* radical sapphoq

My Insurance Company

2009-12-28T19:39:00.005-05:00

My insurance company is trying to kill me.
-radical sapphoq

*more in a few days*

A Modest Proposal for Health Care for Americans

2009-11-15T10:42:00.002-05:00

I propose these things in order to ensure basic health care for every United Statsian citizen:

(1). That there be public health clinics in every county which would provide health care for anyone who is unable or unwilling to pay for insurance.
(a). These clinics would be staffed by medical personnel who have just graduated. Thus every physician would be required to work for say two years full-time in these public health clinics before being allowed to go on to group or private practice.
(b). These public health clinics would provide the following: medical exams, urgent care facilities, eye exams and cheap glasses for those who require them, audiology services and cheap hearing aids for those who need them, prescription drugs which are bought wholesale at discounted rates the generic versions only.
(c). Available at the public health clinics via referral would be the services of other specialists-- also physicians who have just graduated-- mental hell, podiatry, internal medicine, gyn, gut docs, diabetes specialists, obesity specialists, bone docs, neuro docs, pain docs...etc.

(2). That there be charity hospitals available in every state which would provide hospital services for anyone who is unable or unwilling to pay for insurance.

(3). That those of us who are able and willing to pay to get out of the public health care system thus affording more choice and more experienced docs will be able to choose to do so.

(4). That abortions only be provided when there has been rape, incest, or genuine medical necessity (i.e. carrying to term will result in death of the mother, fetus lacks brain stem...).

The public health clinics and charity hospitals would be paid for via:
A). redirection of funds from faith-based office (eliminate it), faith-based "grants" (eliminate it), and school voucher programs (eliminate them).
B). medicaid funds (eliminate medicaid).
C). taxes on alcohol, tobacco, and gun ammo.
D). a fat tax (anyone who is above optimal weight and has not lost weight in the last fiscal year).
E). a foodie tax (all fast foods, candy, ice cream, sweets, butters...).

The newly graduated medical personnel would be paid minimum wages for their time in the public clinics and charity hospitals.

Any other practical details would have to be worked out by folks who are more knowledgeable than I am about such things.

Harsh? Yeah, it's harsh. But these are trying financial times.

radical sapphoq

Net Neutrality-- three cheers for Julius

2009-09-22T16:24:00.002-04:00

Hidden away on page A13 in this Sunday's Albany Times Useless-- I mean Times Union-- was a small article from Associated Press titled F.C.C. plans to propose 'Net neutrality' rules. Yesterday F.C.C.'s chair Julius Genachowski delivered a speech to the Brookings Institute which included some proposals that would help ensure that the internet remain an information highway without threat of slow down or shut out of content by I.S.P.s. The full content of this speech is available at the following u.r.l.:
http://www.brookings.edu/events/2009/0921_broadband_communications.aspx

The bad ol Internet Service Providers are upset and crying government interference.
(http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125354032776727741.html ). They want to be able to do things like select what legal content (especially if it is related to a service which their own company provides) is allowed to consumers or at least how fast such content can be accessed. Nothing in the proposal will prohibit providers from adopting tier plans or blocking high-end users from downloading stuff during peak flow times. Their objection that folks will merely move away from the I.S.P.s who block content they want is meaningless in the face of a certain reality that right now in any geographical area of the United States, very few of us have the option of moving from one I.S.P. to another. In a field where my choice is between two providers, that is hardly any choice at all.

radical sapphoq says: Bravo Julius!

Health Care Reform the Obama Way

2009-09-04T13:33:00.005-04:00

By now everyone has heard about the thousand page packet of Health Care Reform being advocated by President Barack Obama. The dems for the most part are backing it and the repubs for the most part are crying foul. From the news coverage alone, I was unable to pick up exactly why there was a bunch of folks talking about killing off grannies. So I turned to my friend Jeremy Crow who wrote back to me this answer:

A quote by Obama that you should look up on the internet, is his statement
"we aren't going to give a 100 year old man a pacemaker, we are going to send
him home with morphine" .. This was in response to an article about how evil
"Anthem" gave a 92 year old man authorization for a pacemaker after his doctor
called them and told them personally that the guy had a high level of life enjoyment
and was willing to pay for it out of pocket (which he didn't have to in the end). The
topic was brought up because under Obamacare he would have voided his insurance
by paying for it himself because he was "interfering" with the Government-approved
method of action...

The law NOW is that all people that crawl into an emergency room have to be treated
regardless of ability to pay or money already owed (or in the case of all the illegals,
ability to prove legal address .. Thus completely FREE) but under Obamacare like all
Socialist plans, you can be denied and the Government backs it as THEY wrote the
rules.

The argument here is that it will finally start denying illegals access to healthcare BUT
as we know, the politicians are lying to us and will change that the second they get us
to believe they won't .. I use seat belt laws as the example for this .. They always say
"we won't pull you over for seat belts alone" and then within a year they ALWAYS
change it .. It is the same type of lie that scares us here ...

Oh as far as the killing granny thing .. It is written in the healthcare bill that they
will have life expectancy requirements for care, and in the event that it isn't
cost-effective to prolong life they will prescribe pain killers, life end therapy,
and on request life decision specialists {Dr Kevorkian in other words} .. Ask
[a mutual blogging buddy from Australia] about eye surgery and cancer
treatments in one of those wonderful socialized medical places :(

This issue is problematic and I continue to believe that there aren't any "easy answers" to the mess that healthcare in the United States has become. I remember the birth of the health maintenance organizations. I even remember what healthcare was like "before" in the days when
we basically paid for services and the insurance company would provide reimbursement by mail later on.

To the charge that what is being proposed is socialized medicine, I can only nod and say, "Yes of course it is." That in and of itself is not a reason to say no. What is bothersome to me is the government meddling in healthcare in the first place. I dislike what healthcare has become. I dislike the HIPPA Laws which supposedly are for our "protection" but have further made a mess
of things. (For example, supposedly because of the HIPPA Laws, our dentist's office no longer allows anyone but the patient to be in the examination room. The idea that any particular agency which supposedly has a good reason for wanting my medical files can get them without my permission is nauseating to me. And the idea that some folks have of encoding our records into a chip implanting into a shoulder or wherever makes me want to move to anywhere that this will not be done. Okay, that is three examples).

It is certainly admirable to want to ensure that basic healthcare is available to all citizens (NOT to illegal aliens). It is necessary that we continue to seek ways to make basic healthcare practical and affordable. The insurance companies have their own vested interest in this thing as does the medical profession. The insurance companies are basically interested in insuring the healthier people who are likely to stay healthy and not require expenditures. The doctors (who would have vastly preferred the pay-as-you-go system to remain in place) do not want to be forced to take less money and less money from the insurance companies (and here I am thinking of Medicaid rates especially).

For some time now, the health maintenance organizations have tried over and over again to dictate to doctors what tests they may order and when, what drugs they may or may not prescribe, when a sick patient can be referred to the more expensive specialist. And yes, we have "death squads" now, in the form of review committees within the insurance companies who can and do deny care to the most sickest by labeling expensive treatment as "experimental." It is not just granny being killed off these days. Having been forced to take on the sicker people, the insurance companies take measures to keep their own costs and risks down. Because the bottom line for any insurance company is that writing policy for any individual is a gamble. No one wants the sick or the disabled on their rolls.

I see nothing wrong with providing end-of-life counseling to those who wish it. Such counseling is available now through hospices. Although Jack Kervorkian is a whack job [ever read his interview in Playboy magazine some years ago?] who perhaps delighted in his helping people to kill themselves a bit too much, I think that there will continue to be terminally ill patients who wish assisted suicide for as long as there will be inadequate pain relief provided to them. I worked in a nursing home once where there was an elderly woman with end-stage leukemia who was refusing all pain meds. She was screaming in pain and the nurse was crying, begging her to allow some relief. The woman kept refusing and she died in mid-scream. That woman refused pain meds by her own choice. There are people in hospitals being denied pain relief because the nurses are afraid that they will become addicted. One of my close friends with a severe leg fracture (right above her knee prosthesis) was denied pain relief for that reason. I had to fight for her to get pain meds before an ambulance ride to another facility 90 miles away!).

