If President Obama gets his way, nationalized health care will be rammed down the throats of the American people. Again today the President said, “If you like your doctor, if you like your health plan, you can keep them and the only difference is that you will pay less for that coverage.” I am not going to accuse the President of being a liar, but I will say that his statement seems nonsensical. Currently I pay $25 to see a doctor, $15 for my prescriptions and $500 if I am hospitalized. My employer pays my premiums and my deductible is $2,500; $1,000 of which my employer will reimburse. Also, my company employs less than twenty-five people. I am in good health and have not seen a doctor or taken any medications in the last eighteen months. In other words, for the last year and a half I have been covered by health care but I have paid exactly ZERO.
Now obviously, just because I haven’t paid anything doesn’t mean that nothing has been paid. My health insurance, like my vacation, is a benefit of my employment. Under the President’s plan it would no longer make sense for my employer to continue providing that benefit. So, under the President’s plan the cost of what I receive now would be much higher, not lower as the President stated. Further, the care I receive would not be between my doctor and I as it is now. National health care is rationed health care.
Peter Singer wrote an article that appeared in the NY Times today titled Why We Must Ration Health Care. Singer is simply stating a fact that everyone agrees on but our President and Congressman won’t admit to because the Devil is in the details and they don’t want anyone to know what those details are until national health care has been passed. Singer on the other hand, is neither a politician nor known for being ’politically correct.’ (Singer believes that sex with animals is okayas long as both parties enjoy it.) Singer has long advocated that some humans; the unborn, newly born, disabled, elderly, are worth less than others and therefore, it is only logical that health care be rationed according to a person’s worth to society as a whole. Looking at health care dispassionately, if society is paying for care then society should get as much ‘bang for its buck’ as possible.
The logic under this type of health plan is that treating a disabled child deprives society of resources that could be spent in a more productive manner. Accordingly, these types of decisions can be difficult for an individual or family to make, therefore, the decision should be made by a government body. The problem with this is that Americans believe in individuality, freedom and self-determination. We feel very passionately about our loved ones and do not want their fate to rest in the hands of a dispassionate government body. Singer and others may argue that our current system is inefficient and illogical but isn’t it also illogical that the same people who absolutely support a woman’s right to choose abortion would deny a woman has the right to have her disabled child receive medical treatment?
Ask yourself, if this plan is so good and so necessary, why is Congress exempting themselves from participating in it? It is because they know that they and their loved ones are receiving far better care now than they would under a public plan. If it is not good enough for them, it is not good enough for us either.
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Singer. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Singer. Sort by date Show all posts
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
"Doctor Death" Dislikes Being Quoted
Via Memeorandum:
Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, brother of Rahm Emanuel and currently acting as Special Advisor for Health Policy, is upset that is own extensive writings as a medical ethicist are being cast in a negative light. Emanuel is claiming that his writings are being intentionally misconstrued. You judge:
Ezekiel Emanuel wrote an article for The Hastings Center Report in 1996, in which he suggested that public deliberative forums should decide which health services should be socially guaranteed, and that those services "that ensure healthy future generations, ensure development of practical reasoning skills, and ensure full and active participation by citizens in public deliberations" might be considered by this deliberative body as "basic", while "services provided to individuals who are irreversibly prevented from being or becoming participating citizens are not basic and should not be guaranteed".
Then there is this:
May 31, 2008 (LPAC)—Ezekiel Emanuel, MD, called for a reinterpretation of the physician's Hippocratic Oath to take account of "costs" and "effect on others" (like HMOs), in an article in JAMA of June 18, 2008. The brother of Obama's chief of staff, Ezekiel Emanuel is a top designer of Obama's Hitlerian medical-care "reform," as health-care advisor to Peter Orszag's OMB and a member of the Federal Council on Comparative Effectiveness research. He wrote:
"At least 7 factors drive overuse [of medical care], 4 related to physicians and 3 related to patients. First, there is the matter of physician culture. Medical school education and postgraduate training emphasize thoroughness. When evaluating a patient, students, interns, and residents are trained to identify and praised for and graded on enumerating all possible diagnoses and tests that would confirm or exclude them. The thought is that the more thorough the evaluation, the more intelligent the student or house officer. Trainees who ignore the improbable 'zebra' diagnoses are not deemed insightful. In medical training, meticulousness, not effectiveness, is rewarded.
