Feb

2

A Positive Recommendation…

Category: Society | 1 Comment | 315 words | Print

The day started off pretty good. I woke up without a headache, and then just a few hours later, it came back. I had lots of things I had to do today, but I didn’t get a chance to get them done.

Don’t you find it completely ironic that a Canadian government official, Newfoundland Premier Danny Williams, has chosen to come to the United States to have heart surgery.

Newfoundland Premier Danny Williams will undergo heart surgery later this week in the United States.

Deputy premier Kathy Dunderdale confirmed the treatment at a news conference Tuesday, but would not reveal the location of the operation or how it would be paid for.

“He has gone to a renowned expert in the procedure that he needs to have done,” said Ms. Dunderdale, who will become acting premier while Mr. Williams is away for three to 12 weeks.

“In consultation with his own doctors, he’s decided to go that route.”

Did you catch that last line? After consultation with his Canadian doctors, he decided to travel to the United States to have the procedure done. The article goes on to state that staying in Canada was “never an option offered to him”.

Exactly what would Mr. Williams have done if the United States was already subject to ObamaCare? That’s right, you never would have heard this story, because Mr. Williams wouldn’t have had the option to come here and most likely would have died before you even learned who he was.

Good luck with your surgery, Mr. Williams. While here in the United States you will have access to the finest medical facilities, the best medical technology, and some of the most experienced doctors you could ever find.

We won’t forget that it was your government-run, universal health care system that helped you find your way to our border, our doctors, and our health care system.

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Jan

16

Fifty Years And How Many Lives?

Category: Society | Leave a Comment | 1,179 words | Print

On March 22, 2007, I spoke about Bisphenol-A in Episode #27 of my Test Pattern podcast. I am attaching that podcast as well as the transcript. Please take a moment to listen to the podcast (and read along) before I reveal the reason for re-hashing such old material.

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Bisphenol-A, also known as BPA, was first synthesized in 1891 as a synthetic estrogen. BPA is used as a building block for polycarbonate plastic. Bisphenol A-based polycarbonate is used as a plastic coating for children’s teeth to prevent cavities, as a coating in metal cans to prevent the metal from coming in contact with food, as the plastic in food containers, refrigerator shelving, baby bottles, water bottles, returnable containers for juice, milk and water, micro-wave ovenware and eating utensils.

Bisphenol-A has also been used as an inert ingredient in pesticides, as a fungicide, flame retardant, and polyvinyl chloride stabilizer.

BPA is a heavily produced industrial compound. It ranks in the top 2% of produced chemicals in the United States. Annual production exceeds a billion pounds per year and is so common in products and industrial waste that along with humans, it is found in rivers, estuaries, sediment, household dust, and air nearly everywhere it is tested.

More than one hundred peer reviewed studies have found BPA to be toxic at low doses, yet not one regulatory agency has updated safety standards to reflect this fact.

During tests in the 1930’s studies on animals and humans showed cancer cells to occur with exposure as low as 2 to 5 parts per billion.

Recent studies have confirmed that BPA exposure during development has carcinogenic effects and may produce the precursors of breast cancer and prostate cancer. Bisphenol-A has also been shown to have developmental toxicity, carcinogenic effects and possible neuro-toxicity. It may even be linked to obesity, as it may trigger fat cell activity.

Despite the toxicity levels, there are still no safety standards for BPA. It is allowed in unlimited amounts in consumer products, drinking water, and food. The Environmental Working Group contracted with a national analytical laboratory to test 97 cans of food they purchased in March of 2006.

The laboratory detected Bisphenol-A in 57 percent of the cans. They found 83 percent of cans containing baked beans contained an average BPA level of 9.7 parts per billion. Remember, the tests in the 30’s found exposure as low as 2 to 5 parts per billion could cause cancer. Eighty-nine percent of canned soups were found to contain an average of 57.6 parts per billion, and every can of ravioli had an average level of 63.5 parts per billion.

As of December 2004, 94 of 115 peer reviewed studies had confirmed BPA’s toxicity at low levels of exposure. At some of the very lowest doses, the chemical causes permanent alterations of breast and prostate cells that precede cancer, insulin resistance, and chromosomal damage linked to recurrent miscarriage and a wide range of birth defects including Downs Syndrome.

Few chemicals have been found to consistently display just a diverse range of harm at such low doses. Like acrylamide, the FDA is doing nothing about exposure to Bisphenol-A.

As more and more people are diagnosed with condition after condition, it only makes sense to look at what we’re eating. If we don’t do it, no one else is going to do it for us.

I recorded that podcast thirty-four months ago. At the time I recorded the podcast I received a few comments that I was being extremist. I was accused of alarming people about a substance that science had clearly proven safe. I was told that I, along with the EWG, was off my rocker.

