Michael Moore Debates Wolf Blitzer

In response to Vilon’s request for opinions about Michael Moore’s appearance on The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer, I finally found the time to chase the video at YouTube. Oddly, the same video direct from CNN wouldn’t load on any of the computers I use.

Both of the fellows have their specifical style and approach. Moore is a provacateur, whereas Blitzer is more nearly an announcer. So Moore presents lots of opinions and information and asks for commentary, apology, and response. He’s also generous enough to offer compliments when warranted. Blitzer merely facilitates transitions from one chunk of news to the next, or one question to the next. Blitzer assiduously deflects questions and avoids facing up to Moore’s debate, while Moore answers many (though not all) questions directly. Of the two, I’m much more inclined to trust Moore, despite his open partisanship — especially considering his partisanship is for the American people instead of monied interests. And besides, the slick production values and unruffled equanimity of news anchors gets tiresome after a while.

Even with a relatively long interview (by network news standards, almost 11 mins.), they don’t resolve any issues. Perhaps that’s not the role of the mainstream media (“MSM”), but Moore clearly went in asking for an apology, as well as why CNN, through its medical correspondent, was so intent on criticizing Sicko and the facts the movie presents. Moore believes that Sicko‘s presentation stands up to scrutiny, just as Fahrenheit 911 has stood up for three years now, but CNN’s muckracking doesn’t. The issue is largely swept aside by Blitzer, despite Moore’s repeated jabs and refocusing.

Best Healthcare in the World?

Patient ‘dumping’ probe widens

The Los Angeles city attorney’s office is investigating whether a Hollywood hospital violated multiple laws when it attempted to leave a paraplegic man on a gurney at the Midnight Mission — hours before he was left in a skid row gutter, officials said Monday.

A video, filmed by security cameras at the Midnight Mission early Thursday, shows two workers from Hollywood Presbyterian arriving by ambulance and trying to wheel the man, who is strapped down to the gurney, into the mission courtyard. They are confronted by security guards, who, according to mission officials, asked about the man’s follow-up care.

[…]

The video widens the probe into what happened to the man, who witnesses said was later left in a gutter by the driver of a van hired by the hospital. As of late Monday, he was a patient at County-USC Medical Center.

This earlier article describes that later act in more detail:

A paraplegic man wearing a soiled hospital gown and a broken colostomy bag was found crawling in a gutter in skid row in Los Angeles on Thursday after allegedly being dumped in the street by a Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center van, police said.

The incident, witnessed by more than two dozen people, was described by police as a particularly outrageous case of “homeless dumping” that has plagued th downtown area.

[…]

Witnesses shouted at the female driver of the van, “Where’s his wheelchair, where’s his walker?”

Gary Lett, an employee at Gladys Park, near where the incident occurred, said the woman driving the van didn’t reply, but proceeded to apply makeup and perfume before driving off.

“She didn’t make any attempt to help him,” Lett said. “He was in bad shape. He was incoherent.”

This is not an isolated incident.

It’s easy to point the finger at the workers and the hospital, but that won’t provide the resources and services these people need. Christian charity won’t either.

(Hat Tip)

HIV in Africa: An Economist Chimes In

Interesting. Very interesting. If we want to help Africa with AIDS, we should help with herpes and foster capitalism.

Another Thing to Worry About

We’re all doomed.

Health Bleg

A few of you may be aware that I suffer from a chronic juvenile-onset rheumatoid condition.  Blood work has ruled out ordinary rheumatoid arthritis – of course, I can’t just have the disease that everybody gets, I have to be special.  I’ve seen a doctor about it; essentially, if I want to, I can spend thousands of dollars chasing from specialist to specialist and maybe eventually get a name attached to it, which will have no impact on the treatment options: anti-inflammatories and painkillers.  (Although in fairness to modern medicine, knowing which exact rheumatoid condition it is would probably let them give me the best possible scrip.)

Symptomatically, I go for days, weeks or even months without the slightest twinge, then I generally get a series of painful attacks in one or both ankles, feet and knees – thank you Jesus, so far not the hands – sometimes with a loss of range of motion but lately more often not. This intermittent status is problematic, because as a lazy  and short-sighted idiot, the long pain-free periods allow me to mentally justify blowing off taking the glucosamine/chondritin and such that would alleviate the condition over the long term. (“I feel fine – why choke down five enormous pills every day?”)

I know what to do long-term – take my supplements, get regular gentle exercise for the joints, and keep my weight down. One out of three isn’t bad! (It’s 33%, and thus an F. – Ed.)

Short-term, I’m pretty stumped. Ibuprofen helps a little bit. Aspirin helps a little bit. Prescription anti-inflammatories help a little bit. Physical-therapy type exercises help a little bit. Basically, lots of things help a little bit.

Unfortunately, a little bit translates to “a reduction from soul-searing please-kill-me pain to soul-burning please-knock-me-unconscious pain.” Not good enough, in other words. And while the pain is good for my soul, there are times when my soul is burnished enough, thanks, and could use a break.

And thus I turn to the blogosphere! Give me your nostrums, your patent remedies, your grandmotherly hand-me-downs yearning to be tried. I’m perfectly willing to give the placebo effect a shot, so don’t hold back on the irradiated-monkey-urine cures. (But I already know that copper bracelets don’t do squat, so I can’t get a placebo effect from that.) Basically, anything that you or someone you know has tried and found helpful, I’ll give a shot. General non-arthritis analgesics are very welcome, too. Nutritional advice is welcome. Go nuts.

If you like me, think of it as a chance to assign a debt of gratitude. If you hate me, think of it as your chance to poison a right-winger, with no possibility that you’ll be caught. Thanks!