There are many angles about the story I am about to convey. One might say it is a story about a guy out on his luck. Another might say it is a story about the crappy healthcare system we have. Or maybe it is about how Republicans talk about personal responsibility but then complain when they don’t get government handouts … Read More
Lead Paint And Inner City Violence
I’m just going to point to this comprehensive and insightful Washington Post article which talks about Freddie Gray (whose death while in Baltimore police hands sparked the recent riots there) and lead paint. Like many inner city kids, Gray lived in sub-standard housing with peeling lead paint, and in his case, it specifically was blamed for ADHD and other problems. It … Read More
NAMI On the Germanwings Air Crash
Reprinted in full: NAMI shares the grief of the rest of the world over the crash of Germanwings Flight 9525. We extend our condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in this senseless tragedy. As often happens in tragedies, information emerges first through an immediate frenzy of reporting in news media and then through more careful analysis. … Read More
Today Is World Bipolar Day
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are 450 million people globally with mental illness; of that number, 5 percent are labeled bipolar, which is three times all cases of diabetes and 10 times all the cases of cancer. Bipolar is the sixth leading cause of disability, according to WHO. “Bipolar Disorder is a mental illness that represents a … Read More
Don’t Blame Depression
This is in Forbes, so I don’t have to write it: You saw a depressed person today. Probably dozens or hundreds of them. They drive cars. They perform surgery. They fly planes — and safely land them. Of course, that’s been frequently forgotten since last week’s devastating Germanwings tragedy. Many pundits quickly blamed the horrific plane crash on depression, noting … Read More
Stigmatization Of Mental Illness Begins
So it looks like the copilot responsible for that awful crash was “depressed”. Let the stigmatising of mental illness commence. — Alexa Muir (@awannabe_writer) March 27, 2015 Depression is no excuse to kill 150 innocent people. The copilot was a dirt bag, and deserves to be remembered as one. #Germanwings — Imperious (@Aryte) March 27, 2015 It’s an explanation, not … Read More
The Cheap Wine You’ve Been Drinking May Contain Too Much Arsenic
That’s the allegation in a lawsuit (read the complaint here — PDF) filed in California this week. The origins of the lawsuit draw back to Kevin Hicks, a former wine distributor who started BeverageGrades, a Denver-based lab that analyzes wine. The lab tested 1,300 bottles of California wine, and found that about a quarter of them had higher levels of … Read More
Taking Anti-Vaxxing To The Next Level
It’s one thing to say that measles vaccinations are harmful (they’re not), but it is entirely different to say that measles don’t exist at all. Yet, one German pseudoscientist did, going so far as to put his money on it. He lost: This is something I thought would probably never happen – a science denier, in this case German virologist … Read More
Study: Selfish Anti-Vaxxing Parents Facilitated Measles Outbreak
L.A. Times: Although epidemiologists have not yet identified the person who brought measles to Disneyland, a new analysis shows that the highly contagious disease has spread to seven states and two other countries thanks to parents who declined to vaccinate their children. Using some simple math, a team of infectious disease experts calculated that the vaccination rate among people who … Read More
Why My Plans To Retire In Costa Rica Are Looking Better
Because of this: Exactly five years ago this week, as the Congressional debate over the Affordable Care Act was coming to its eventual conclusion, Rush Limbaugh made a bold statement about his future as a resident of the United State of America. Speaking to a caller who expressed concerns about the impact of Obamacare on the U.S. healthcare system, Limbaugh … Read More
Do We Have A Contender For Michelle Bachman’s Replacement?
Nevada Republican assemblywoman Michelle Fiore made a bit of name for herself when she was quoted in the New York Times saying that “hot little girls” on campus need guns to protect themselves against rapists. She did not say what ugly large girls should carry. This was all in connection with a bill she sponsored that would allow firearms onto … Read More
The Vaccination Debate Makes For An Interesting Political Wedge Issue
Of the potential 2016 presidential candidates on the GOP side, we have Christie and Rand Paul cuddling up with the anti-vaxxers (spouting “freedom” in their answers when asked about whether parents should vax) And then we have one of the most conservative Christian candidates out there, Dr. Ben Carson, who seems to be the voice of reason on this issue: “Although … Read More
The Problem With Libertarianism
Libertarianism (Latin: liber, “free”) is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as its principal objective. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and freedom of choice, emphasizing political freedom, voluntary association and the primacy of individual judgement. For months, nay, years, I have been wanting to write about the shortfalls of libertarianism. It’s been difficult because who in America, other than outright fascists, … Read More
World’s Worst Doctor
There’s always one. No matter what hair-brained position you take, you can always find an “expert” to add alleged credibility. This time the “expert” is Jack Wolfson. He’s being embraced by the loons because he’s a doctor AND an anti-vaxxer. Here’s the thing to keep in mind — he’s a cardiologist. That means he knows as much about vaccines as … Read More
Video of Kristiana Coignard’s Summary Execution
As I posted a few days ago, police in Longview, Texas, tragically shot and killed a 17-year-old girl last week. Her name was Kristiana Coignard. In the newly released video, it’s clear that her shooting death was completely and totally avoidable. After speaking with officers and roaming around the lobby of the police station for ten minutes, Kristiana, who was … Read More