Low and behold, it turns out the EWG was correct, and so was I. From the FDA website:

Bisphenol A (BPA) is an industrial chemical that has been present in many hard plastic bottles and metal-based food and beverage cans since the 1960s.

Studies employing standardized toxicity tests have thus far supported the safety of current low levels of human exposure to BPA However, on the basis of results from recent studies using novel approaches to test for subtle effects, both the National Toxicology Program at the National Institutes of Health and FDA have some concern about the potential effects of BPA on the brain, behavior, and prostate gland in fetuses, infants, and young children. In cooperation with the National Toxicology Program, FDA’s National Center for Toxicological Research is carrying out in-depth studies to answer key questions and clarify uncertainties about the risks of BPA.

In the interim:

  • FDA is taking reasonable steps to reduce human exposure to BPA in the food supply. These steps include:

    • supporting the industry’s actions to stop producing BPA-containing baby bottles and infant feeding cups for the U.S. market;
    • facilitating the development of alternatives to BPA for the linings of infant formula cans; and
    • supporting efforts to replace BPA or minimize BPA levels in other food can linings.
  • FDA is supporting a shift to a more robust regulatory framework for oversight of BPA.
  • FDA is seeking further public comment and external input on the science surrounding BPA.

FDA is also supporting recommendations from the Department of Health and Human Services for infant feeding and food preparation to reduce exposure to BPA.

FDA is not recommending that families change the use of infant formula or foods, as the benefit of a stable source of good nutrition outweighs the potential risk from BPA exposure.

It took them 50 years, but someone finally opened their eyes and looked at the data. The FDA has officially changed their position on BPA and they believe that recent studies provide reason for some concern about the potential effects of BPA on the brain, behavior, and prostate gland of fetuses, infants, and children.

All I can say, is it’s about freaking time. In 2007, 94 of 115 peer reviewed studies put the evidence right in front of them and the FDA chose to ignore it. How many additional people have gotten sick because the FDA dragged their feet about this? How many additional children will show developmental issues because the FDA ignored the truth?

They’re still not sure it has the potential to cause all the damage I spoke about in the podcast, but they are currently supporting the industry’s actions to stop producing BPA-containing bottles and feeding cups. The FDA is also facilitating the development of alternatives to BPA for the linings of infant formula cans. They wouldn’t be “supporting” all these actions if Bisphenol-A was harmless.

They were fifty years late getting to the table, and I want to know why? It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that something like Bisphenol-A is dangerous. Believe me I know, I’m not a rocket scientist, and that’s probably due to the tardiness of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

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Jan

9

The Hypocritical Double Standards Of Barack Obama

Category: Politics, Society | Leave a Comment | 621 words | Print

Do you remember back in 2002 when then Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-MS) said,

I want to say this about my state: When Strom Thurmond ran for president, we voted for him. We’re proud of it. And if the rest of the country had followed our lead, we wouldn’t have had all these problems over all these years, either.

At the time he ran for President, in 1948, Strom Thurmond was the nominee of the Dixiecrat Party. The platform of the party was “We stand for the segregation of the races and the racial integrity of each race.”

Many people took Trent Lott’s comments to mean he supported the policies of the Dixiecrat Party, and although he apologized, he ultimately resigned because of the statement.

Then Illinois State Senator, Barack Hussein Obama called for the GOP to get rid of Lott.

It seems to be that we can forgive a 100-year-old senator for some of the indiscretion of his youth, but, what is more difficult to forgive is the current president of the U.S. Senate (Lott) suggesting we had been better off if we had followed a segregationist path in this country after all of the battles and fights for civil rights and all the work that we still have to do.

He also went on to say,

The Republican Party itself has to drive out Trent Lott. If they have to stand for something, they have to stand up and say this is not the person we want representing our party.

Barack Obama was wrong to claim Lott was the president of the Senate as everyone knows the president of the U.S. Senate is the Vice-President of the United States, and he was also wrong to call for the ouster of Trent Lott from the GOP and the U.S. Senate.

While some may have taken Trent Lott’s comments and jumped to the same conclusion State Senator Obama did, he very likely was just commending the 100 year-old Thurmond for a distinguished career in which he moved away from his segregationist position and served much longer afterward than before.

Now, fast forward eight years.

During the 2008 presidential race, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) referred to then Illinois Senator Barack Hussein Obama as “light skinned” and “with no Negro dialect unless he wanted to have one”.

Where is the statement calling for the Democrat party to drive out Harry Reid. Seriously, if they have to stand for something, they have to stand up and say this is not the person they want representing their party. Right? No, you’re wrong.

