December 2009
15 posts
While we were enjoying Christmas... →
The bill’s centerpiece is a clause prohibiting insurers from denying coverage based on a pre-existing medical condition. However noble and marketable an idea, this proscription removes the very basis upon which any insurance model operates profitably. A system of insurance requires that premiums be collected from a pool of low-risk people so that funds are available in case a high-risk...
“The problem that folks like Paul Krugman don’t acknowledge is that this spare...”
– Joe Weisenthal (via soupsoup) (via jayparkinsonmd)
Amen. Keynsians will have you believe that it doesn’t matter what constitutes GDP, just as long as it is growing. In essence the US economy could be cranking out billions and billions of pieces of bubble gum and then subsidize chewing...
James Howard Kunstler →
Can’t we come up with a better American Dream, even one that includes Christmas? I think we can. It would require the liberation of American citizen’s minds from their thralldom to bigness in every realm from work to worship to recreation. If you think Barack Obama is a hostage to Wall Street, reflect for a while on the people’s self-surrender to the tyranny of everything...
The Future Belongs to Facts →
“[Climate policy advocates including Obama] built up a narrative that, instead of bringing the public on board with dialogue and understanding, relied on emotion and authority,” writes Mr. Reynolds, who covered the summit for his blog on Instapundit, in an e-mail. “Now, the authority figures are losing authority, and the emotion is swinging the other way, as emotion generally does.”
Substitute...
Pardon me...
Today in church, the priest was giving his sermon and he was interuppted by a cell phone ring, HIS OWN CELL PHONE RING.
Now if that’s not a sign of the times I don’t know what is.
Getting a Second Opinion
continuations:
Yesterday I went to get a second opinion on my ongoing dental pains. I went to a specialist in the matter (implants), presented the history and asked for his opinion and advice. The whole process was incredibly useful. First, it made me focus on what was fact versus interpretation or emotion. Second, I got a perspective from someone who has no stake in the outcome and who is...
Multiple Dislocations and Bone Defects →
Who should get the surgery Sekiya says anyone who has had repeated shoulder dislocation, or failed surgical attempts to repair the problem, should discuss the possibility of bone defects in their shoulder joint with their physician.
The solutions for this problem are rapidly evolving. We put together a video on this subject during my fellowship that will be featured at the AAOS academy in...
Do Not Pass Go, Go Directly to Jail →
“H.R. 3962 provides that an individual (or a husband and wife in the case of a joint return) who does not, at any time during the taxable year, maintain acceptable health insurance coverage for himself or herself and each of his or her qualifying children is subject to an additional tax.” [page1]
“Criminal penalties
Prosecution is authorized under...
The Pretense of Knowldge →
The ultimate constraint that we all face is knowledge — what we know and don’t know. The knowledge problem is pervasive and by no means trivial as hinted at by just a few examples. You’ve purchased a house. Was it the best deal you could have gotten? Was there some other house you could have purchased that 10 years later would not have needed extensive repairs or was in a...
Fly fishing Tumblog →
I am happy to welcome one of my best friends in the world, Marty Romeo to the tumblr blogging world. Marty and I grew up in Rochester, NY. We met just before high school and have been best friends since. We share a certain unique sense of humor and a love of fly fishing- although Marty is admittedly far more proficient and practiced at the latter art.
Per my encouragement (I am currently...
Are we at war? →
The point though, is that the 2001 AUMF was in fact an authorization to use military force to go after terrorism. It was not an authorization to conduct a full-scale war against another nation, or to become enmeshed in a civil war in another nation, which is what is going on in Afghanistan today. That, in fact, is why even Bush felt he needed a second AUMF to authorize his invasion of Iraq…
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Six Rules Doctors Need to Know
baseln:
hjluks:
Rule 1: They don’t want to be at your office.
It may seem odd to patients, but most doctors forget that going to the doctor is generally unnerving. We work there, and being in a doctor’s office is normal to us. Not so with most patients. The spotlight is on them and their health. They stand on the scale, undress, tell intimate things about their lives, confess errors, are...