And yes, more research is needed in the areas of pain management for all of us (here I am thinking of those of us who have fibromyalgia and are usually classified as "drug-seeking" because what is currently available does not address the pain adequately) and not just the terminally ill. If an insurance company refuses to pay for "experimental treatment," there is a process of appeal (and the patient is usually dead before getting through such a process). Perhaps alternate funding for experimental treatments can be developed.

radical sapphoq says: The name-calling by all sides of this issue can stop anytime now. People who oppose healthcare reform as it is currently written certainly have valid objections. Those who are in favor of it also have valid reasons for liking it.

Insurance companies base their profits on predicting the odds of having to pay out large sums of money for any individual policy. It is part of capitalism and a free market economy. We need competition between insurance providers in order to continue to have choices.

There are pros and cons to socialized medicine. I am not convinced that socialized medicine is the way to go. (And I also suspect that the health care reform bill in its' present state will not pass due to the powerful insurance and medical lobbies).

I dislike the idea of government meddling in healthcare. I don't trust the politicians to do what is correct for the average citizen nor for disabled folks.

I believe that every citizen (but not any illegal aliens) have a basic right to basic health care. I would support basic health care for all citizens (via the use of "clinics" perhaps) paid for by our taxes with the option to purchase more comprehensive coverage and choice of providers available to those who are willing and able to pay for such coverage.

My opinions may change as I get better informed. I do intend to read the entire thousand page document probably sometime next week.

Obama and the cardiologists and other docs:
http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2009/06/15/text-of-obamas-speech-before-the-ama/
http://cardiobrief.org/2009/06/15/dr-barack-obama-speaks-out-on-cardiology/

http://www.acc.org/advocacy/weekly/archives/july_09/072909.cfm#2
http://qualityfirst.acc.org/Pages/default_new.aspx
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aRqnpw9ZInJ4

anti-Obama health care reform:
http://www.michnews.com/J_Grant_Swank_Jr/jgs82009.shtml
http://proteinwisdom.com/?p=15209
http://michellemalkin.com/2009/08/11/little-girl-at-obama-town-hall-has-not-so-random-political-connections/
http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/malden/2009/08/a_girl_from_malden_asked.html?p1=Well_MostPop_Emailed2 <---see letters especially

pro-Obama health care reform:
http://voices.kansascity.com/node/5718
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/08/22/obama_decries_outrageous_myths.html
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2009/08/06/healthcare/

we already have death squads built in our current health insurance plans:
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2009/08/11/denial_of_care/?source=newsletter

recommended for news that effects us oldsters and others:
http://www.seniorsworldchronicle.com/
http://lewinreport.acc.org/

Michael Jackson is Dead

2009-06-30T20:53:00.002-04:00

Michael Jackson died of food poisoning I heard. Upon second autopsy, an eight year old sausage was found in his stomach. A tasteless joke. Sorry.

Michael Jackson, famous child singer from The Jackson Five, is dead at the age of 50 on June 25, 2009. Preliminary results indicate cardiac arrest. All of you probably already know that. Oh well. Michael Jackson's life journey was riddled with stories of his own child abuse, accusations (acquitted) that he abused kids at his Neverland Ranch, a ton of plastic surgery, and songs hitting the charts. The most recent "news" involved the leaking of an autopsy photo (FALSE as of present) and stories about addictions to/use of/abuse of painkillers (YES, there are a variety of reports of addiction).

radical sapphoq says: My initial reaction was, "Good riddance to another pedophile." In doing web searches, I came away with a heightened sympathy for Michael Jackson, even if I don't now understand why he went through all of those plastic surgeries (and judge the results to be f'ugly) and even if yeah, I suspect that he may have been reckless in his behavior toward boys and may have abused them sexually (although the prosecutor did not prove the case and Michael Jackson was acquitted by a jury of his peers). As a survivor of sexual abuse and rape myself, I recognize that true compassion deserves to rest with the victims (if there are any, I truly do not know in spite of my strong suspicions).

As a human being, I feel compassion for Michael Jackson's three kids left behind by his death. As a hardass, I will say that when one person dies, we (individually, collectively, the world) lose one person. When one person dies, that person loses everyone. And regardless of how many people are in the room, each of us dies alone.

Any mistakes are my own. Sources:

Michael Jackson is dead at the age of 50.
http://www.tmz.com/2009/06/25/michael-jackson-dies-death-dead-cardiac-arrest/

Michael Jackson was the child star of the Jackson Five.
http://www.classicbands.com/jackson.html

He and sister Janet Jackson grew up to each become stars in their own rights.
A myspace page tribute to Michael Jackson the musician:
http://www.myspace.com/michaeljackson
Lyrics of Michael Jackson songs:
http://www.azlyrics.com/j/jackson.html

Michael of the white glove, the moonwalk, and the song Billie Jean.
Yup, I can do the moonwalk:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billie_Jean

Michael holding a baby-- his-- out a third floor balcony in Berlin.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/2494249.stm

Michael and the accusations of molestation of one boy at Neverland Ranch. Talk of prior sexual misconduct with other boys. Acquitted.
http://www.statemaster.com/encyclopedia/Gavin-Arvizo
http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/06/13/jackson.trial/

Michael and use of painkillers.
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/MichaelJackson/story?id=7938918&page=1
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1195626/The-addiction-pills-took-Michael-Jacksons-life--finally-destroyed-him.html
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20090629/jackson_painkillers_090629/20090629?hub=Entertainment

Michael becoming almost-white-Michael with a slitted reptilian nose over time. Site has pictures and descriptions:
http://www.anomalies-unlimited.com/Jackson.html

Jokes are halfway down and not for the easily offended or squeamish.
http://williambader.com/mj.html

Rumors of an autopsy photo being leaked. N.B. The Sun is a Brit tabloid.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1895958/michael_jackson_autopsy_photo_still.html?cat=33

Tiananmen Square, I honor

2009-06-08T16:38:00.002-04:00

June 4 was the twentieth anniversary of Tiananmen Square. On June 4, 1989 Chinese students gathered on Tiananmen
Square in Beijing demonstrating for a free-er more democratic China. Chinese tanks came and mowed them down. Many
students died-- even those who had evacuated the square-- and some bystanders as well. Thousands of people died.

On June 4, 2009 the square was closed and a heavy military presence was keeping an uneasy peace. Blogs and social
networking sites were shut down for the day. Wu'er Kaixi, a student who has been exiled, was denied entrance into
Macau where his parents live. Other dissidents were made to leave Beijing or forced to stay indoors. The Chinese
authorities did not want any debate, discussion, or memorials of that day twenty years ago where many died for their
vision of democracy. The government has never taken any responsibility for the bloodshed.

I wasn't there when the tanks came. I wasn't there when shots rang out across the square. I wasn't there for the
massacre. To the Chinese people who were murdered, to their families and friends, to those left behind I want you
to know that one Westerner remembers and honors all of you.

radical sapphoq

Portland Press Herald, Thursday June 4, 2009, page 8. China takes hard-line stand on 'massacre' anniversary.

J. Maarten Troost, Lost on Planet China. New York: Doubleday, 2008. paperback, 382 pps.

Playing for Pay

2009-05-15T16:24:00.002-04:00

http://www.dailytech.com/UK+Investigators+Claim+Ganglords+Used+PlayStations+to+Run+Businesses+from+Prison/article15141.htm

According to an agency in the U.K., some prisoners over there are utilizing interactive gaming tools to communicate with others on the outside. Bill Hughes of S.O.C.A. (Serious Organized Crime Agency) is quotes as saying this is happening and the Prison Service is concerned. The Prison Service denies same.

