Rocky

A few years ago, when Linus Pauling (the Vitamin C doctor) died at age 93, I set my aim for at least 93. So, here's to your 100! But it's becoming evident that the ol' flesh and bones will put up some resistance... but that's just TOOOOOOOOOO bad! One of the important lessons I'm (still) learning from my mother... she's had health issues all her adult life... but at 73, and even after losing two of her three kids... she's just too ornery to die. And I'm glad. :D

I just hope little brother (Stephen Drew) doesn't have the same problems as JD... Stephen had a pretty good rookie season. I hope he is able to kick it up a notch (BAM) this year! :D

You did a good job of describing some of the issues I also mentioned... indeed government has no monopoly on bureaucracy. Do you suppose that if there were to be only ONE set of program guidelines to deal with, it would be any more simple for a hospital (or doctor's office) to deal with? Indeed, that was one of the points I was trying to make. And a good job also on describing that pesky cost component -- shareholder profit. Wouldn't it be nice if we didn't have to include that in the cost estimates used to determine insurance premiums, or hospital service rates? Oh, and when I brought up the point about electronic medical records I forgot to mention how that would help reduce the incidence of medical mistakes. The mistakes which give rise to what some consider "frivolous" lawsuits, that is. It's too bad your brother won't use the VA medical benefits... it really IS better than it used to be.

My thought... sure THIS war is a disasterous mistake... but THAT'S not the subject of this thread. So, I'm not interested on this thread, in discussing the merits of the war in Iraq... Kathy, I get your point on the email... of course, symbolically, it makes a good point. In practice, it might not be workable.

Pitchers and catchers begin showing up in about 19 days.

http://news.bostonherald.com/localPolitics...amp;format=text I'll probably put this link in the politics forum also... it fits in both: Capitol idea: Senator Schilling? Curt’s not so sure, but fans think he’s just the ticket By Jesse Noyes Boston Herald Business Reporter Friday, January 26, 2007 - Updated: 07:39 AM EST Curt Schilling seemed surprised yesterday by the sudden groundswell of local supporters hoping to draft him into national politics and a 2008 Senate run against John Kerry. The Red Sox [team stats] pitching hero didn’t flatly rule out the idea, either, though he didn’t sound like he was about to hit the campaign trail anytime soon. “I couldn’t rule it out because it’s not something I ever thought about in a serious capacity,” Schilling told the Herald. “I envision that I will probably be pretty busy in 2008,” he said. “But I’m flattered as hell to even make this phone call.” The chatter around Schilling taking on Kerry in a senate race started on talk station WRKO-AM (680) yesterday, when a caller to the Todd Feinberg show suggested Schilling would be the best candidate for the job. “It just kind of energized from there,” Feinberg said. “He became the popular candidate.” Indeed, Tom Shattuck, executive producer of the show, said it was his busiest day ever taking calls from listeners supporting a potential Schilling bid. Shattuck estimated he took as many as 100 calls from Schilling proponents during the three-hour program. WRKO also put up an online petition yesterday asking people to choose between Schilling and Kerry. As of yesterday evening 800 votes had been cast and Schilling was leading by 96 percent. Feinberg said he wants to build a real campaign around Schilling and will present him with the results of the online poll. But Schilling may doesn’t feel he’s a good match for Capitol Hill. “While I am a registered voter, I have too many problems with the political scene, and I don’t think I’d fit into it,” he said. Schilling, who is planning to retire from baseball after this season, did give a glimpse of what he would do in a political office. His first task would be to “fire everybody and anybody who had anything to do with the Big Dig,” he said. Schilling said in 2008 he’ll vote either for Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), whom he called a personal friend, or Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.). “If they are both on the ticket it will be a tough choice,” he said. Schilling, who spoke passionately about various political issues, said his own future is centered around winning another World Series, running his charitable foundation for ALS research and heading up his new video game business, Green Monster Games.

