Sticks and stones ...

The New York City Department of Education wants to ban some 50 words from appearing on standardized tests because the words might upset some students. The story apparently first came to light via the New York Post, but Google “New York banned words” and you’ll see lots of coverage and comment.

You can see the complete list here. To give you an idea, I’ve selected a few of the more interesting entries for comment.

Alcohol, tobacco, or drugs—I suppose they get enough about those topics after school anyway.
Birthday celebrations and birthdays—On the list because some religious groups do not celebrate birthdays. Being of a certain age, I don’t like these words either.
Celebrities—Is just the word “celebrities” to be banned or is it about mentioning the names of specific celebrities? Either way, I’m all for it.
Dinosaurs—We wouldn’t want them to learn about that subject or be tested on it now, would we?
Disease—Said to be banned because it might upset students who have family members who are sick.
Evolution—See Dinosaurs
Halloween—A dangerous topic for young minds.
Junk food—Interesting in light of all the talk about an epidemic of obesity.
In-depth discussions of sports that require prior knowledge—How would one ask about this on a standardized test anyway?
Sex—Take care of that on your own time.
War and bloodshed—So students can’t be asked about war on a test? That’s going to shorten history class a lot. And how are the kids going to learn about stuff like when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?
Weapons (guns, knives, etc.)—See sex

It looks like New York City has taken the “Nanny State” concept to new heights. What do you think?

This post appeared on Sermo yesterday.

Question for the 9/11 Conspiracy Theorists

As we approach the 10-year anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, I am hearing about the conspiracy theories again. Some say that the World Trade Center tower could not have collapsed that way simply due to airliners crashing into them. The conspiracy nuts say that demolition charges must have been placed in the buildings.

There is also talk that the building 7 collapse secondary to the WTC fires "could not have happened" because steel buildings blah, blah, blah. And despite that fact that some Jewish people we're killed in the attacks, there are those who say that Jews were told not to go to work that day because Israel was behind the attacks.

Forget about all the eyewitnesses who saw the planes crash into the towers and the Pentagon.

Here is my question. Over the last 10 years when absolutely no one, I mean no one, can keep a secret for even 30 seconds, how is it that all the guys who set the demolition charges in all the buildings and all the Jews who were called and the people who did the calling have never said one word about what happened?

Not bloody likely.

9/10/2011 ADDENDUM

Last night, @jordjonny tweeted this in reply to me:

"they've probaly [sic] been killed off."

He added a link to a video with the provocative title "911 Witnesses Murdered." The video lists a number of people indirectly or directly linked to the 9/11 attacks who died in "mysterious" and "unexplained" ways. If these deaths were part of a cover-up of the intricate conspiracy, then a number of local, state and federal police agencies as well as the Federal Aviation Administration [there were people who died in plane crashes] would have to be in on it. And all of these public officials would also have not said word one about all this in the last 10 years.

I don't see how that many people could keep such a monumental secret.

Suicide in Hospitals or Why the Joint Commission Drives Me Crazy

If you’ve ever wondered why the Joint Commission [an organization that somehow has managed to become the be-all and end-all for accrediting some 18,000 health care entities in the U.S.] is reviled by many people in health care, you need only look at their latest pronouncement regarding suicide by hospitalized patients. Based on the fact that 827 patient suicides have occurred in hospitals since 1995, the JC [ironically godlike initials] has mandated that hospitals should screen all patients for suicide and depression risk. According to an article in amednews.com, the screening should include the following four steps:

•Check for contraband that could be used to commit suicide.
•Alert staff to any warning signs.
•Engage the patient at risk and his or her family in formulating a post-discharge plan.
•Communicate the suicide risk during hand-off procedures.

Let’s do some math. The 827 hospitalized patient suicides divided by 15 years equals 55 suicides per year. The American Hospital Association reports that in 2009 there were 37,479,709 hospital admissions in the U.S. Thus, the percentage of hospital admissions that resulted in suicide every year is about 55 divided by 37,479,709 or 0.00014%. So to possibly identify 0.00014% of patients, the JC will require hospitals to screen all patients.

I estimate that well over half of the general surgery patients I encounter are on anti-depressant medications, usually more than one. Primary care docs prescribe anti-depressants like Tic Tacs. Are these people really clinically depressed or do they just tell their doctors the feel depressed and receive a prescription?

How is one supposed to ask patients about suicide? How about a woman admitted in labor or a man with appendicitis or a child with pneumonia? I recall a similar mandate a few years ago which involved asking every patient entering the hospital if he wanted to be resuscitated should his heart stop. You can imagine the unsettling effect that had on, let’s say, a woman admitted in labor or a man with appendicitis or the parents of a child with pneumonia. Needless to say, we don’t currently ask most patients whether they want to be resuscitated.