"This mentality carries over into practice. Peer recognition goes to the most thorough and aggressive physicians. The prudent physician is not deemed particularly competent, but rather inadequate. This culture is further reinforced by A UNIQUE UNDERSTANDING OF PROFESSIONAL OBLIGATIONS, SPECIFICALLY, THE HIPPOCRATIC OATH'S ADMONITION TO 'USE MY POWER TO HELP THE SICK TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY AND JUDGMENT' AS AN IMPERATIVE TO DO EVERYTHING FOR THE PATIENT REGARDLESS OF COST OR EFFECT ON OTHERS."
And there is the now infamous"Principles for allocation of scarce medical interventions" in the journal The Lancet which attempts to assign "value" to patients based on their life stage.
As repugnant as I find Dr. Peter Singer, I give him credit for standing by his body of work. Emanuel feigning "hurt feelings" that his work is misunderstood smacks of incredulous, self-serving political theater. Like Singer, he said it, he should stand by it.
Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, brother of Rahm Emanuel and currently acting as Special Advisor for Health Policy, is upset that is own extensive writings as a medical ethicist are being cast in a negative light. Emanuel is claiming that his writings are being intentionally misconstrued. You judge:
Ezekiel Emanuel wrote an article for The Hastings Center Report in 1996, in which he suggested that public deliberative forums should decide which health services should be socially guaranteed, and that those services "that ensure healthy future generations, ensure development of practical reasoning skills, and ensure full and active participation by citizens in public deliberations" might be considered by this deliberative body as "basic", while "services provided to individuals who are irreversibly prevented from being or becoming participating citizens are not basic and should not be guaranteed".
Then there is this:
May 31, 2008 (LPAC)—Ezekiel Emanuel, MD, called for a reinterpretation of the physician's Hippocratic Oath to take account of "costs" and "effect on others" (like HMOs), in an article in JAMA of June 18, 2008. The brother of Obama's chief of staff, Ezekiel Emanuel is a top designer of Obama's Hitlerian medical-care "reform," as health-care advisor to Peter Orszag's OMB and a member of the Federal Council on Comparative Effectiveness research. He wrote:
"At least 7 factors drive overuse [of medical care], 4 related to physicians and 3 related to patients. First, there is the matter of physician culture. Medical school education and postgraduate training emphasize thoroughness. When evaluating a patient, students, interns, and residents are trained to identify and praised for and graded on enumerating all possible diagnoses and tests that would confirm or exclude them. The thought is that the more thorough the evaluation, the more intelligent the student or house officer. Trainees who ignore the improbable 'zebra' diagnoses are not deemed insightful. In medical training, meticulousness, not effectiveness, is rewarded.
"This mentality carries over into practice. Peer recognition goes to the most thorough and aggressive physicians. The prudent physician is not deemed particularly competent, but rather inadequate. This culture is further reinforced by A UNIQUE UNDERSTANDING OF PROFESSIONAL OBLIGATIONS, SPECIFICALLY, THE HIPPOCRATIC OATH'S ADMONITION TO 'USE MY POWER TO HELP THE SICK TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY AND JUDGMENT' AS AN IMPERATIVE TO DO EVERYTHING FOR THE PATIENT REGARDLESS OF COST OR EFFECT ON OTHERS."
And there is the now infamous"Principles for allocation of scarce medical interventions" in the journal The Lancet which attempts to assign "value" to patients based on their life stage.
As repugnant as I find Dr. Peter Singer, I give him credit for standing by his body of work. Emanuel feigning "hurt feelings" that his work is misunderstood smacks of incredulous, self-serving political theater. Like Singer, he said it, he should stand by it.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Mamas, Don't Let Your Daughters Grow Up to Use Botox
What is this poor child thinking?
MANILA, Philippines (AP) - Filipino teenage singer Charice Pempengco says she prepared for her debut on the hit TV show "Glee" by getting Botox and an anti-aging procedure "to look fresh on camera."Does she not know that by starting with the botox at this age that in a few years she is going to look like this:
The 18-year-old Charice, whose singing career rocketed after appearing on Ellen DeGeneres' and Oprah Winfrey's talk shows, underwent a 30-minute Thermage skin-tightening procedure and Botox to make her "naturally round face" more narrow, celebrity cosmetic surgeon Vicki Belo told ABS-CBN television.