Anyone see this news item on something related to nicotine addiction? Could this lead to "outside the box" thinking of new ways to help smokers quit? http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070125/ap_on_..._brain_damage_4 Spot in brain may control smoking urge By LAURAN NEERGAARD, AP Medical WriterThu Jan 25, 5:44 PM ET Damage to a silver dollar-sized spot deep in the brain seems to wipe out the urge to smoke, a surprising discovery that may shed important new light on addiction. The research was inspired by a stroke survivor who claimed he simply forgot his two-pack-a-day addiction _ no cravings, no nicotine patches, not even a conscious desire to quit. "The quitting is like a light switch that went off," said Dr. Antoine Bechara of the University of Southern California, who scanned the brains of 69 smokers and ex-smokers to pinpoint the region involved. "This is very striking." Clearly brain damage isn't a treatment option for people struggling to kick the habit. But the finding, reported in Friday's edition of the journal Science, does point scientists toward new ways to develop anti-smoking aids by targeting this little-known brain region called the insula. And it sparked excitement among addiction specialists who expect the insula to play a key role in other addictions, too. "It's a fantastic paper, it's a fantastic finding," said Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse and a longtime investigator of the brain's addiction pathways. "What this study shows unequivocally is the insula is a key structure in the brain for perceiving the urges to take the drug," urges that are "the backbone of the addiction," Volkow added. Why? The insula appears to be where the brain turns physical reactions into feelings, such as feeling anxious when your heart speeds up. When those reactions are caused by a particular substance, the insula may act like sort of a headquarters for cravings. Some 44 million Americans smoke, and the government says more than 400,000 a year die of smoking-related illnesses. Declines in smoking have slowed in recent years, making it unlikely that the nation will reach a public health goal of reducing the rate to 12 percent by 2010. Nicotine is one of the most addictive substances known, and it's common for smokers to suffer repeated relapses when they try to quit. So imagine Bechara's surprise at hearing a patient he code-named "Nathan" note nonchalantly that "my body forgot the urge to smoke" right after his stroke. At the time, Bechara was at the University of Iowa studying the effects of certain types of brain damage after strokes or other injury. While Nathan was hospitalized, stroke specialists sent his information to that brain registry. He was 38, had smoked since 14, said he enjoyed it and had had no intention to quit. But his last puff was the night before his stroke. His surprised wife said he never even asked for a smoke while in the hospital. It's not unusual for a health scare to prompt an attempt at quitting. "That's the quitting that's not as interesting," Bechara said. Instead, Nathan experienced what Bechara calls a "disruption of smoking addiction," and he wanted to know why. Bechara and colleagues culled their brain-damage registry for 69 patients who had smoked regularly before their injuries. Nineteen, including Nathan, had damage to the insula. Thirteen of the insula-damaged patients had quit smoking, 12 of them super-easily: They quit within a day of the brain injury, and reported neither smoking nor even feeling the urge since then. Of the remaining 50 patients with damage in other brain regions, 19 quit smoking but only four met the broken-addiction criteria. If Bechara's findings are validated, they suggest that developing drugs that target the insula might help smokers quit. There are nicotine receptors in the insula, meaning it should be possible to create a nicotine-specific drug, Bechara said _ albeit years from now. More immediately, NIDA's Volkow wants to try a different experiment: Scientists can temporarily alter function of certain brain regions with pulses of magnetic energy, called "transcranial magnetic stimulation." She wants to see if it's possible to focus such magnetic pulses on the insula, and thus verify its role. Other neurologic functions are known to be involved with addiction, too, such as the brain's "reward" or pleasure pathways. The insula discovery doesn't contradict that work, but adds another layer to how addiction grips the brain, Bechara said.

That book, I believe would be "Free to Choose"... but I never read in THAT book about choosing partners or alternative lifestyles! Yikes! I had a copy for years. Friedman died not to long ago. I can't imagine... (okay I can IMAGINE it , but can't see myself anywhere near participating) as it clearly has so many potential pitfalls/negative ramifications to others that it seems totally selfish/narcissistic to justify doing it. ... as Vickles said... I (sometimes) don't mind bein nakee... but can't see subjecting anyone else to having to look at me without clothes. Of course, when I was married, I had no problem with one person in particular seeing... but to others, it probably would qualify as torture!

How do you know this? In fact, Single Payer medical coverage would do just the opposite. Sure, the myth of government bureaucracy is ever present. However, government has NO monopoly on bureaucracy. MOST private medical plans ARE bureaucracies, especially HMOs. Having a Single Payer that is NOT obligated to keep 20% as budgeted "profit" only REDUCES cost. Other aspects of this type of system make it even more desirable. Standardized electronic medical records VASTLY speeds access between primary care and specialist providers; between labs/x-ray/EKG, and direct caregivers. Further, economies of scale in purchasing meds and other equipment/supplies will also greatly reduce costs. This type of system is ALREADY in place and in use in the US. Now, I know there are people who can complain about it, but the fact remains that the VA Medical system works on a large scale. The fact that the vast majority of the costs are born by taxpayers means that there is the ever present need to bug Congress for adequate funding to meet the needs of all covered veterans. With a universal Single Payer system, with employer contributions comparable to what is being done today -- with a zillion different bureaucracies responsible for evaluating claims for payment -- costs would be drastically reduced from what they are today. NO doubt about it, indeed.