When the news of Mr. Reid’s statement was getting ready to break, he quickly apologized to President Obama for the remarks. President Obama immediately accepted his apology “without question”.

Apparently, if you are a member of the Republican party, the party which brought civil rights to the table, the party responsible for civil rights being passed in this country, you are not allowed to make a complementary remark about a 100 year-old former segregationist without risking your political career and coming under attack by State Senator Barack Obama.

Meanwhile, if you are a member of the Democrat party, the party which fought civil rights at the table, the party responsible for dragging out the fight over civil rights, you are allowed to make comments and remarks which are completely and blatantly racist without risk all the while sitting peacefully at the side of President Barack Obama.

Barack Obama is a hypocrite. I said it when he was running for office, and I say it now. He was a hypocrite in 2002, he was a hypocrite in 2008, and he is a hypocrite now.

The shadow of President Obama’s character is telling quite a tale isn’t it?

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Dec

4

The Road To Nopenhagen

Category: Society | Comments Off | 577 words | Print

Climategate. If you rely solely on the mainstream media, chances are you’ve never heard of it. Then again, if you relied solely on the mainstream media for your information, you wouldn’t be reading this right now, would you?

It seems the release of all those emails was just the tip of the iceberg and now all hell is breaking loose.

  • The Australian Senate has rejected their equivalent of Cap and Trade.

    Speaking today as the debate came to a close, Climate Change Minister Penny Wong said the Government would not give up on the ETS and accused the Coalition of trying to spook voters.

    “When you cannot fight the argument you run a scare campaign,” she said.

    That didn’t take long.

  • The director of the University of East Anglia Climate Research Unit, Phil Jones, announced he is stepping down while the university, and everyone else around the world, investigate the Climategate incident.

    A scientist who is one of the central figures in the controversy over hacked e-mails from the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit announced Tuesday that he is stepping down while the university investigates the incident.

    …

    East Anglia’s Vice-Chancellor Professor Edward Acton said he had “accepted Professor Jones’s offer to stand aside during this period. It is an important step to ensure that CRU can continue to operate normally and the independent review can conduct its work into the allegations.”

    Action added the university will disclose details of the probe, including who will head it and how long it will last “within days.”

    That is, of course, if the information collected is not destroyed or discarded (like the raw climate data) before they can release it to the public.

  • The exaggerated, fabricated, or completely falsified data isn’t limited to the CRU. Penn State plans to investigate one of their professors and his connection to Climategate.

    Climate change opponents say the E-mails indicate that climate change researchers—including Penn State Prof. Michael Mann—exaggerated or fabricated global warming data. And, according to the report, some E-mails indicate that the director of the research unit in question may have contacted researchers and asked them to “delete certain E-mails.”

    Oops. He asked people to delete email records? What on Earth could he have been trying to hide? That was a rhetorical question, so stop thinking.

  • And last but not least…

    Al Gore, the Goracle of Global Warming, has cancelled his personal appearance at the United Nations’ Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen.

    Berlingkse Media, a Danish group coordinating ticket sales and publicity for the event, said that “great annoyance” was a factor in the cancellation, along with unforeseen changes in Mr. Gore’s program for the climate summit. The decision affected 3,000 ticket holders.

    “We have had a clear-cut agreement, and it is unusual with great disappointment that we have to announce that Al Gore cancels. We had a huge expectation for the event. . . . We do not yet know the detailed reasons for the cancellation,” said Lisbeth Knudsen, CEO of Berlingske Media, in a statement posted by the company.

    I wonder what the underlying reason for Mr. Gore’s cancellation could be? I bet there aren’t enough carbon credits in the world to cover the hot air that was being expelled when he realized the secret was out.

There is a lot more going on too. The more we learn, the more we learn that the climate change summit in Copenhagen is nothing but a fool’s convention.

The mainstream media can only ignore this for so long.

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Nov

9

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

Category: Society | Comments Off | 216 words | Print

In a clear signal that he has no respect for freedom, history, or democracy, President Barack Obama snubbed the people of Germany (and the world) in celebrating the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

 

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and German President Horst Koehler walk through the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin November 9, 2009, during celebrations to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

 

On November 9th, 1989, the Berlin Wall fell. On July 26th, 2008, candidate Barack Obama visited Germany and spoke before a crowd of 200,000 people. On November 9th, 2009, President Barack Obama showed the world how much the end of communist rule in Eastern Europe really means to him.

As a candidate seeking the job as the leader of the free world Barack Obama had plenty of time to make the trip to Germany, but now that he is leader of the free world he makes it clear that the word “free” means absolutely nothing to him.

While his actions are not too surprising at this point, I’m sure his actions today affected more people than the 200,000 who most likely regret taking time to listen to him back in July of 2008.