Seriously, I can envision a bunch of grown men hunched over consoles behind bars playing "Super Mario" (tm) or some other such game as a means of ordering hits or whatever.

Members of organized crime who are in jails and prisons have always found ways to communicate their directives to those on the outside. Whether it is via ultra-small handwriting in letters or elaborate hand signals, prisoners will continue to create code. I have to hand it to the fellows who figured out how to use gaming consoles to charge minutes to their cell phones-- very creative, guys.

radical sapphoq

CHANGING MY OWN TELEVISION CHANNELS

2009-04-28T20:25:00.001-04:00

Changing My Own Television Channels

PHILIP ROSEDALE: "look at how we can make the overall experience appropriately safe and controlled for everybody. So that's the general direction that we're taking there."

I am responsible for my own safety thank-you. Furthermore, I do not need nor want a controlled experience. Nor do I care for the overused word "appropriate" or derivatives thereof.

I am an atheist. I do not call the cable company and demand that a rep come right over to turn off the preachers on my television. I change the channel myself.

You don't like something going on in a parcel? Then get out. Change your own television channel. If you linger there, well that's just mental masturbation.

And yes, forcing the PG places to move to a PG continent would be far better than this "we Lindens are instituting this move to Porno Land" mentality. Let them who wish to be controlled (or have a controlled environment) opt in for the move.

So the merging of the two grids is a bloody rumor. Fine. I for one hope it never comes to pass. I'm sick of hearing WE MUST PROTECT THE CHILDREN. Parents, monitor the activities of your own rug rats. I don't have children for many reasons. It is not my job to watch your kids. But I digress.

As for the child avie sex thing/porn ring/German reporters/ propositioning no0bs/whatever it really was...that launched all this silliness in the first place: I don't care. The courts are taking care of that case. Pedoheads should not be allowed on the internet, period. Civil rights for all civils.

Those adults who are not fantasizing about baby raping (the vast majority of us) basically-- well, okay. I cannot speak for anyone else. I would like to see a reasonable response to all of this, such as checking the "Yup I've of age and I am willing to live with the idea that not everyone does or believes the same way I do so let me in" box.

By actively policing content, Lindens, you very well maybe subjecting yourselves to more lawsuits and legal responsibilities. That is, unless you --like Live Journal-- also plan to sell out to a Russian company or someplace else where an oppressive government imprisons their citizens for attempting to have some form of creative expression.

I have lived through the Live Journal messes of the last several years (and the ultimate selling of Live Journal to the Russians for a heap of money). And now this.

Land prices: falling.
Blood pressure: rising.

Hey, I'm an adult. I'm going to make the healthy choice and go out for some vigorous exercise. Then maybe later on I will be in a calm enough state to enjoy some simulated sex act between pixels.

The intrawebs are for pr0n.

SpikeQ Frog

civil rights for all civils

http://forums.secondlife.com/showthread.php?p=2408880#post2408880

Lipodiesel Leftovers

2008-12-29T11:50:00.002-05:00

A plastic surgeon-- Craig Alan Bittner-- is in trouble for allegedly using leftover fat from his patients to fuel two cars, (among other things which may be more serious). Apparently some law says this is a no-no. Myself, I think it is an excellent idea. Though if the fat in question was being sliced off of me, I would want it to fuel my own car. Of course, by time the idea runs through red tape, it won't be cost-effective anymore. Purifying the fat and rendering it sterile is the rub. Hmmm, perhaps the future holds plans for a fat factory.

There is indeed the possibility that Bittner's spiel on a website was a created fantasy.
More will be revealed.

radical sapphoq

http://www.nydailynews.com/money/2008/12/29/2008-12-29_beverly_hills_doctor_accused_of_using_fa.html

Fussing over Christmas 12/25/08

2008-12-25T19:59:00.002-05:00

Christmas is here and the commercialism factor continues to run high what with grown men in Santa suits, "must have for happiness" advertisements, and dwindling parking spaces at the malls. As usual, some stores have instructed their employees to say "Merry Christmas," others have instructed their employees to say "Happy Holidays" or nothing at all. People get up in arms over all of this. I understand why. As a non-believer I myself get sick of hearing about "the Reason for the Season" at 12 step meetings. As an atheist, I endeavor to extend to believers the tolerance for their beliefs that they often deny me for my unfaith. And there are those sincere Christians who grumble about the retail circus that Christmas has become. I have a solution that should satisfy everyone with a bit of work.

Quite frankly, if Christians want to "take back Christmas" I think they should be encouraged to do so. Here are some things I wish the Christians would do in order to reclaim Christ-Mas:

(1). The date that Christians celebrate Christ's being born should be changed. In this way, Christians can easily dissociate themselves from the retail madness that occurs every December.
Let historical research be done and let the Christians agree on some other date.

(2). Santa Clauses, Christmas trees, lights, decorations, the sending of Christmas cards, and presents should all be given the hatchet. Don't import the messy secular commercialism into the new date. Teach little Christian kids that only the ungodly indulge in such things in December and that as a Christ-like family, real Christians don't engage in worldliness. After all, the sacred and the profane shall not mix.

(3). Rename the new day. Christians can call the new holy day either Christ-mas [an old pronunciation] or simply "Christ's Birthday."

radical sapphoq

Getting Out of Gitmo

2008-11-12T11:23:00.002-05:00

Camp Justice in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba is slated for closure. Fear strikes at the heart of this blogger. I will not deny that beating on the terrorists there was a bad idea. Nor will I condemn President Bush for his hand in creating Gitmo. All of that falls under "old news." In establishing that business not as usual, President-Elect Obama has picked on the one thing that is full of controversy.

The folks housed in Guantanamo Bay are not nice people. They are not P.O.W.s because they are not legal combatants and therefore not covered by the Geneva Convention. They are not American citizens and therefore not habeus corp writ material. They are human beings who like blowing up other human beings in vastly illegal ways. The International Herald Tribune (iht) article states that many of the prisoners there are without a country that wishes to take them. Otherwise, they are eligible for release back into society. Any countries wish to volunteer? I don't see why they can't go back to the countries that they used to live in if indeed some percentage of them are in effect free men being held at Camp Justice.

Some of the folks will get a sort of military trial, possibly on U.S. soil. Others will have a special justice system created for them as it seems they are the holder of secrets. These secrets are powerful stuff. Plans to blow up more Americans and all of that. Some human rights groups are all for getting rid of Gitmo and giving the land back to Cuba.

Quite frankly, my hawkish nature continues its ascent. The terrorists who are at Guantanamo Bay should be disposed of, as in terminated. They aren't protected under national or international laws. They do not have our best interests at heart. They wish us dead. Well, I wish them dead too. If there are any innocents residing in Camp Justice, let Mexico or Israel have them.

radical sapphoq

http://www.wikio.co.uk/international/americas/caribbean/cuba/guantanamo_bay
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/11/10/america/NA-US-Obama-Guantanamo.php
http://havanajournal.com/politics/entry/president-elect-obama-working-towards-closing-guantanamo-bay-prisio/

The Presidential Race in the United States

2008-10-27T19:27:00.004-04:00

I dislike both of them.

Obama has more of my issues but I don't believe he can give the country the leadership we need.
McCain has the leadership but I am sick of religion (specifically but not limited to fundamentalist Christianity) being pushed into politics and what is happening to the separation of church and state.

*I think we have to drill for oil within the United States while continuing to develop the technology that (hopefully one day) will enable us to become totally free from foreign oil sources, environmental groups be dammed.

