Give Peace a Chance

Listen to the soft echos of your childhood. The gentle laughter and joy as you prepare for Halloween. Your early morning wonder at discovering the Christmas tree - Santa Claus. Summers at the beach, camping with your family. Your hopes and dreams and loves. Your joy. Now know that this is your childhood, and the childhood of children that lived in Soviet Russia.

When I was a child I was taught by teachers, parents and my society to fear Russia. I was taught to hide under desks in the face of Russia's great dark evil. I was taught to hate Russia and Russians. I was not taught that the children of Russia were exactly as I was -  to include Halloween and yes, even Santa Claus. I was not taught of their humanness. Had I been - had we all been - it would have changed everything.

Today it is Muslims. Why do we hear so precious little of their humanness?

Ignorance, lies, deceit - the tools of hate and fear. I am ever so amazed as to how little truth it takes to dissolve it all. And to realize we are all one family on a very small, very fragile planet, indeed.

One World

Multinational corporations have but one main purpose - to make profit for their shareholders.
Patriotism, loyalty to the nation of their historical beginnings, encouraged, but only so far as it enhances, or at least does not interfere with, profit.

Worldwide then they will seek the cheapest labor pool with the fewest labor laws, the least environmental restraints, the cheapest raw materials, the cheapest energy, on and on.

In the long term then we have no choice but to raise the standard of living and quality of the workplace for everyone, everywhere.

We have no choice but to work to increase environmental awareness and protection, and develop sustainable clean cheap energy, worldwide.

If you're going to ignore working conditions in Indonesia - then you can expect to lose your job to corporate outsourcing to Indonesia.

If you're going to ignore massive expansion of coal burning as a source of cheap energy in China then be prepared to move there - because that's where your job is going. And be prepared to suffer the environmental consequences you will experience in your backyard.

It is indeed a small world, corporations have recognized this for years and long ago taken up a worldview in search of profit.

It's time for us all to adopt a worldview as well - for as never before has the welfare of each of us depends on the good of all, everywhere.

The ICU Manifesto

If critical illness itself is, in many instances, an intrinsically iatrogenic disorder shaped and defined by the same interventions used to sustain life, then we should always focus not on conquering disease but instead on promoting health.

Gone Golfing

We recently had an electrician come in and wire 8 new ceiling lights for us, with dimmers, place three cable TV outlets, and run some outdoor speaker wires.

Took him about 8 hours. $2200
That's about $180/hour after parts and overhead.
The average electrician makes anywhere from $70-140/hour.
Contrast that to an average intensive care nurse who after 10 years makes about $40/hour.
I personally make, as an intensive care physician, about $100/hour.
This after four years of college, four years of medical school, three years of in hospital training as a resident, two additional years to train to become an ICU specialist, and a $200,000 educational debt at the end to pay off.
I don't begrudge anyone their income.  I only mention electricians as just one example. Good for them.
But this perception that nurses and doctors and teachers are rolling in the cash with Wednesdays and/or summers off to frolic is just nonsense.

Few of us are looking for a raise - but a little appreciation after spending some time getting your facts straight would be nice.
In the meantime I'm left wondering what a part time career as an electrician would look like.

Cut, Cap, and Balance

In 2002 in response to warnings that growing budget deficits posed a threat to the economy then Vice President Dick Cheney said "...Reagan proved deficits don't matter."
The Republicans and their policies put us into this recession and set the stage for our record deficits. No doubt.
They now want to use the results of their own handiwork - the deficits - as an excuse to dismantle the new deal and destroy middle class America while further enriching the ultra-wealthy. They are ever willing to sacrifice infrastructure, education, health care for the average person, and social security while maintaining tax cuts and tax loopholes for the most wealthy - they after all, have their gated communities, their private schools, their corporate jets to pay for - and to heck with the rest of us.
They are ever willing and able to destroy this country in their greed.
They are flagged draped traitors. Do not be fooled. They will destroy this country, end the American dream, disfranchise the poor and middle class and suck us all dry in the process.
They will cut your standard of living, cap any chance of you getting ahead and tip the balance further towards the most wealthy amoung us.
Don't let them.

Persiennes

If it weren't for Venetian blinds it would be curtains for us all.

Sorry

Of Guns, Bullets, and Death

Ever wondered how defense contractors live? Here's just one example of where our 1 trillion dollars a year goes. The CEO of an average defense contracting company lives here in La Jolla.