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Oct

25

The Talk Of The Town

Category: Society | Comments Off | 146 words | Print

The White House War On Fox News. It’s still the talk of the town.

Maybe the other networks should focus on the stories Fox News has been reporting to draw such an attack from the White House instead of the attack itself.

Naw, they can’t do that. It would require someone to actually do some journalistic work.

The more the White House attacks, the more the other networks talk about it, the higher Fox News’ ratings shoot through the roof.

That’s it for tonight. I should be back up to full speed in the next day or so. Everyone in the house has some form of “blech”, whether it’s sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, stuffy head, fever, or just resting. We’ve all got it.

All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.
Walt Disney
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Sep

26

Wet Noodles And Kryptonite

Category: Opinions, Society | Comments Off | 424 words | Print

Just when I thought it was safe to relax, it rained again today. It’s not like the additional rain we had will make the rivers rise again, but enough is enough, at least for a week or two while people get their possessions dried out.

We had some errands to run and we got caught in the rain for about 20 minutes before we got home. Because of the weather, we spent the rest of the day working on small projects and relaxing for the first time in days.

Speaking of small projects…

Thought #1

If a French President calls you out on the world stage for standing idle and doing nothing, and essentially being ineffective, you know you suck. French President Nicolas Sarkozy said,

President Obama has even said, “I dream of a world without [nuclear weapons].” Yet before our very eyes, two countries are currently doing the exact opposite. Since 2005, Iran has violated five Security Council resolutions. Since 2005, Secretary-General, the international community has called on Iran to engage in dialogue. An offer of dialogue was made in 2005, an offer of dialogue was made in 2006, an offer of dialogue was made in 2007, an offer of dialogue was made in 2008, and another one was made in 2009. President Obama, I support the Americans’ outstretched hand. But what did the international community gain from these offers of dialogue? Nothing. More enriched uranium, more centrifuges, and on top of that, a statement by Iranian leaders proposing to wipe a UN member State off the map.

It seems Mr. Obama’s job performance is upsetting a lot of people and his approval ratings are dropping on a global scale. So much for utopia.

On a sidenote, why isn’t the American media covering Mr. Sarkozy’s remarks?

Thought #2

Political kryptonite. ACORN. Same thing.

Apparently the U.S. House of Representatives has voted to cut all funding from ACORN, again. In passing the continuing resolution to keep the government funded, the House Democrats added a provision prohibiting ACORN from receiving funding from any current measure or any prior legislation.

So, how many politicians want ACORN shut down before the truth is revealed about their association with the organization? Seriously, I’ve never seen them move so quick on a plan of action in my life. There must be some reason they are acting so quickly.

Two thoughts are better than none, right? This coming week looks busy, with projects and with writing about legislation on the Hill. Stay tuned…

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Sep

24

The Dangers Of Bench Legislation

Category: Our Nation, Society | Comments Off | 259 words | Print

One of my biggest pet peeves is when judges attempt to legislate from the bench. Our system of government is set up with checks and balances for a reason, and some people feel that their “cause” is more important than following the normal course of events as our founding fathers defined them.

With this in mind, it comes as no surprise that some organizations are trying to persuade the Supreme Court to apply the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of the Child as a matter of binding ‘customary international law’, even though the United States has not ratified the CRC.

Amnesty International believes that international law, rather than American law, should be used to make this decision. We have been warning people for some time that this theory could be used to force this treaty upon an unwilling American public. Americans want to retain family-based decision-making and American-made law. The UN Convention Rights of the Child would undermine both of these principles,” constitutional lawyer Michael Farris said.

If the Supreme Court rules that the international laws defined in the CRC are binding on the American people, a vast majority of family laws from virtually every state could be impacted and no longer applicable.

No international law should supersede an American law within the borders of our sovereign nation and our nation’s laws should originate in an American legislative body not from the hammering of a gavel from the bench.

You can read about these cases which could have a long-lasting impact on families across America, at parentalrights.org.

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Sep

12

Intermission: How Do You Measure Health Care?

Category: Opinions, Society | 1 Comment | 2,768 words | Print

Before I continue addressing the President’s speech, let me address a couple comments I received from a friend in Canada regarding the previous post. Bear with me while I respond to his question and divulge a few personal accounts. I will continue with the speech in tomorrow’s post.

My friend states,

You said Obama “claimed that the United States is the only democracy, the only wealthy nation that allows health related hardship for millions of it’s people, while the people of many other democracies and wealthy nations are suffering far more than we are.”

Well, we’re not. Compare Canadian life expectancy, infant mortality, cost of health care per person, and universality of access to yours.

and in a follow up comment he adds,

Based on the most recent stats available from the WHO, here’s how the “far better” US system stacks up to the Canadian system.

