidemic is (paraphrasing) an occurance of a disease in a certain area that exceeds what is expected. In other words, if in Butte County we expect 100 people to get the flu this winter and 110 actually get it, that's an epidemic. Why I don't like the term associated with obesity is twofold. One I don' t think that obesity is a disease. A scant few people aside obesity is a lifestyle choice or a symptom of a larger (usually psychological) problem. Two I have a hard time believing that nobody saw this coming. Can anyone honestly say that, looking back on America's diet and activity level over the past 20 years, they didn't see this coming? When a population eats a lot, and most of that is high in fat, refined carbohydrates, and low in vitamins, and at the same time spends more time sitting on their butts (typing a blog for instance) they are going to get bigger, and not bigger in a good way. It's simple math. When you consume more calories in a day than you burn off you get fatter. Period, end of story.

So, epidemic is not the right word for what what's happening. We should have seen this coming. How about Pandemic. It's another nice word. It means an epidemic over a wide geographical area. Only in this case it's using the word Epidemic to mean a "generalized outbreak". I like this term a lot better sicne it doesn't give the impression that we didn't see this coming and obesity is definately a geographical problem. But even then when you talk about the "Obesity Pandemic" (Can't you just see that as a CNN tag line) you give the impression that it's a disease, and something you got by not washing your hands enough. This is not the case with obesity, it's a lifestyle problem.

Which leads to why these terms are used. I'm my opinion it's so media can talk about them without offending anyone. It's more friendly to talk about the obesity epidemic like it's something everyone's gotten, and it's not really their fault, rather than talking about the millions of grossly overweight people sitting around with a Bacon Extra Fatty in their hands watching TV. That paints an ugly picture. And it should. Obesity is as deadly a killer as drug addiction, alcoholism, and smoking, though interestingly the four are found together a lot. Poor circulation, heart disease, diabetes, joint problems, lung problems, and gastrointestinal problems are all things that obese people can look forward to, and all things that the rest of the population gets to pay for in the way of higher insurance premiums and higher taxes for those without insurance.

I don't mean to be insensitive. I know a number of people who are over weight, I myself could lose 20 pounds comfortably but I don't delude myself into thinking that it's society's fault, or the burger maker, or anything else. I'm over weight because I like food and need to be more physically active, and for the most part so is everyone else.

Posted by at 10:50 AM | Comments (1)