*I think that a public education should be exactly that and non-sectarian in nature. I am opposed to the use of taxpayer funds for school vouchers.

*I am opposed to having an office for faith-based organizations and charities and stuff.

*I am opposed to the government giving any sort of money or grants of any nature to religious organizations that are involved in social services programs of any nature.

*I am opposed to the privatization of social security.

*I am opposed to allowing people who entered our country illegally to have a path to citizenship.

*I am opposed to providing illegal aliens with drivers' licenses and permission to stay on because they marry a United States citizen or have a baby on U.S. soil.

*I am opposed to forcing AIDS educators to talk only about abstinence as a way to prevent the transmission of HIV, both in our schools and abroad. I think that high school kids, with parental permission, should be told that no sex is the best however that condoms is one way that can prevent AIDS (but not all the time as rubbers do break). I think that adults in places where AIDS is a huge epidemic should be told about other options besides abstinence and to quit frucking monkeys if any of that is still going on. I think that anyone who contracts AIDS should be counseled to consider never having sex again or only having sex with someone else who has AIDS. If someone who has AIDS decides otherwise, they should definitely be taught safer sex practices if they don't know them and to be reminded about condoms, dental dams, and other forms of barriers. Furthermore, I think that men and women who engage in oral sex should be told about dental dams. Women together know about dental dams. Let's talk about sex. Oh, wait. More another time. I'm no Dr. Ruth.

*I am opposed to giving people new mortgages, especially those who were not credit-worthy in the first place when they got their loans. I understand that I don't know much about economics and that folks more qualified than I have other ideas about what to do with the world economic crisis.

*I am opposed to the crooks who helped to cause the crisis getting away with their huge salaries and no jail time.

*I am opposed to the government giving us tax stimulus checks although I am not rich enough to be able to afford to send mine back.

*I am opposed to all the so-called fixing that has been done to Medicare and this "donut hole" shit which causes much financial hardship among our senior citizens and disabled folks on Medicare.

*I don't know what should be done about the medical insurances stuff. I only know that something needs to be done.

*I am opposed to abortion except in cases of rape, incestuous rape, or to save the life of the mother. Although I am reluctant to go all the way with pro-life and outlaw abortion, I am equally reluctant to go all the way with pro-choice. A woman's life is valuable and a woman should be able to govern her own body.

*I am opposed to pharmacists not providing a pill to rape victims which would not allow the fetus to implant. I believe that once an egg and sperm unite, there is new life there. However, it is inexcusable that a pharmacist will not provide doctor-ordered medication to people on the basis of a religious belief. That a rape victim would have to travel to a different drug store is inexcusable. Better yet, let that pill be offered in every emergency room to every rape victim.

*The United States maintains a stabilizing military presence in many foreign places and the natives do not want us to leave. I believe that we should not pull out of Iraq all at once. I believe those decisions need to be made by military experts and not by the populace.

Nifty net polls tell me that the candidate who has the most of my issues (51%) is Ralph Nadar. I didn't even know he was running. I think I will write in my dog.

spike

Bugging Over a Frog

2008-07-31T21:57:00.003-04:00

sung to the tune of "House of the Rising Sun" sort of:

There is a frog in Bolzano
hangs on a cross does he.
With a beer and an egg in froggie hands,
green death upon a tree.

Now the Pope has come to Brixon fair
in the mountains near South Tyro
where the province people are incensed
saying the poor dead frog must go.

Now Franz is on a hunger strike
though the museum moved the art
now Martin Kippenberger's frog is on the third floor
yet the Catholic reaction is off the chart.

You can call these lyrics ill-mannered and crass.
You can call me a Pope-hating scum.
You can call me a disrespectful atheist
Cuz I find the fuss to be dumb.

*radical sapphoq, all rites reserved*

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article4436051.ece

After getting all of Pope Benedict's luggage loaded into the limo,

(and he doesn't travel light), the driver notices the Pope is still standing on the curb.

"Excuse me, Your Holiness," says the driver, "Would you please take your seat so we can leave?"

"Well, to tell you the truth," says the Pope, "they never let me drive at the Vatican

when I was a cardinal, and I'd really like to drive today."

"I'm sorry, Your Holiness, but I cannot let you do that. I'd lose my job!

What if something should happen?" protests the driver, wishing he'd never

gone to work that morning.

"Who's going to tell?" says the Pope with a smile.

Reluctantly, the driver gets in the back as the Pope climbs in behind the wheel.

The driver quickly regrets his decision when, after exiting the airport, the Pontiff floors it,

accelerating the limo to 205 kph. (Remember, the Pope is German.)

"Please slow down, Your Holiness!" pleads the worried driver, but the

Pope keeps the pedal to the metal until they hear sirens.

"Oh, dear God, I'm going to lose my license -- and my job!" moans the driver.

The Pope pulls over and rolls down the window as the cop approaches.

The cop takes one look at him, goes back to his motorcycle, and gets on the radio.

"I need to talk to the Chief," he says to the dispatcher.

The Chief gets on the radio and the cop tells him that he's stopped a limo going 205 kph.

"So bust him," says the Chief.

"I don't think we want to do that, he's really important," says the cop.

The Chief exclaims, "All the more reason!"

"No, I mean really important," says the cop.

The Chief then asks, "Who do you have there, the mayor?"

The cop says, "Bigger."

The chief asks, "A senator ?"

The cop says, "Bigger."

The chief asks, "The Prime Minister?"

The cop says, "Bigger."

"Blast it man," says the Chief, "Who is it?"

The cop says, "I think it's God!"

The Chief is even more put out by this. "What makes you think it's God?"

The cop says, "His chauffeur is the Pope."

*a joke traveling the internet*

Benjamin Collard is Collared in the Continuing Communion Caper Review

2008-07-31T03:03:00.007-04:00

Repercussions from the communion caper of June 29th continue. Now Webster Cook's student-senator friend Benjamin Collard is being collared by the fundie Catholic Campus Ministries for the same thing as his buddy. He is being charged with identical charges in fact: misconduct, disruptive conduct, and giving false identification.

Andrew Cook was impeached by the Student Senate and may be voted out of that office. A separate body, not the Senate, may or may not decide to throw him (and his buddy Benjamin Collard) out of school as in expel.

Meanwhile, sanity prevailed at the University of Minnesota and nothing is going to happen to P.Z. Myers there. P.Z. took a stolen consecrated wafer gotten from anonymous and stabbed it with a rusty nail. He then chucked it in his garbage can along with pages torn out of both a Koran and a Richard Dawkins book, a banana peel, and coffee grinds. Mark Shea got pissed off about that and called P.Z. Myers crazy. To his credit, Mark Shea did acknowledge that not all atheists are like that. Bill Donahue's contribution was to call the wafer wasting a form of discrimination. And then the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy (on July 29) said that P.Z. Myers had done a bad thing, made really bad arguments about how the rest of us aren't allowed to say bad things about other peoples' religions (gasp!), and called for a day of prayer and fasting sans sackcloth. Of course, P.Z. Myers should apologize with sincerity. The last just isn't going to happen. P.Z. Myers responded with a cartoon drawing with the caption, "Your crackers are not safe."

sapphoq says: In the style of LOLcats, P.Z. Myers might have done better to label the cartoon, "All yer crackers are belong to us."
If Jeebus would have just teleported out of the damned plastic baggie and then sent an e-mail assuring all of his followers that he was unharmed, the whole mediac mess could have been avoided.

http://www.myfoxorlando.com/myfox/pages/News/
Detail?contentId=7009782&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/07/21/politics/uwire/main4280808.shtml

http://scienceblogs.com/terrasig/2008/07/
crackergate_as_a_threat_to_the.php?
utm_source=sbhomepage&utm_medium=link&utm_content=channellink

http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/07/write_to_ucf.php

http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/07/the_great_desecration.php

http://catholicnewsagency.com/new.php?n=13368

http://markshea.blogspot.com/2008_07_01_archive.html#3556126510000458712

http://christiannewswire.com/news/517137313.html

http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/07/the_confraternity_of_catholic.php#comments

Crackers over Crackers 7/13/08

2008-07-13T00:48:00.005-04:00

"Once we all realize that none of us knows
what the hell any god might want or say,
and most especially not semi-literate, bigoted morons
who can barely speak, once we stop pretending
our books and mythologies are sacred enough to die or kill for,
or that we have the right to change anyone's mind by force or fervor,
then we might awaken to sunshine and laughter.
Until then, everything you know is bogus."