Life Expectancy: 81 years in Canada, 78 years in the US.

Population with access to treated drinking water: 100% in Canada, 99% in the US.

Deaths/1000 among children under 5: 6 in Canada, 8 in the US.

Adult Mortality rate (probability of dying between 15 to 60 years per 1000 population): 72 per thousand in Canada, 109 per thousand in the US.

Total expenditure on health as percentage of gross domestic product: 10% in Canada, 15.3% in the US.

Per Capita expenditures on Health in US$: $3912 in Canada, $6714 in Canada.

Hospital beds per 10,000 population: 34 in Canada, 32 in the US.

So…by what measure do you figure your system is better than ours? Just curious.

Those statistics from the World Health Organization sure look good. Life expectancy, infant mortality, cost of health care per person, and universality of access all appear to be much better than ours here in the United States, but let’s look at the whole picture, not just general statistics, or one political view.

I am sure the WHO statistics are true, I am not going to try and disprove them, as that would be ridiculous. But let’s keep in mind that there is a whole lot more to health care than general statistics and overall numbers. What looks good on paper can be very deceiving, and misleading.

Does it matter if Canadians live three years longer than Americans if their quality of health care (and quality of life) are not any better than ours here in America? I would certainly give up three years of my life if it meant having a higher quality of life in the years that I did have remaining.

Believe it or not I have a lot of experience with the Canadian health care system. My mother is a naturalized American who came to the United States from Canada when she was two years old. Her sister, mother, father, uncle, aunts, grandmothers and grandfathers were all born in Canada. I have seen what the Canadian health care system has done to my relatives.

In 1982 I was living in Hawaii with my grandmother while attending college. I met my great-uncle Bob and his wife Isabel for the first time. My uncle Bob and I bonded immediately. He understood the angst of a 17 year old kid living in a strange place (I had never lived outside my small home town before I left for college). He spent time telling me all about his life and I shared my life with him.

One day, while we were walking outside he started rubbing the side of his face. He seemed to be applying a lot of pressure and looked uncomfortable. I asked him if something was wrong and he told me how his face, just one side, would tingle and go numb for several minutes at a time. I asked him what his doctor said, to which he replied, “I’ve only been able to see one doctor and that was months ago”. His doctor thought it might be some sort of “nerve disorder” but they could not be sure until they ran some tests and those tests were not scheduled until they returned to Canada. It was the earliest he could be seen at the time.

He experienced those episodes several times during his vacation, and insisted his doctor would “take care of it” when he got home. When he and Isabel boarded the plane to return to Canada, it was the last time I would see him in person. We exchanged letters for several months, and I spoke to him on the phone a few times.

The last time I heard from him, he had still not seen a doctor. His “elective” appointment for “facial tingles” was delayed. Time and time again. Then, in December of 1983, he died. He suffered a massive heart attack, was rushed to the hospital, and it was discovered that the “nerve disorder” was simply a symptom of a much more serious heart problem.

This wasn’t an issue of a misdiagnosis, this wasn’t an issue of poor judgement in the prescription of medication. This was a result of the lack of proper health care. Whatever the reason, whether it was an effort to save money (rationing) or just a coincidence that he died from the very thing he was seeking medical treatment for, we’ll never know, will we? I don’t have statistics from the WHO or any other organization on the number of untreated cases, the quality of care, or the long term prognosis for people like my uncle Bob. He was my uncle, not a statistic.

Many years later, while living back in Las Vegas, my aunt Isabel came to visit. While she was visiting, she felt weak and wanted to go to the hospital. It was quickly determined that she had suffered from a stroke, and received health care at one of Las Vegas’ premiere hospitals. When she was discharged, many weeks later, her American doctor advised her what needed to be done for follow up care, and she went home to Canada.

Aunt Isabel is still living in British Columbia, but her quality of life has not been good for a very long time. Shortly after returning to Canada she suffered another stroke. Over the years she suffered even more “mini strokes”, and just a couple years ago, she suffered another big one. I don’t talk to her, or my cousin, as much as I should, but I know she hasn’t been to see a doctor nearly as much as she should have.

The question is, would she have suffered so many strokes if she lived here in the United States? Who knows. We have no way of knowing that, but there is one thing I do know. She would have seen her doctor a heck of a lot more living here than she has in Canada. Do I have statistics to back this up? Nope. All I have is her personal account of what she’s endured under the Canadian health care system.

Because I know my friend, I know these personal accounts will mean nothing in the overall argument about health care (as far as he’s concerned), so now I will point out a few facts and statistics, from other sources, which may clarify why I figure that our system is better than that in Canada.