What is going to be the impact of searching all patients for contraband? Maybe hospitals could outsource this component to the TSA. We already have the radiation capability. If you want to commit suicide in a hospital, you don’t need to bring contraband in. You can find things to use or jump out a window.

Knowing the JC as I do, I have no doubt that all of the screening steps will require extensive documentation.

By the way, there are many instances of people committing suicide while under intense psychiatric care both in and out of hospitals. Can all suicides be prevented? I think not.

Should our efforts be better directed at something that occurs more often?

And people wonder why there is burnout in health care workers.

Community Outreach: Fake Surgeon Makes (Road)House Calls

I know it’s late on a Friday afternoon and maybe few will read this but as a budding journalist, I feel compelled to write this story as it is a tale that cannot wait to be told.

Today, MSNBC reports that a woman pretended to be a plastic surgeon and talked two or more other women into allowing her to examine their breasts in bars in the Boise, Idaho area. She told them her name was Berlyn Aussieahshowna, which believe it or not, “was bogus” or so the account reads. She gave them the phone number of a real plastic surgeon whose office staff became increasingly concerned after receiving “a number” of calls looking to make appointments for liposuction and breast augmentation with Berlyn Aussieahshowna, whose real name is Kristina Ross.

Then the story gets a little weird as it turns out the Ms. Ross is a “transgendered” individual formerly known as Kristoffer Jon Ross.

The perpetrator has been charged with two felony counts of impersonating a physician.

Not mentioned in the article but follow up questions come to mind. For example, what were the victims thinking when they allowed themselves to undergo breast examinations in bars (not that such a thing has never happened before)? However, it probably has not occurred too often under the guise of a medical procedure. And what sort of woman undergoes the exam (OK, she had a few drinks. She figured she’d get a free exam.) but then apparently when sober, calls for an appointment to schedule surgery with the good doctor? In retrospect, does this still seem like a good idea?

And who says health care is not accessible to the masses?

Update: In April of 2011, Ms. Ross, who had pleaded guilty to two counts of misdemeanor battery, was sentenced to 360 days in jail.

Just how crazy are people?

[“Contrail” is short for “condensation trail,” which is a visible plume of water vapor or ice crystals formed by condensation created when the hot exhaust of a jet or rocket meets cold air at high altitudes.]

While researching the story of Mick West, the computer programmer who runs the website ContrailScience.com and who identified and explained in detail the November 8 “mystery missile” seen over Los Angeles (where else?) as an airliner contrail even providing the flight number, I discovered a rather incredible mass delusion.

It seems that numerous people think that the government is spraying chemicals into the air for nefarious purposes. The deluded ones see long-lasting contrails as what they call “chemtrails.” There is a website called ChemtrailCentral.com which is filled with all manner of paranoid ramblings about this. For example, this gem from the FAQ section of the site describes the possible reasons for the government’s alleged activity:

Weather Modification
NASA is currently conducting several programs that are studying the effects of contrails on weather and the effects do not appear to be beneficial. [Truncated by me.]

Population Control
The use of chemical and biological agents by a government against it's own people is, unfortunately, a historical fact. Even unintentional accidents can occur. But, some people suggest that Chemtrails could actually be part of a program to reduce the population and many feel Chemtrails have caused them to become ill and perhaps they are right. If the Chemtrails contain biological agents then people already weakened by other factors may have even died as a result of the additional strain on their systems, but could such a diabolical purpose be the ultimate goal? History has taught that even the most unconscionable schemes can be made into reality by men filled with fear and hate, and with such weapons in the hands of government we must remain vigilant until answers are forthcoming.

Inoculation Program
Chemical and biological weapons have been used for centuries but have recently entered the world stage as a primary threat. Biological agents have the ability to spread and multiply in casualties. These bioweapons are easy to produce and difficult, but possible, to defend against. The recent actions of the military to require anthrax vaccines for all service personnel show that this matter is of high importance. Some propose that the government may be quietly releasing bioagents to vaccinate citizens via the air. This could account for reported illnesses since a vaccine sometimes makes a person sick. Municipal water supplies might not be universal enough and could be easily sampled and tested, but everyone breathes the air. And the federal government rules the air.

By my rough count, there are over 1500 registered users of the ChemtrailCentral website. Apparently these folks are allowed outside unsupervised and can vote. They also have access to Twitter. Just search "#chemtrail" on Twitter to read the current speculation that the government is spraying aluminum and barium or my favorite, that North Korea is spraying Ebola virus. Or you can Google "chemtrail" to find out more.

Sometimes the Internet makes me nervous.