Charice, in the same interview, said last week's face makeover was part of her big preparations for her appearance on the hit show's second season. She starts filming at the end of this month.
"All people will be anticipating how will Charice look? Is she good enough to pit against Rachel Berry? So of course there is tremendous pressure," Charice said.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Section 1233 And The Dem's True Intentions
On Sunday I gave the following scenario and asked if anyone believes that under ObamaCare the man in the scenario, my father, would receive the same excellent medical care that he currently enjoys:
White male, 81 years old. He has suffered a series of strokes that has left him paralyzed on the right side of his body. His left knee has been replaced; he has a pace-maker and cancer. His every need has been covered under his private insurance.
Erik Erickson, writing at RedState:
Let’s back up for a minute. I noted some time ago Jay Rockefeller went on record to say that at some point the government has to decide whether or not you are allowed to receive any more medical benefits if the cost outweighs the potential benefits.
As Mickey Kaus has noted, both Ezra Klein and Matt Yglesias are on record agreeing. Kaus writes:
Democratic blogger Ezra Klein appears to be positioning Dem health care reforms as a way to cut costs, on the grounds that a reformed system will be able to make “hard choices” and “rational” coverage decisions, by which Klein seems to mean “not providing” treatments that are unproven or too expensive–when “a person’s life, or health, is not worth the price.” Matthew Yglesias’ recent post seems to be saying the same thing, though clarity isn’t its strong suit.
Erickson notes, as I did in Is The President Telling Us Everything We Need To Know About National Health Care? that Peter Singer, who Erickson correctly labels as favoring post-birth abortion, wrote a lengthy NT Times article arguing in favor of rationing care and euthanizing our elderly.
Look to H.R. 3200, the Democrat’s health care bill itself, and particularly Section 1233 and the Administration’s intent becomes crystal clear. Erickson:
The section, titled “Advanced Care Planning Consultation” requires senior citizens to meet at least every 5 years with a doctor or nurse practitioner to discuss dying with dignity.
The section requires that they talk to their doctor, not a lawyer, about living wills, durable healthcare powers of attorney, hospice, etc. Given the progressive intelligentsia already being on the record in favor of euthanizing the elderly, it is no small leap to see where the Democrats are headed with this.
Legally forcing senior citizens to have “death with dignity schedules every few years is just another way to say the government wants to make sure seniors know it is time to commit suicide to save the system money.
And saving any medical system through encouraged deaths of the elderly or unborn is not a medical system worth having. The Hippocratic Oath requires doctors to “do no harm.” That’s meant toward the patient, not the costs to the government.
In the early 90’s there was a television show called “Dinosaurs”. On the show, elderly were expected to throw themselves off a cliff once they were no longer ‘productive’. Perhaps that was the Democrat’s inspiration for ObamaCare.
White male, 81 years old. He has suffered a series of strokes that has left him paralyzed on the right side of his body. His left knee has been replaced; he has a pace-maker and cancer. His every need has been covered under his private insurance.
Erik Erickson, writing at RedState:
Let’s back up for a minute. I noted some time ago Jay Rockefeller went on record to say that at some point the government has to decide whether or not you are allowed to receive any more medical benefits if the cost outweighs the potential benefits.
As Mickey Kaus has noted, both Ezra Klein and Matt Yglesias are on record agreeing. Kaus writes:
Democratic blogger Ezra Klein appears to be positioning Dem health care reforms as a way to cut costs, on the grounds that a reformed system will be able to make “hard choices” and “rational” coverage decisions, by which Klein seems to mean “not providing” treatments that are unproven or too expensive–when “a person’s life, or health, is not worth the price.” Matthew Yglesias’ recent post seems to be saying the same thing, though clarity isn’t its strong suit.
Erickson notes, as I did in Is The President Telling Us Everything We Need To Know About National Health Care? that Peter Singer, who Erickson correctly labels as favoring post-birth abortion, wrote a lengthy NT Times article arguing in favor of rationing care and euthanizing our elderly.
Look to H.R. 3200, the Democrat’s health care bill itself, and particularly Section 1233 and the Administration’s intent becomes crystal clear. Erickson:
The section, titled “Advanced Care Planning Consultation” requires senior citizens to meet at least every 5 years with a doctor or nurse practitioner to discuss dying with dignity.