According to the National Center For Policy Analysis,

  • Americans have lower cancer mortality rates than Canadians.

    • Breast cancer mortality is 9 percent higher, prostate cancer is 184 percent higher and colon cancer mortality among men is about 10 percent higher than in the United States.
  • Americans have better access to preventive cancer screening than Canadians.
    • Take the proportion of the appropriate-age population groups who have received recommended tests for breast, cervical, prostate and colon cancer:

      • Nine of 10 middle-aged American women (89 percent) have had a mammogram, compared to less than three-fourths of Canadians (72 percent).
      • Nearly all American women (96 percent) have had a pap smear, compared to less than 90 percent of Canadians.
      • More than half of American men (54 percent) have had a PSA test, compared to less than 1 in 6 Canadians (16 percent).
      • Nearly one-third of Americans (30 percent) have had a colonoscopy, compared with less than 1 in 20 Canadians (5 percent).
  • Lower income Americans are in better health than comparable Canadians.
    • Twice as many American seniors with below-median incomes self-report “excellent” health compared to Canadian seniors (11.7 percent versus 5.8 percent). Conversely, white Canadian young adults with below-median incomes are 20 percent more likely than lower income Americans to describe their health as “fair or poor.”
  • Americans spend less time waiting for care than patients in Canada and the U.K.
    • Canadian and British patients wait about twice as long – sometimes more than a year – to see a specialist, to have elective surgery like hip replacements or to get radiation treatment for cancer. All told, 827,429 people are waiting for some type of procedure in Canada. In England, nearly 1.8 million people are waiting for a hospital admission or outpatient treatment.
  • People in countries with more government control of health care are highly dissatisfied and believe reform is needed.
    • More than 70 percent of German, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand and British adults say their health system needs either “fundamental change” or “complete rebuilding.”
  • Americans are more satisfied with the care they receive than Canadians.
    • When asked about their own health care instead of the “health care system,” more than half of Americans (51.3 percent) are very satisfied with their health care services, compared to only 41.5 percent of Canadians; a lower proportion of Americans are dissatisfied (6.8 percent) than Canadians (8.5 percent).
  • Americans have much better access to important new technologies like medical imaging than patients in Canada or the U.K.
    • Maligned as a waste by economists and policymakers naïve to actual medical practice, an overwhelming majority of leading American physicians identified computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as the most important medical innovations for improving patient care during the previous decade. The United States has 34 CT scanners per million Americans, compared to 12 in Canada and eight in Britain. The United States has nearly 27 MRI machines per million compared to about 6 per million in Canada and Britain.
  • Americans are responsible for the vast majority of all health care innovations.
    • The top five U.S. hospitals conduct more clinical trials than all the hospitals in any other single developed country. Since the mid-1970s, the Nobel Prize in medicine or physiology has gone to American residents more often than recipients from all other countries combined. In only five of the past 34 years did a scientist living in America not win or share in the prize. Most important recent medical innovations were developed in the United States.

All of these statistics, or facts, come from sources such as the National Program of Cancer Registries, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control; the Canadian Cancer Society/National Cancer Institute of Canada, the Fraser Institute, the England Department of Health, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Nobel Prize Internet Archive, and various media reports.

These are not conservative “talking points”. These are simply additional statistics to consider with the numbers presented from the World Health Organization. If we’re going to look at whose health care system is better, we should look at the entire picture, not just pieces we choose to put under the magnifying glass.

With that in mind, make sure you read The Top Ten Things People Believe About Canadian Health Care, But Shouldn’t from The Heritage Foundation.

A 2005 survey by the College of Family Physicians of Canada, the Canadian Medical Association, and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada reported that more than 4 million Canadians do not have access to a family doctor. 12% of the Canadian population did not have access to a family doctor in 2005.

When it comes to health insurance in America, President Obama has made the claim that 47 million Americans “cannot get coverage”. During his speech to the Joint Session of Congress that number changed to 30 million. The White House later released a statement that the 30 million number does not include illegal immigrants. Using that number, the number of Americans who “cannot get coverage” is 9.86%. (We know from the second post in this series that the true number is closer to 14 million or 4.6%).

That same Canadian survey also states that more than 3,800 doctors plan to retire in the next two years and that 60% of family physicians are already limiting or refusing new patients.

Oh, and Americans are not the only ones talking about reforming their system of health care.

In an article dated August 16, 2009, the incoming president of the Canadian Medical Association said the country’s health-care system is sick and doctors need to develop a plan to cure it.

Dr. Anne Doig says patients are getting less than optimal care and she adds that physicians from across the country – who will gather in Saskatoon on Sunday for their annual meeting – recognize that changes must be made.