Thus Spake Guru Greenbaum, June 15, 2005

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

“It is hard to think of anything more vile than to intentionally desecrate the Body of Christ."
saith Catholic League president Bill Donohue over at:
http://www.catholicleague.org/release.php?id=1459

because oh noes, a Catholic student at the University of Central Florida was taking a communion wafer back to his pew http://www.wftv.com/news/16798008/detail.html in order to show a non-Catholic friend and then got man-handled by a woman who ceased only after the student Senator Webster Cook put the thing in his mouth.
He took the wafer to his dorm room for a week where it resided in a plastic baggie.

Bloggers weighed in pro and con, including the illustrious P.Z. Myers (and the Catholic League is now after his yob for it) who called the host a frackin' cracker and promised to do bad things to any communion wafer sent to him by readers.
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/07/its_a_goddamned_cracker.php#more

In turn some politician in Virginia became concerned for the safety of Catholics slated to attend the Republican convention in Myer's home state of Minnesota and wants extra security to protect them from him. (Gasp!) http://www.catholicleague.org/release.php?id=1460

The upshot was that student Cook returned the wafer after receiving death threats.
http://www.wftv.com/news/16806050/detail.html

To answer Bill Donahue regarding:
“It is hard to think of anything more vile than to intentionally desecrate the Body of Christ."

radical sapphoq says:
Yeah Bill, here's one.
Roman Catholic priests who RAPE little boys and girls.
Roman Catholic Dioceses who then move the priests to different parishes in order to COVER THE RAPES UP.
Oh, that's two.

Hey, I was raised a Roman Catholic.
I've never had to endure any man of the cloth groping me or trying to sex me up at a young age.
I did endure at least one nun in school not believing me when I tried to tell her that my mother was drinking alcoholically and violent.
Water over the dam.
I survived my childhood and teen-aged years.
Okay, so Webster Cook was in violation of Roman Catholic protocol by not eating the wafer before returning to his pew. And putting the wafer in a plastic baggie and keeping it for a week in his dorm room was probably distasteful or even lacking a certain amount of tact expected of a student Senator.

Webster Cook was insulted by being manhandled at a Mass.
Bill Donahue and some Roman Catholics somewhere are insulted that he took the wafer away.
I am insulted that priests have gotten away with kiddie rape and molestation.

Here's a memory from the archives:
I was forced by my alcoholic violent vindictive mother to attend a Roman Catholic High School. At that school, I was introduced to drinking, drugging, cheating, heresy, and a tad of groping teen sex. I also had a best friend in high school.
One day, my best friend in high school showed me a cache of communion wafers. She said she knew where they were kept in the school chapel. She invited me on a raid and I went with her. That raid was the first of many that both of us went on together. We always had something to snack on-- those little communion wafers.
Readers, be outraged if you will.
1. The statue of limitations has long since run out on this one.
2. The priests. And uh, (tm) who is thinking of the CHIL---LUMS?

Let the comments begin maybe.

Drinking on the Holidaze

2008-07-07T22:14:00.003-04:00

A bunch of folks in a bunch of places got arrested for driving while intoxicated over the holiday weekend. I used to drive around drunk and high years ago before I became abstinent. Based on that and subsequent experience with a stoned driver resulting in my t.b.i. later on, I have to say, "This is uncool, people." We have Mothers Against Drunk Driving; we have D.A.R.E.; we have Alateen; we have billboards with pictures of now dead people on them. None of it is enough.

I know a few people will say things like one can get a drunk driving charge from using mouthwash or the tests were biased or fixed or it was only once and blind dumb luck.
Quite frankly, I am tired of the excuses.
Folks who get drunk during the holidays, whether at barbecues or at bars, should stay put.
As in don't leave. As in take a cab or bus or sleep on the barroom floor or go home with a
friend or whatever.
Some towns have free taxi service for drunken prom kids or rowdy New Year's Eve
revelers.
Will places have to provide this stuff on other holidays because grown-ups can't police themselves???

Disease be damned.
You drink and drive you should serve some time in jail before being certified for a drug court program (if you are lucky enough to qualify for one).
You drug and drive you should serve some time in jail before being certified for a drug court program (if you are lucky enough to qualify for one).
Sorry folks.

What part of "drunken/drugged up drivers do kill people and cause permanent damage in the lucky survivors" don't you get?
Morons.

radical sapphoq

306 Arizona:
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2008/07/07/20080707az-holiday-duis0707-ON.html

1704 California:
http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_9809969

692 Ohio:
http://www.newsnet5.com/news/16807602/detail.html

More on Victoria and the Psychic 6/21/08

2008-06-21T10:31:00.003-04:00

credit: xkcd comics at http://xkcd.com

Actually, the psychic was really really wrong. Victoria is equipped with a G.P.S. system (because the school had "lost" her a couple of times before apparently) with a listening-in device.

And there is no male between the ages of 23 and 26 that Victoria is around. I tend to agree with some of the folks who commented on Daylight Atheism that if Victoria's mother had a boyfriend or relative or neighbor of that age (and Victoria hadn't been equipped with a listening device), that man would be sitting in a jail right now.

http://www.nugget.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1079288
and
http://www.citynews.ca/news/news_23845.aspx
and
http://www.daylightatheism.org/2008/06/the-harm-psychics-do.html

Those of you who are for the psychics will not like what Daylight Atheism readers have to say about it. The only thing I can tell you is that yes Virginia, psychics have been known to do some harm with their predictions.

radical sapphoq on Victoria and the psychic

The Politics of Autism; and a Story of a Psychic and an Autistic Child

2008-06-20T22:01:00.003-04:00

What's not in the news: the organization Autism Speaks (tm) is having shit fits again over anyone who dares to use their name. Some folks may remember when the organization went after an autistic girl for launching a parody website. The website is currently living at http://www.aspiesforfreedom.com/ntspeaks/. I encourage anyone who cares to go there and see what upset the organization Autism Speaks (tm).

Now Autism Speaks (tm) has issued a takedown order to Zazzle //and Zack of Aspie Web demanding that his teeshirts be pulled from the Zazzle site. The uh offending trademark violating (smirk) teeshirt can be seen over here at Aspie Web:
http://www.aspieweb.net/aspieweb-being-bullied-by-autism-speaks/ . Zazzle did write back to Zack stating that Autism Speaks (tm) did indeed contact Zazzle: http://www.aspieweb.net/proof-that-autism-speaks-is-attacking-autism-self-advocacy/
Zack made some other stuff now and it can be found at:
http://www.aspieweb.net/
aspieweb-vs-autism-speaks-fight-for-the-right-for-autistics-to-speak/

An excellent post by Amanda over at: http://ballastexistenz.autistics.org/?p=542#comment-173070
explains how Autism Speaks (tm) derives its' numbers and other stuff-- worth reading.