The section requires that they talk to their doctor, not a lawyer, about living wills, durable healthcare powers of attorney, hospice, etc. Given the progressive intelligentsia already being on the record in favor of euthanizing the elderly, it is no small leap to see where the Democrats are headed with this.
Legally forcing senior citizens to have “death with dignity schedules every few years is just another way to say the government wants to make sure seniors know it is time to commit suicide to save the system money.
And saving any medical system through encouraged deaths of the elderly or unborn is not a medical system worth having. The Hippocratic Oath requires doctors to “do no harm.” That’s meant toward the patient, not the costs to the government.
In the early 90’s there was a television show called “Dinosaurs”. On the show, elderly were expected to throw themselves off a cliff once they were no longer ‘productive’. Perhaps that was the Democrat’s inspiration for ObamaCare.
H/T The Daley Gator
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Was Sarah Palin Wrong About "Death Panels"?
Via Legal Insurrection:
Sarah Palin kicked up a fire storm when she stated that ObamaCare would result in "Death Panels." Palin took aim at Dr. Ezekial Emanual, brother of Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, and a top advisor to Obama on health care. Palin wrote on her Facebook page:
The Democrats promise that a government health care system will reduce the cost of health care, but as the economist Thomas Sowell has pointed out, government health care will not reduce the cost; it will simply refuse to pay the cost. And who will suffer the most when they ration care? The sick, the elderly, and the disabled, of course. The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama’s “death panel” so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their “level of productivity in society,” whether they are worthy of health care. Such a system is downright evil.
Those criticizing Palin are ignoring Emanuel's own words. Prof. Jacobson writes:
While Emanuel does not use the term "death panel," Palin put that term in quotation marks to signify the concept of medical decisions based on the perceived societal worth of an individual, not literally a "death panel." And in so doing, Palin was true to Dr. Emanuel's concept of a system which
considers prognosis, since its aim is to achieve complete lives. A young person witha poor prognosis has had a few life-years but lacks the potential to live a complete life. Considering prognosis forestalls the concern the disproportionately large amounts of resources will be directed to young people with poor prognoses. When the worst-off can benefit only slightly while better-off people could benefit greatly, allocating to the better-off is often justifiable....When implemented, the complete lives system produces a priority curve on which individuals aged between roughly 15 and 40 years get the most chance, whereas the youngest and oldest people get chances that are attenuated.
To any reasonable person it would seem that Emanuel is saying that health care's limited resources should be reserved for those segments of society that the administration deems "most productive" to society. Emanuel is not the only White House advisor who advocates rationing based on an individual's "worth" to society as a whole. As I wrote in Obama Is Still Surrounding Himself With Shady Characters, Obama czars John Holdren and Cass Sunstein have both written extensively, ala their buddy Peter Singer, that health care should be rationed. Either Obama is surrounding himself with whom he disagrees, which is highly unlikely, or he is surrounding himself with advisers who would institute a "Death Panel".
Friday, July 17, 2009
A Quick Nod Before I put My Sick Ass Back To Bed
William A. Jacobson says “Yes To Sotomayer”:
As to whether Sotomayor is qualified, there is no question that she meets whatever that minimal and ill-defined threshold happens to be. If she is not qualified, and does not truly understand constitutional law, as some contend, then she will not be a force on the Court, much like the person she is replacing. There may be a time to lay down the gauntlet over a nominee's qualifications, but this is not the time.
Not exactly a rousing endorsement but his reasoning makes sense. One way or another, she is going to confirmed so I’ll save my energy for the next battle.
Stacy McCain gets his harsh on with Susan Roesgen:
That's not reporting, you dumb bitch. What do you think this is, The McLaughlin Group? Who died and made you Eleanor Freaking Clift? You're just a third-string talent in the Chicago bureau. When you are sent to do a live news report about a protest, it's not your job to get into arguments with the protesters.
If you take the smirks, the eye rolls and the leg tingles out of the MSM what have you got left?
The Daley Gator knows evil when he sees it:
It really should be something on this blog! BUT, this one is very important too! It is all about big money, death and the ultra-extreme population control wackos. Talk about a scary bunch! They are as bad as Hitler, Mao, Pol Pot, or Stalin. And if they ever gain enough power, God help us!
It is not hyperbole to lump Holdern, Erlich and Singer in with the worst dictators of our time.