“We all agree that the system is imploding, we all agree that things are more precarious than perhaps Canadians realize,” Doing said in an interview with The Canadian Press.

the article continues,

Doig says there are some “very good things” about Canada’s health-care system, but she points out that many people have stories about times when things didn’t go well for them or their family.

“(Canadians) have to understand that the system that we have right now – if it keeps on going without change – is not sustainable,” said Doig.

Canada’s own medical community knows that their existing system is not sustainable, so why should we, here in America, be so quick to rush into a single payer system that has proven to reduce the quality of health care and break the bank in country after country, after country?

When it comes to health care and treatment, there are horror stories from both sides of the border, but when you hear those stories you never hear of Americans seeking treatment in Canada for specialized procedures that are not available here.

In many discussions and debate about health care I keep hearing that I need to remove my “partisan blinders”. What part of wanting the best health care choices for Americans is being partisan? I don’t support the current health care bill introduced in the House. I don’t support anything similar to that bill. I agree whole-heartedly that we need health care reform in America, I just don’t think we need to totally overhaul the entire system to make sure that an additional 4.6% of the population has access to health care.

Even CNN, one of the most liberal news outlets in America, reports some of the horror stories from the Canadian health care system. I don’t need CNN, FOXNews, or any other media outlet to remind me of the horrors of the Canadian health care system.

Whether I consider “elective” surgeries like knee replacement surgery, life expectancy, cancer survival rates, mortality rates, or any other statistic touted in this post or anywhere else, I still feel that Americans have better quality health care.

Knee replacement surgery might be “elective” but waiting for that replacement can be very painful and no one should have to wait four months or more for that surgery. People suffering from “facial tingles” should not wait more than six months, and die, before they are seen to have tests administered. What good is a longer life expectancy if you are in pain or miserable while you are waiting for treatment?

I’d much rather choose the health care system that is capable of treating the “big stuff” like cancer if it comes along, rather than the one that puts me on a waiting list for “elective” surgeries that could ease my pain, limits access to radiation services to treat my cancer, and treats me as a number in the system while touting “universal coverage for all”.

So, in conclusion, I hope that answers the question, “by what measure do you figure your system is better than ours?” We can argue points back and forth until we are blue in the face and it won’t change the fact that both systems, American and Canadian alike, need serious work.

Now, if you pardon me, I have to get back to analyzing President Obama’s speech to the Joint Session of Congress.

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Sep

8

Raising Cain In Douglas County

Category: Society | 4 Comments | 1,578 words | Print

Tea Party #8Today was a day I will never forget. I’ve participated in political rallies in my time, but none of them were as energized or as honest as this one. If you haven’t attended a TEA Party, or you avoided them because of what you hear on the news, you have truly been missing out.

I didn’t know what to expect when I got there, but having been to the Clinton Nature Preserve in the past, at least I knew where I was going. As I turned off the interstate onto Post Road, there was no traffic. I thought it was a bit odd, but then I figured because it was Labor Day there might not be a high turnout. As I turned onto Ephesus Church Road there still wasn’t any traffic.

I double checked the date on my iPhone to make sure I was in the right place on the right day (at the right time). I turned into the Clinton Nature Preserve and I found the traffic. Lots of it. There were people everywhere. I guess I just hit a lull in the traffic that was still on the road, because there were already hundreds of people milling about.

If you’ve ever been to the Preserve you know they have several small meadows on the right hand side of the main road, and every one of those meadows was filled with cars before the event began. Organizers estimate 1,000 people showed up based on the number of people who registered when they walked into the event. I know for a fact that for every person who registered at least two people walked right by the registration table. I watched at least two dozen people walk by while I was registering.

Tea Party #1As I made my way down to toward the stage, I was stunned by the number of people I saw. The turnout was much greater than I thought it would be on a holiday, but then, like I said before I wasn’t really sure what to expect when I got there.

I walked around taking candid shots of the crowd as I looked for a place to “set up camp”. I didn’t bring a lawn chair or a blanket (as was recommended) because I figured I would be standing to take photos most of the time anyway. Okay, I admit, I was lazy. I didn’t want to carry a chair or blanket with me while I milled about in the crowd.

I found an excellent vantage point right up against a tree. I could lean against the tree for support, and there was a stump to the side of the tree I could stand on to get the height I needed to get clear shots over the top of people’s heads.

Tea Party #6The Christian Community Orchestra was playing music as participants filled into the park.

After the Pledge of Allegiance, the Orchestra played the National Anthem, and there were two elderly gentleman to my right side who were singing every word of the anthem and they sounded awesome.

I have never heard the National Anthem sung so beautifully. My first instinct was to grab the Kodak Zi6 for video, but thought better of the idea out of respect for the song, and the gentlemen who were proudly singing it.