Meanwhile, Lawrence Benjamin Arnold has secured the domain http://www.autismspeaks.eu where he plans to focus on self-advocacy issues of autistics everywhere and particularly in Europe where autistics have a nice record of speaking out.
For one example see:
http://www.autism-hub.co.uk/autism-speaks-dont-speak-for-me/index.php

radical sapphoq says: Zach is correct. Autism Speaks (tm) does not speak for us yet the organization feels free to include us who can talk and wipe our own asses in their numbers. Something stinks there. Over at google news, there is no mention of the legal crap that Autism Speaks (tm) is pulling on Zack who is not supportive of their particular message. You know the one. The one that says that autism can/should/will be cured. That mercury in vaccines causes autism (has been disproven so thoroughly by scientists that it appears that Autism Speaks (tm) backed down on that one). That autism is a tragedy. Oh, wait. Only the kinds that make for a kid to be non-verbal and needing all kinds of extra help for activities of daily living. The rest of us can go rot. And since we won't quietly go away, Autism Speaks (tm) can conceivably come after any one of us that it can. Pissed off? Doesn't begin to describe my emotional state at the moment.

The blogger sapphoq is not affiliated with the organization known as Autism Speaks (tm) in any way, the blogger sapphoq did not ask Autism Speaks (tm) http://www.autismspeaks.org/
if she could use their trademarked name, the blogger sapphoq is not sponsored by Autism Speaks (tm) in any way. The blogger sapphoq has opinions.
http://www.publaw.com/fairusetrade.html
It is difficult to blog about what an organization is doing without mentioning the name of the organization.

In the news: an autistic girl in Canada. Seems the educational aide went to a psychic who asked her, "Are you working with a girl whose name starts with a V?" (yes). "She is being sexually abused by a guy between the ages of 23 and 26." The school did the only logical thing-- Children's Aid Society was called. (Americans: think Child Abuse Hotline or D.S.S.).
Mom was then presented with a list of "behaviors" that could possibly constitute signs and symptoms of sexual abuse. Mom protested. Victoria is severely autistic. The Children's Aid Society fortunately was not willing to put stock in a psychic's tip. The report was taken and then quickly dismissed. Mom has sought legal advice regarding the possibility of lawsuit. Meanwhile, Victoria is not going to school. Mom is not going to work. The two are home together all day.

http://www.nationalpost.com/most_popular/story.html?id=597195

http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20080618/
psychic_abuse_080618/20080618/?hub=TorontoNewHome

http://www.shortnews.com/start.cfm?id=71516

http://timestranscript.canadaeast.com/newstoday/article/329416

http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5hM0zeYRJKc_mp6Lk1JVDqVLIdwSA

http://www.barrieadvance.com/barrieadvance/article/108266

radical sapphoq says: What stupidity! The "for entertainment only" psychic prompted this whole thing. And as almost always, it is the kids who suffer. Victoria was in a self-contained classroom with five other kids. She is non-verbal, entering puberty, lacks inhibitions. The principal interpreted licking a table and gyrating against staff bodies as being indicative of sexual abuse. Some people don't have the sense they were born with.

The psychic should be prosecuted as being fraudulent, the teacher's aide should be fired, and Victoria should be going to school somewhere.

Alex Barton, Asperger's and General Public MisEducation

2008-06-13T19:41:00.002-04:00

The family of Alex Barton, the little Aspergian misbehaving five year old kindergardener, has decided to sue the school district for his treatment by teacher Wendy Portillo. It is reported that although he enjoyed talking on television, Alex is still evidencing signs of trauma. An attorney from the Liberty Legal Institute's Dallas branch office states that the suit is not without merit. Public opinion as expressed at the end of another article-- published by the T.C. Palm on June 7, 2008 range from "Oh noes Alex will have to goto court and that sucks," to "Give 'em a buck and be done with it," to "Yup, there is a case there." The blog Thinking in Metaphors over at
http://autisticnation.typepad.com/thinking_in_metaphors/2008/05/wendy-portillos/
comments/page/2/ is the place to go for a better understanding of the legal issues involved.

Autism, along with many other disabilities, continue to be misunderstood by the general public. Now I know that the general public does not have to understand every disability. But kids in a regular classroom should have the benefit of some accurate information. The real bother of the whole thing is that while "inclusive education" is the current buzzword, kids in general are not given any explanations about the conditions and disorders that may be effecting a few of their classmates. Thus a good friend of mine was left recently to explain Tourette's to his nine year old son. Nine year old was accused of not demonstrating an, uh, inclusive attitude because he had yelled "shut up" when a classmate kept cursing in the classroom one day. Apparently some regulation or concern about private medical information prevented the teacher from offering any useful information. The same reg or concern prompted the teacher to claim (erroneously in my estimation) that my friend did not have a right to explain Tourette's to his son either. Talk about insanity. If kids cannot talk about their differences, how are they ever going to come to an understanding of those differences? In my estimation, "Don't ask, don't tell" does not work when it comes to building community.

Now we have a teacher who decided to have a bunch of five year olds tell another five year old what they don't like about him or his behavior. Uncool for any child to have to go through. That teacher needs to find a different line of work. And in light of the lawsuit, the Florida school system would do well to inservice all of its' teachers on autistic spectrum disorder. Autism is indeed a broad spectrum of disorders. The three that illustrate a wide range of intellectual prowess and behavioral manifestations are classic (Kanner's) autism, Asperger's, and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (P.D.D.-nos). [There are two other disorders included in the spectrum which probably should be moved to a different category.] Having been forced to sit through a few "sensitivity training sessions" myself, my own prejudice is that they don't do much. I still hold that the information should be offered to teachers as well as to the students and their parents. It is at least a beginning. Furthermore, any teacher who works in an inclusive classroom ought to be dually certified-- in special education as well as in elementary or secondary education (or whatever their primary field is).

The general assumption that "all people with autism" are screaming self-stimming innocents and perpetual children is one that I personally am a bit tired of dealing with. Just last night on secondlife dot com, my avatar tried to explain to someone who was annoyed with my adopted cousin's verbal behavior that yes indeed Aspergians can be verbally obnoxious just like anybody else. The avatar to whom this short explanation was directed had protested, "He doesn't have autism! Autistics don't provoke people." Interesting how any of us can suddenly know more than the neuropsych people who have spent years in testing and observation and diagnosing of a variety of disorders and conditions.

Autism in all of its' manifestations is not something that needs curing as the Autism Squeaks parents would have us believe. Nor is it something that should be celebrated in all of its' aspects. If the Aspergian bank teller wishes to keep his job, he needs to attend to matters of personal hygiene just like the rest of us. An autistic adult who is not able to communicate her basic needs or desires certainly has a tough life journey that not many of us would envy or want to emulate. Similar things could be said of any disabling condition or disorder. There was a time when I thought that traumatic brain injury was the worst thing that could happen to me. Then it did happen through the actions of a driver who really should not have gotten stoned before getting behind the wheel of his automobile. Traumatic brain injury is not the worst thing. And autism is not truly the thing that needs curing. The worst thing is ignorance and it is ignorance that needs healing.

radical sapphoq

References:

http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/2980678/29447288

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2008/jun/07/alex-barton-family-plans-to-sue/

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-0612autisticboy,0,5446826.story

http://www.libertylegal.org/

Wendy Portillo Speaks, after a fashion

2008-05-31T17:15:00.002-04:00

Here is the link:
http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2008/may/29/
police-report-reveals-teachers-side-incident-which/
?feedback=1#comments

According to Wendy Portillo:
1. Alex was voted out of the classroom for the rest of the day, not for good.
2. Alex was under a desk, pushing it up with his feet.
3. Second discipline referral that day.
4. Ms. Portillo wanted Alex to hear from other kids the impact of his behavior.
5. Ms. Portillo stated there are inaccuracies in a written report.

Alex's short list of crimes accused of by other students as noted by Alex to a police officer:
1. eating paper
2. picking his nose
3. eating his boogers
4. biting his shoelaces

Alex's list of bad things about Ms. Portillo as noted by Alex to a police officer:
1. She told Alex Barton that she hates him [at the time of the incident].
2. She scratched him.
3. She stepped on his shoelaces.
4. She pulled his shirt collar.