And So It Goes In Shreveport linked to the video of Sgt 1St Class John C. Beale’s body being escorted to his final rest. It is incredibly touching and watching I felt a great sense of pride. God bless the men and women who sacrifice so much for me.
Track-A-’Crat and I have a new hero. Give ‘em Hell Harry!
Cynthia Yockey has the Organizational Chart from Hell. If you like your doctor and you like your plan, you can keep them…Psych!
Joe Biden: A Few Clowns Short Of A Circus. Greatest. Title. Ever!
An apt description:
Al Gore is the Aimee Semple McPherson of the climate change movement; all that’s needed to make the picture complete is for him to be discovered in a love-nest down in Mexico, shacked up in a hotel with the nubile daughter of a coal magnate.
Aw come on Paco, tell us what you really think.
For some reason, monomania comes to mind. Here’s a definition that fits Gore as snugly as a size 60 sport coat from the Big and Tall Men’s Store
Snark done right.
My favorite Smartass has a round of some primo Geek spots to take the kids to this summer. Pick a spot and go make some memories.
You may have noticed that the posting has been light the last couple of days. In my last post I mentioned that I hadn’t seen a doctor in eighteen months. I never get sick. In fact, most of my interaction with doctors has involved broken bones, mine, with stitches being a close second. Anyway, I wasn’t feeling great when I wrote the post. I rapidly went from not great to “so this is what death feels like” in about an hour. Turns out it is just a sinus infection but I’m still not up to snuff. There’s a lesson in everything and I just learned I’m a big baby.
As to whether Sotomayor is qualified, there is no question that she meets whatever that minimal and ill-defined threshold happens to be. If she is not qualified, and does not truly understand constitutional law, as some contend, then she will not be a force on the Court, much like the person she is replacing. There may be a time to lay down the gauntlet over a nominee's qualifications, but this is not the time.
Not exactly a rousing endorsement but his reasoning makes sense. One way or another, she is going to confirmed so I’ll save my energy for the next battle.
Stacy McCain gets his harsh on with Susan Roesgen:
That's not reporting, you dumb bitch. What do you think this is, The McLaughlin Group? Who died and made you Eleanor Freaking Clift? You're just a third-string talent in the Chicago bureau. When you are sent to do a live news report about a protest, it's not your job to get into arguments with the protesters.
If you take the smirks, the eye rolls and the leg tingles out of the MSM what have you got left?
The Daley Gator knows evil when he sees it:
It really should be something on this blog! BUT, this one is very important too! It is all about big money, death and the ultra-extreme population control wackos. Talk about a scary bunch! They are as bad as Hitler, Mao, Pol Pot, or Stalin. And if they ever gain enough power, God help us!
It is not hyperbole to lump Holdern, Erlich and Singer in with the worst dictators of our time.
And So It Goes In Shreveport linked to the video of Sgt 1St Class John C. Beale’s body being escorted to his final rest. It is incredibly touching and watching I felt a great sense of pride. God bless the men and women who sacrifice so much for me.
Track-A-’Crat and I have a new hero. Give ‘em Hell Harry!
Cynthia Yockey has the Organizational Chart from Hell. If you like your doctor and you like your plan, you can keep them…Psych!
Joe Biden: A Few Clowns Short Of A Circus. Greatest. Title. Ever!
An apt description:
Al Gore is the Aimee Semple McPherson of the climate change movement; all that’s needed to make the picture complete is for him to be discovered in a love-nest down in Mexico, shacked up in a hotel with the nubile daughter of a coal magnate.
Aw come on Paco, tell us what you really think.
For some reason, monomania comes to mind. Here’s a definition that fits Gore as snugly as a size 60 sport coat from the Big and Tall Men’s Store
Snark done right.
My favorite Smartass has a round of some primo Geek spots to take the kids to this summer. Pick a spot and go make some memories.
You may have noticed that the posting has been light the last couple of days. In my last post I mentioned that I hadn’t seen a doctor in eighteen months. I never get sick. In fact, most of my interaction with doctors has involved broken bones, mine, with stitches being a close second. Anyway, I wasn’t feeling great when I wrote the post. I rapidly went from not great to “so this is what death feels like” in about an hour. Turns out it is just a sinus infection but I’m still not up to snuff. There’s a lesson in everything and I just learned I’m a big baby.
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