nolentem trahunt fata

As anyone reading the news knows, President Obama has declared the H1N1 (swine) influence a national emergency (http://www.wtop.com/?nid=106&sid=1793721; http://www.flu.gov/professional/federal/h1n1emergency10242009.html). As reported, this is to allow "hospitals move emergency rooms offsite to speed treatment and protect noninfected patients," or "to set up an alternative screening location for patients away from the hospital’s main campus," among other uses.

veritas curat

I have one piece of advice to everyone about this H1N1 pandemic: Don't panic!

From my completely unscientific observation it would seem about 99% of people fall into two categories:

1. Those who are swept up in the hysteria and act as if the sky is falling.
2. Those who are ignoring the situation completely as if nothing is happening.

We need to maintain a little perspective. Yes, the situation serious. Keep in mind that people have died, so this is more than just a tummy ache. On the other hand this is not Ebola either. The truth lies somewhere in the middle.

quot homines tot sententiae

Last week, the national news was hit with headlines about Keith Bardwell, a justice of the peace in Louisiana's Tangipahoa Parish (http://www.wtop.com/?nid=104&sid=1786708).  The articles revolve around his refusal to marry an interracial couple. His action has stirred up a whirlwind around him, which include Louisiana's governor Bobby Jindal calling for an investigation.

Allow me to preface my comments by saying that I unequivocally disagree with Mr. Bardwell's opinion. In terms of interracial couples, I have dated interracially myself. In fact, all of my dates have been interracial (I can only assume black women are just not interested in me). As far as the children of interracial couples, I have many friends whose children seem quite well-adjusted. That includes my own nieces. Therefore, do I think Mr. Bardwell is wrong? Yes.

vincit qui se vincit

Yesterday I participated in my first 5K race. It was the Mike Tyler 5K at Watkins Mill High School (http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/watkinsmillhs/mike_tyler/mike_tyler09.pdf). Considering I am so new to this my only goal was to finish, and finish in a reasonable amount of time. Well, I did finish, and I managed to do it in 29:50. I think that was pretty good considering I was expecting something closer to 35 minutes.

Remember, this was a high school event. The part that amazed me was how many of the teenage athletes I beat. I guess I have conditioned myself much better than they did. I was surprised by how many were out of breath climbing the hills of the course. To any of those kids I say: "You're half my age. You should have done better." Actually, I cannot complain. I am sure any one of them wipe the floor with me in their chosen sport. At least I can also say I'm in the best shape of my life.

ubi non accusator ibi non iudex

Last night, all I could say was "I just want to get home." I realize that traffic in and around DC is nuts on a good day. Of course, yesterday had the added fun of rain. First observation: Washingtonians have no clue how to drive in weather.

primum non nocere

I only have one thing to say in response to the congressional bickering about health care reform:

It does not matter what Congress finally passes. If the legislation contains the influence of the pharmaceutical industry, it will be bad for us all. Of course the pharmaceutical industry is not the only one trying to get in on the action. The insurance industry wants its say (http://www.wtop.com/?nid=116&sid=1783734).

naturalia non sunt turpia

I was doing a little research on the IRS website and I discovered an interesting line of reasoning. In particular, I wanted to know what medical expenses are deductible (http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p502.pdf). I found an interesting paragraph, pretty much because it was the paragraph that answered my original question:

ophidia in herba

Yesterday, this headline caught my attention: "CDC official downplays risk from swine flu vaccine" (http://www.wtop.com/?nid=106&sid=1661303). I liked the use of the word downplays. This is certainly another use of media spin used to encourage people to take the pharmaceutical method of so-called prevention. For a transcript of that episode of CNN's "State of the Union" go here.

According to the news article Dr. Schuchat is trying to clear up misinformation about the H1N1 vaccine. I ask, "What about her disinformation?" She says that "everything we know right now suggests a very good safety profile for the vaccine." She insists that "the seasonal flu vaccine is made exactly the same way as this H1N1 vaccine," rather than mentioning any novelty of this year's vaccine.

cum hoc ergo propter hoc

My loyal readers (all two or three of you out there) have most likely noticed my unabashed bashing of the current vaccine situation over the past few posts. Allow me a moment to change directions and start bashing the statin mania. As you can see I still have the pharmaceutical industry squarely in my sights.

Wikipedia defines a statin as "a class of drugs that lower cholesterol levels in people with or at risk of cardiovascular disease." As you can guess, I take issue with that entire concept. The question I propose is "What effects does low cholesterol levels have on cardiovascular disease?"

ad pondus omnium

In my daily search for news I ran across this article describing a study considering the effect of diet on pilot performance:

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=106&sid=1779702

At first glance I knew I needed to see the study for myself. So far I have managed to find this abstract:

https://cdmrpcures.org/ocs/index.php/mhrf/mhrf09/paper/view/1492

qui tacet consentire videtur

Has anyone been following what is going on in Massachusetts? And when I say "what is going on" I mean Senate Bill 2028 "An Act Relative to Pandemic and Disaster Preparation and Response in the Commonwealth." (http://www.mass.gov/legis/bills/senate/186/st02/st02028.htm) I find myself unable to express my true opinion of this bill without turn this into an R rated blog. But don't take my word for it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjVuBg4LpcQ

I find myself wondering who resurrected George Orwell and got him to write legislation? Only he could write such fascist drivel. I am flabbergasted. Do the citizens of Massachusetts really know what their elected officials are doing? Do those elected officials really know what they are doing? Did they actually read the bill before voting yea? Or did they think the Bill of Rights was recently repealed?

I sincerely hope the citizens of Massachusetts take this legislation to court as soon as it passes into law. This article has a good listing of the violations posed by this bill: http://www.naturalnews.com/026934_health_public_health_quarantine.html. We can all say we have no need for this to become precedent. Silence is the last thing we need. We must fight this encroachment upon our freedoms.

petitio principii

I spent yesterday and today thinking about one of the swine flu stories I caught while watching yesterday's broadcast of Good Morning America. This particular story talked of Jim Shrode who nearly died of the swine flue (http://a.abcnews.com/GMA/surving-swine-flu/story?id=8777207). Please, allow me to state unequivocally that I do not wish to minimize Mr. Shrode's ordeal. I firmly believe every life is precious. I am positive Mr. Shrode's family would agree. Also, since I am not a physician, this entire post is simply speculation.

compos mentis

Being the geek I am, I have all of my web browsers on whatever desktop or laptop I use set to my Google homepage. I positioned at the very top of the center column a listing of the top five headlines local to the DC metro area. This morning I was struck by the fact that of the top five headlines, four had something to do with the flu. I saw the following:

cessante ratione legis cessat ipsa lex

A side effect of what I've seen and read over the last two years has led me to the conclusion that our government has gotten to big for its own good. I started with the goal of simply getting myself healthier. While I think I have had radical success to that end, it feels like I've managed to do that in spite of the government.