N.B. Ms. Portillo and other kids in the class refuted the last three allegations from Alex.

At least one parent has stated that Ms. Portillo is:
1. exceptional
2. caring
3. top-notch

My good friend Jeremy Crow (and those who are unfamiliar with his writing really ought to seek out his blogs) does not defend the teacher however he does point out that there has to be more to this story than is written. To that I certainly agree. I have to wonder if this incident was isolated or if it was a larger part of a long chain of incidents. Perhaps there have been other on-going issues and problems and this was the end result.

What the teacher did, as reported-- in my opinion-- was morally and ethically wrong.
This situation does bring up questions about inclusive education, the availability of aides in each classroom, teacher supervision, and the accuracy of testimony of children. I don't have any answers, just a bunch of thoughts and suppos-eds.

Seems to me that this incident surely was not the first indication that Alex Barton and Ms. Wendy Portillo were having a problem. As the adult and a teacher, Ms. Portillo has the responsibility to seek out supervision when there is a child that she finds extremely vexing in her classroom that she is either unwilling or unable to deal with.

The questions of inclusive classrooms vs. resource room pull-outs vs. special education classes I shall leave to those better qualified to answer. http://autism.about.com/b/2008/05/30/
your-thoughts-requested-how-far-should-teachers-go-to-include-children-with-autism.htm
My own observations are anecdotal in nature only and thus aren't anything to base a course of action on. Here I must point out that Alex Barton was in the process of testing on May 27th and now has been labeled as having Asperger's and A.D.H.D. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/05/30/earlyshow/
living/parenting/main4140155.shtml

The question about the accuracy of testimony of children-- children are not always very accurate. There are court cases and things written about elsewhere that point this out. To wit, the McMartin case and the children satanic sexual abuse scares of the 80s and 90s hold some examples.
http://www.newamerica.net/publications/articles/2001/the_devil_in_the_nursery

http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/criminal_mind/psychology/mcmartin_daycare/5.html

http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/criminal_mind/psychology/mcmartin_daycare/9.html

http://abusearticles.wordpress.com/2007/12/02/
investigative-issues-in-ritual-abuse-cases-part-1-and-2-1994/

http://www.religioustolerance.org/ra_mcmar.htm

http://www.religioustolerance.org/ra_case.htm

http://www.rickross.com/reference/false_memories/fsm66.html

http://www.illinoisfms.org/200505ar.html

The question about the accuracy of testimony of the accused-- let's just say that adults have been known to be reckless with the truth in a cover-your-ass world. What will come of this remains to be seen. I gather from perusing other blogs that the Dr. Phil show folks http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2008/
may/29/30gt-autistic-student-mom-receive-worldwide-hed/
have called Melissa Barton, looking for an appearance on his show. And that Alex's mother is talking about suing.

Ms. Portillo continues under administrative duties as of this writing. And Alex continues to not attend school, apparently due to his mother's wishes. He did get to talk on the telephone with a schoolmate and will get to visit this summer.

radical sapphoq

Voted Out of Kindergarten-- Alex Barton

2008-05-28T00:15:00.002-04:00

The blond-haired little boy stared back at me from a photo distributed on the w.w.w. [w.w.w. = world wide wasteoftime]. In a parody of democracy in action, Alex Barton was voted out of kindergarten for the remainder of the school day last Wednesday. His crime? Having a neurological condition called Asperger's and some associated behavioral problems. The teacher-- a Wendy Portillo-- cajoled her class into voting. And reportedly had children describe what they didn't like about young Alex. One reported adjective was "disgusting." Two kids voted to keep Alex in the classroom that day. The majority voted that he be excluded. Alex who was just returned to the class from the principal's office for his behavior spent the rest of the school day in the nurse's office. Needless to say, Alex has not been thrilled about his experience.

Although folks on both sides of the issue have resorted to name-calling, what I find even more repugnant are the public comments which support Wendy Portillo in her actions. Her excuse ran something like teaching the children about tallying. I wasn't there but I have an opinion anyways-- bovine fecal matter to that. Was the teacher lying about the whys and wherefores of her ill-advised election activity a la Survivor fashion? Nah, she was just being reckless with the truth.

Yes, I know how difficult it can be to maintain reasonable discipline and order in any rowdy bunch of human beings. Been there, done that. Yes I am intimately acquainted with the cluster of symptoms which comprise Asperger's. Of course I know how aggravating it is to herd cats.

I also know the frustration of living with atypical neurology.

I do not belong to the Autism Squeaks camp. [Autism Speaks but not for me, a curebie organization of unhappy parents]. I don't understand why forcing eye contact is such a big deal to neurotypicals, don't wish to blend in, will not give up my passions, and certainly will continue to celebrate diversity. I hate all clothing that is not cotton. I detest polyester and nylon in particular. I don't use makeup or wear high heels. I used to stare at the dust specks illuminated by the sunlight pouring through a window. I was clumsy rather than graceful and the last to be picked for any gym class team. I have been accused of staring too long, daydreaming, having obsessions with the things that are of intense interest to me, being intense or too intense or thinking too much about weird things or the wrong things, eating food in a specific order rather than varying what is on the fork from bite to bite, eating the same thing for breakfast daily, not making small talk, not caring about small talk or the lives of celebrities, being a geek or a space cadet or pedantic, not fitting in. And worse, daring to be content with my own company and my own internal focus and my own way of being.

No Child Left Behind. One Child Voted Out.

radical sapphoq says: A huge phooey to Wendy Portillo. As an adult and as a teacher, I cannot believe that she didn't have other options for dealing with a misbehaving five year old.
While I support reasonable discipline and consequences for one's actions, I abhor what happened to Alex Barton. I sincerely hope that he will find a new classroom where he is valued for who he is, a teacher who knows about the issues that people on the broad autistic spectrum face and who has a better arsenal of tools for keeping order in a classroom.

Bev over at Autism Square 8 has an excellent list of who to write to should anyone feel so inclined:
http://aspergersquare8.blogspot.com/2008/05/not-special-support-alex-barton.html

Educate yourselves if you wish to. Here is a partial incomplete list which includes two news articles from the same newspaper in Florida and some other bloggers who are blogging about this crapola:

excellent thoughts about this whole mess
http://lastcrazyhorn.wordpress.com/2008/05/25/the-golden-rule/

Laura Hershey
http://crip-power.com/2008/05/27/thoughts-on-alex-barton-and-the-way-we-organize/

the politics of exclusion
http://qw88nb88.wordpress.com/2008/05/25/mend-the-link/

Amanda
http://ballastexistenz.autistics.org/?p=538

an interview with Alex Barton and his mother
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/05/27/earlyshow/main4130288.shtml

two Palm Beach Post articles-- links working as of 5/28/08
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/treasurecoast/content/tcoast/epaper/
2008/05/27/0527slteacher.html#comments

and
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/treasurecoast/content/tcoast/epaper/
2008/05/23/0523slclassvote.html?cxntlid=inform_artr

No I didn't die

2008-05-10T14:56:00.004-04:00

I've been one of the clone-drones participating in Linden Lab's SecondLife:
http://www.secondlife.com/

where indeed there are political discussions and pretty much everything else in the virtual world as there is in real life. There is even a group or two who protest the rampant consumerism that exists in SecondLife. Anonymous is there, replete with flying phantom boxes and pictures of old men getting it on with other old men and bedsores. Anonymous has land there on SecondLife (no I won't say where. Let's just say that as a bisexual woman, I am willing to ignore the ribbing of gays and feminists because I support Anonymous when it comes to Scientology.) A.A. meetings are there. So is an active Aspie community as well as some t.b.i. survivors.