Maureen Miller, the President of the Douglas County Republican Women’s Club, welcomed everyone to the TEA Party and Joel Aaron served as Master of Ceremonies.

Tea Party #19The first speaker of the evening was Retired Lt. Col. Beth Martinez who spoke about health care reform. While the current health care reform bill was a topic of discussion it is not solely the reason for the TEA Party movement.

The TEA parties are held to protect our country and the Constitution upon which it was founded. They’re about educating people about what’s going on in Washington, then standing up for what’s right. Protecting our freedoms and stopping big government in its tracks.

Brian Ott took some time out of his day to talk to the crowd about our Second Amendment Rights and then Bert Blood, a local small business owner, took the stage to talk about government, taxes, and small business.

Tea Party #24With the exception of Herman Cain, Bert was my favorite speaker of the day. He greeted us all by saying, “Good Evening all of you Right Wing Domestic Terrorists”. I saw Bert as I was pulling into the parking lot, as he drove up in his Smart car. Those things are small, and Bert is not a small guy.

After listening to him speak tonight, I think he’s the perfect candidate for “Small Business Czar”, but then again I don’t think he’s radical enough to serve President Obama. He was just an ordinary citizen talking about the things that matter to me, another ordinary citizen.

Tea Party #27It wasn’t long before Herman Cain took the stage and the crowd went wild. He spoke about making the world a better place for others and the problems with the current administration. He reflected on issues important to him (and all of us) and what we could do as individuals, and as a group, to make our voices heard.

The Douglas County TEA Party was one of the most inspiring events I have attended in my lifetime. There was no shouting (well, other than by the speakers trying to make up for the weak public address system), there was no yelling, and there was no doubt that the TEA Party movement is growing.

I took over 200 photos at the park, but uploaded the best 33 photos to my Flickr account. You can see them all there in the Douglas County TEA Party set. Maureen Miller and all of the organizers of the event did an outstanding job and should be commended for the work they put into organizing it.

I met several different people at the event and a few of them knew who I was once I mentioned this blog. That was more stunning than seeing the number of people who showed up for some afternoon TEA. I personally think there were closer to 1,500 people at the park because it took well over 35 minutes just to get out of the parking lot.

When I got home I set the DVR to record FOX5 News because I saw them interviewing people at the event. I was quite disappointed when I saw their coverage of the event. The following is the video that appeared during the 10pm broadcast.

Click here To Watch Video

Apparently, members of the Douglas County Democratic Party aren’t the only ones filled with “misconfusion” as their Chairman James Quarterman calls it.

FOX5 took the time to point out that TEA Party participants were protesting the health care bill and “other issues” and that speakers focused on individual freedoms and personal responsibility, but completely missed the mark when they interviewed James Quarterman but not one single speaker from the TEA Party.

Sure, they interviewed a couple of the participants sitting in the crowd, but they didn’t take the time to even get a sound bite from Herman Cain (who just happens to carry a lot more credibility than Mr. Misconfusion). To make matters worse, the reporter appears to question whether the “strong message” sent by the protesters would “translate” when Congress takes up the health care debate again.

For the record, the TEA Party was about personal freedoms, the Constitution of the United States, limited government, and holding politicians accountable for their actions. Sure, the current health care reform bill was a topic of discussion, but the media, especially FOX5 in this case, is trying to deflect attention from the TEA Party movement by shifting focus toward the health care reform debate.

While I was visiting the FOX5 website, I noticed a second video on their site. Take a look.

Click here To Watch Video

In the first video, it was a TEA Party, in this video it’s a “so-called” TEA Party.

In the first video, the people on stage were “speakers”, in this video they are now “conservative activists”.

In the first video there was one Democrat visible at the event. In this video, there was also one Democrat visible, but this time “a handful of Democrats” said health care reform is needed now. Where were the others and why did they edit out Mr. Quarterman’s “misconfusion” line?

In the first video, Debbie Clark is a retired nurse who came to the event with friends from church, while in this video she’s just a retired nurse who disagrees. I guess, according to FOX5, church doesn’t matter either.

It’s no wonder that some people across the United States have an unfavorable view of the TEA parties. It’s no wonder people get the wrong ideas.

It’s not that the mainstream media isn’t covering the events, it’s the fact they avoid the real story behind the TEA parties and then they edit their coverage to sanitize it for public consumption.

I had a great time today and most of my friends (liberals and conservatives alike) would have understood the message delivered at the Douglas County TEA Party. Shame on you FOX5. Maybe next time you can stay in the studio, save gas, and write your own story. After watching these two videos I’m convinced you’re not going to report the real facts correctly anyway.

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