I coulda sworn you were describing the current prez (and his parents, nicer that they are then him)... then, after I first posted THIS post, I read CW's and Hap's entries... so, I guess I'm not the only one who thought that.

I musta been very encouraging to have such a wonderful Doc... and I'm very happy about it too.

Well... though it's obviously not the best news, it does sound like fairly good news. No doubt doing whatever else you can do to keep your health intact will help your leg too... Glad you can still dance! So, you got your own Dr. McDreamy? I bet he's a youngster too... a lot of docs these days around here seem to be in their 30s... which feels a bit strange, but when they know what they're talking about it's okay anyway. :)

Which Stoops? Not the one from Tucson...? I took care of the new year skin a couple of weeks ago... and I'm glad I did! tnks TomS

Hey niKa... It depends on who you ask!!! How's that leg doing?

Eagle, Are you SURE that's "normal"? :D (just kidding... but, good for you anyway!)

Must be REALLY old... because the AFDC program ceased to exist with enactment of the Welfare Reform Act of 1996... replaced with TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) Block Grants to states allowing the state (of California for example) to determine the structure of welfare assistance programs that followed... but Congress still established time limits on any given family's eligibility.

News flash! The evening news on the local CBS station ( kpho.com ) had a blurb (tonight) for people wondering what's going on with Gil Grissom (actually, William Petersen)... they said that he's taking time off from taping CSI so that he can be in a stage gig in Rhode Island.... and will be back in a few weeks (which, of course, he said in the last episode he appeared in). And while I'm at it... how about the guy filling in (not as boss..., that's Willows). Liev Schrieber was the Manchurian Candidate... in the recent remake of the 50s or 60s vintage Sinatra version. The character, Mike Keppler... is certainly a strange one.

Sounds like Bing Crosby to me... and perhaps only a little like Como.

Or perhaps about the Boys of Summer SWINGING for the fences!

I disagree ChasUFarley... HOWEVER... IF the law (if it were to pass) were ENFORCED, then certainly it would quickly fill up the correctional facilities. BUT like many immigration laws (which are OFTEN not enforced, for similar reasons) it will be ignored. Law enforcement agencies will say "we don't have the resources to enforce this." And they will be correct. THAT is why I believe the ONLY thing such a law would do is further exacerbate custody battles in divorce cases.... and as I said before, that's VERY BAD all around... but mostly for the kids. A parallel to another socially controversial topic -- abortion. If abortion is RE-outlawed, abortion will NOT be eliminated as a birth control method. Abortion would, instead, go underground. Doing so would cause a public health catastrophe... as abortions would no longer be subject to the regulation of sanitary conditions in hospitals and/or licensed clinics. I do NOT approve of abortion. But I know that to stop (well, really to only reduce the number of) abortions, an indirect route must be taken, with more preventative strategies. So to with spanking. Outlawing it won't eliminate it. Only providing societal conditions that reduce stress in the lives of parents AND provide for effective disciplinary techniques/strategies without spanking/hitting/beating or any variation thereof -- has any chance of reducing whatever problem may exist in a family where spanking occurs more than on a rare occasion and/or which is more than just a light, quick attention getter that doesn't provide more than a very brief sting. Just my opinion.

Hey good buddy Zshot... me thinks that if you ever have the pleasure of (responibility for) parenting a young child... you might have more compassion for overwhelmed parents! However, you still might have a good point... ok, you (DO) have more than one good point. Children should definitely NOT be beaten... no question about that. AND obviously there's still plenty of debate about spanking. The biggest downside I see to such an ominous (potential) law is that it would UNdoubtedly be used most by divorcing parents in contested custody cases to gain legal advantage AND to alienate a child against the other parent. And THAT is VERY BAD all around.

Oh, I thought you had the source from which you took the quote... doesn't it say that (apparently AS OF the date of that court decision): "Neither Republicans nor Democrats nor a broad range of interest groups is prepared to support an employer sanction program that actually would work.” ?? Now, I think we know that the last Congress, which was of the same party as the prez, did NOT effect ANY helpful immigration related measures... I'm also thinking that some leaders from the new Congress have expressed a desire to deal with immigration reform... and that the new Congress is likely to be better able to put something together that can make it to the prez, which the prez would want to sign... Sooo... I suppose we could be keeping a lookout for this kind of provision in any immigration legislation this year.

CoolWaters, What is the date of that court decision? Having that information may help put that insight in perspective. Thanks

Very thought provoking questions Kathy... tnks. :)

Nor have I heard... however, LG's profile shows that he was logged in this afternoon...