A brief synopsis of what I think about some of the current events going on:

1. It appalls me that President Bush welcomed the Pope with such open arms. Used to be that fundamentalist Christians were equating the Pope and the Vatican and the Roman Catholic Church with such things like the Beast, the mark of the Beast, and going to hell. Okay, so politically the President couldn't snub the Pope I suppose. But did Bush really have to go pick up the Pope himself? On the plus side, as far as I know, no rounds of golf were shared by the two of them during the Pope's stateside visit.

2. I am sorry that the government is giving most of us a rebate check because the country is in financial debt. On the other hand, I could use the money. Anyone who really hates the idea is welcome to send me their cash.

3. I am weary of the Clinton/Obama run-off. I want them to get it over with and just pick whoever is going to run on the democratic ticket. And I am not convinced that the country will be better off with either of those two as president (if the Democrats "win.") I mean, some folks wanted a Democrat-controlled Congress. So far I haven't seen any great things come out of this Congress.

4. I hate VESID.

spike

Don't Panic Folks. Antidepressants Still Do Work. 2/28/08

2008-02-28T19:13:00.001-05:00

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/568939_print <--- That is the link to the print-friendly version (easier on the eyes to read) of an article regarding the literature review in question that has been popularly and erroneously reported by the press with inflammatory headlines such as "Gasp! Oh noes! Anti-depressants do not work."

[N.B. http://www.bugmenot.com/view/www.medscape.com will yield several user names and passwords that one can utilize to view the article.]

According to the Medscape article Study Identifies Bias in Favor of Publishing Positive Antidepressant Trials written by Marlene Busko, "The team identified the phase 2 and 3 clinical-trial programs for 12 antidepressants approved by the FDA between 1987 and 2004, which involved 12,564 adult patients. They also determined whether the FDA judged the studies to be positive or negative with respect to primary end points."

Actually, the literature review (which was published in The New England Journal of Medicine on January 17, 2008) maintains that S.S.R.I.s are more effective than placebos; however not so much more effective as the public has been led to believe. In other words, this review says yeah the stuff works but maybe the difference between the drugs and the placebos are not as great as the public has been led to believe.

a).The FDA uses the data that is favorable to the purposes of the FDA (in deciding to license a drug for use).
1). Negative results are sometimes used by the FDA as showing positive results.
2). Negative results are sometimes ignored by the FDA.

b). A bias may exist in reporting or people do not always have access to negative research study results.
1). Peer review journals may not accept negative research studies' results for publication at a similar rate to the acceptance of positive research studies results.
2). Some researchers for whatever reasons may not submit those studies.

In terms of the numbers of test subjects, in many cases more people were used in the discounted research studies than in some of the studies that were reported/factored into the FDA decisions to license a drug. The discounted studies often had a higher reliability factor than the ones that the FDA based their licensing decisions on.

This particular study was a review of the literature available rather than its' own research study using . The reviewers found that a bias exists in the public reporting of results rather than that the "antidepressants don't work" as incorrectly reported by the popular press.

The team was quoted in the Busko Medscape article as saying:
"Each drug, when submitted to a meta-analysis, was superior to placebo. On the other hand, the true magnitude of each drug's superiority to placebo was less than a diligent review of the literature would indicate."

There was no mention in the original literature review of the distinction between those who are clinically depressed and those who are experiencing situational depression. The purpose of the original literature review was not to take a side on the shrinks rule and N.A.M.I. mommies know best vs. the anti-psychiatry debate.

The reporting of this literature review by the popular media (e.g. newspapers) has been absolutely horrible and inaccurate.

radical sapphoq

cross-posted to some other places.

Leak on Wikileaks, Leak On

2008-02-23T22:49:00.003-05:00

Any of you who have been following the drama over at Wikileaks will be glad to know that following this here linkage: http://88.80.13.160/wiki/Wikileaks will get you there (a mirror site from Sweden) for the time being anyways. Alternate linkage outside of the United States was part of the original plan-- to have sites set up in various countries should the courts of one country succeed in getting a shutdown order. Here's another one, this one is based in England: http://www.wikileaks.org.uk/wiki/Wikileaks .

Wikileaks protects whistle-blowers from corporations (or governments) who would much rather not have folks tattling on any suspicious practices. Recently, a Swiss bank challenged Wikileaks and now the site is facing a court battle with the United States versus responsible exercise of the First Amendment. Bloggers across the internet have protested the February 15 court decision and this blogger too joins in the fray. Buzz-flash has quite a few things to say about this whole mess over at: http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/contributors/1545 .

Quite amazing to me is that the court case took place in the United States. While the order to erase the D.N.S. from U.S. servers will certainly not hold up on appeal,
http://commons.globalintegrity.org/
2008/02/us-court-order-shuts-down-activist-site.html<--- here
it is disconcerting that this case involving documents regarding a Swiss bank doing business in the Cayman Islands made it court on United States soil. Still, we are far better off living here than in places like Egypt where one can be severely physically beaten for dissident web-surfing and document leaking or in Red China or even Vietnam where folks have been imprisoned for similar activities.

radical sapphoq
cross-posted all over

Wikileaks

first amendment

censorship

sapphoq

Autistic Kids Grow Up...

2008-02-14T01:19:00.001-05:00

Christopher DeGroot had autism. Because he reportedly would bolt from the apartment that he lived in with his parents Nicolaas and Agnes, they locked the windows and doors. Because they needed to go do things like feed their horses without their son, they left him alone in the apartment which was secured against his escape into traffic. Their 19 year old son who had severe autism was left alone in
their apartment for several hours a day so they could go do chores. In my opinion,
leaving a severely disabled man alone in an apartment without supervision is wrong
on so many levels. Even if Christopher DeGroot possessed the knowledge of what to
do during an emergency, the deadbolt on the door and the locks on the windows precluded any means to get out. And if he was unable to act during an emergency on
his own behalf due to his disabling condition, he should have had a (hired if necessary) caretaker supervising him in his parents' absence.

On Sunday May 14th, 2006 the apartment did indeed catch on fire. Two family cats were saved. One firefighter was injured. 77K of damage was caused to the apartment building and stuff inside of it. Christopher, then 19, had to be airlifted to a hospital in Portland, Oregon. The burns covered 80% of his body. He died on Friday May 19th, 2006.

Nicolaas and Agnes reported to the police station as requested for questioning. They were charged with first-degree arson and first- or second-degree manslaughter. (Report of the manslaughter charges differ in degree). The fire was thought to be caused by arson, specifically by Nicolaas and Agnes DeGroot setting fire to paper in the middle of the living room floor and then leaving their son to burn while they left to feed the bloody horses.

Yeah, they had their day in court where they (via separate attorneys) were allowed to Alford plea the charges. An Alford plea means that the defendants admit that the State can prove its' case against them, but falls short of admitting any guilt on the part of the defendants. The original charges were pled down to criminal negligent homicide.

Two people testified that Nicolaas and Agnes De Groot were cool and devoted parents. Nice to their autistic son, caring about his needs, blah blah blah. The judge decided that the parents did not intend any bad vibes when they left their severely autistic son alone in the apartment without any supervision. He sentenced Nicolaas and Agnes DeGroot to six months in the county jail.

This is a case that in my opinion should never have been allowed to be Alford plea'd.

Autistic kids do grow up to be autistic adults unless their uh devoted parents kill them.

spike

Parents charged with first-degree arson and first- or second-degree manslaughter:
http://democratherald.com/articles/2006/05/22/news/local/news02.txt
http://www.cityofalbany.net/services/news_releases/show_item.php?id=521

Alford pleas and a sentence to six month in the county jail:
http://www.dhonline.com/articles/2008/02/08/news/local/2loc01_jail.txt#blogcomments

Christopher DeGroot
autism
manslaughter