Archive for October, 2005
October 28th, 2005 | 
Author: [ Reading time: 3 - 4 minutes ]
..and well they should be. To kill ill and dying patients, because YOU have no hope in the face of catastrophe….makes YOU a murderer…not a caretaker.
I hope they lose their jobs…as high up the hospital chain as they can go….
Dozens subpoenaed in hospital deaths
Louisiana attorney general investigates fatalities after Katrina
By Drew Griffin and Kathleen Johnston
CNNWednesday, October 26, 2005; Posted: 11:59 p.m. EDT (03:59 GMT)
(CNN) — Louisiana Attorney General Charles Foti Jr. has issued 73 subpoenas in an investigation into allegations that euthanasia may have taken place at one of the hospitals flooded by Hurricane Katrina, he told CNN Wednesday night.
The subpoenas were served on employees of all levels at Memorial Medical Center, which is owned by Tenet Healthcare, because “cooperation, lately, has not been as good as I had hoped,” Foti said.
The subpoenas require that people appear before investigators for questioning.
“Some people were not coming forward. We learned Tenet sent out a letter that had a chilling effect,” Foti said. “We had no choice but to issue these subpoenas.”
“They [Tenet] seem to be in a position of protecting themselves, while we are just trying to get to the facts of what happened at the hospital,” the attorney general said.
CNN obtained the memo — dated October 14 — to which Foti was referring.
In it, Tenet’s assistant general counsel, Audrey Andrews, advised staff members that “in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, you may be contacted by a government representative or a representative of the media.”
“In fairness to you, if you are contacted by a representative of a state or federal agency, or if you are contacted by the media, you may wish to first confer with legal counsel. You have certain legal rights about which you should be aware.
“First, you have the right to decide whether or not you wish to be interviewed. You can consent or decline. The decision as to whether or not you consent to be interviewed is yours alone,” Andrews said.
However, she added that if anyone spoke to investigators, they were obliged to “provide truthful information in response to questioning.”
Three days after Katrina flooded most of New Orleans, staff members at Memorial had repeated discussions about euthanizing patients they thought might not survive the ordeal, according to a doctor and nurse manager who were in the hospital at the time. Katrina came ashore August 29. (Full story)
After allegations of mercy killings surfaced, Foti’s office asked that autopsies be performed on all 45 bodies taken from the hospital after the storm.
Tenet has told CNN that most of the 45 patients who died were critically ill, and about 11 patients died the weekend before the hurricane struck and were placed in the morgue.
“We have asked for certain records from Tenet 15 days ago, and we have yet to receive them,” Foti said. “We have also asked for the location and address of every employee working at the hospital at the time of the hurricane, and they have not provided that either.”
A spokesman for Memorial denied that the hospital has been uncooperative.
“We have never discouraged any employee from working with the Louisiana attorney general’s office. In fact, we know that some have already spoken to his representatives. We’ve been cooperating with the attorney general’s office, and have spoken regularly about employee interviews,” the spokesman said.
Posted in 
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No advice from CDC on Tamiflu hoarding
Patients, schools, doctors looking for guidance
Friday, October 28, 2005; Posted: 10:50 a.m. EDT (14:50 GMT)
CHICAGO, Illinois (AP) — Worried that bird flu in Asia could morph into a human flu pandemic, healthy patients, schools and even some doctors are asking if they should stock up on Tamiflu — the one medicine experts believe might help fight the virus.
Although some doctors’ groups say no, the agency in charge of the nation’s public health has no answer. That has frustrated local health officials who want to know how to advise people.
“Those are questions that are under discussion,” Christina Pearson, spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said this week. “Right now we’re focused on the seasonal flu.”
HHS includes the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, whose job includes dispensing public health recommendations.
“A lot of people have asked the CDC to provide some guidance about this, with patients asking doctors for prescriptions,” said Dr. Craig Conover, medical director for the Illinois Department of Public Health.
Personal hoarding isn’t fair, he said, “but on the other hand, I have heard people say that the more this gets used, the more manufacturing ability they’ll develop. We’ve chosen to wait for CDC guidance on this.”
Tamiflu is a prescription pill designed to treat regular flu. But it also seems to offer some protection to people against the type of flu that has devastated Asian poultry flocks and is spreading to birds in Europe. Bird flu has killed more than 60 people over the past two years.
On Thursday, Tamiflu’s Swiss maker, Roche Holding AG, said it was temporarily suspending shipment to private U.S. suppliers because of increased global demand.
“We’ve seen recently some very large purchases at the wholesale level, companies or large entities who are possibly hoarding Tamiflu right now,” said Darien Wilson, spokeswoman at Roche’s U.S. offices in Nutley, N.J.
Prescriptions for the drug last week were nearly quadruple what they were a year before, according to Verispan, a Pennsylvania-based company that monitors pharmacy sales.
And this winter’s flu season hasn’t even started yet.
Maura Robbins of Chicago said she and her husband have discussed whether to seek prescriptions for their two young children as a precaution against a pandemic. They won’t for now, because they “didn’t want to buy into the hysteria or overreact,” she said.
Dr. Bennett Kaye, a pediatrician affiliated with Chicago’s Children’s Memorial Hospital, said he tells patients that stocking up on Tamiflu “is definitely a bad, bad idea.”
The virus circulating among Asian birds is not spreading between people and is not even very easy for people to catch from birds.
“Parents should not be worried about their kids catching bird flu this year unless they’re planning on visiting a chicken farm in Vietnam,” Kaye said.
Published reports suggest that some doctors are keeping supplies of Tamiflu to give to family and friends in case the bird flu mutates into a bigger threat, but no doctors reached for this story acknowledged that.
The American Medical Association is against personal stockpiling and says the misuse of Tamiflu could lead to drug-resistant flu strains.
The American Academy of Pediatrics is preparing a statement urging pediatricians “not to do personal or organizational stockpiles,” said Dr. John Bradley, a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ infectious disease committee. “The last sentence of the statement is that no pediatrician on this committee has a personal stockpile or is prescribing the drug” for healthy people.
Dr. Deborah Yokoe, an infectious disease specialist at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital, said, “Doctors are human, too. They have the same sorts of anxieties themselves. I’m sure some are keeping supplies, too.”
Last week, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health issued a notice advising against personal stockpiling, prompted by patients’ questions, and Yokoe said such messages will discourage some doctors from writing advance prescriptions for a potential flu pandemic.
Tamiflu isn’t the only hot commodity being sought because of pandemic worries.
Kimberly-Clark Health Care says it has “ramped up to full capacity” face mask production to keep up with bird flu-linked demand from governments, hospitals and individuals. Surgical N-95 masks protect against airborne disease transmission.
Company spokesman David Parks declined to specify numbers but said some orders have been 50 times higher than usual.
3M spokeswoman Jacqueline Berry also reported a rise in face-mask orders but said reasons for demand include hurricane-related mold problems.
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I dunno…my gut instinct tells me that Bush & Co. are in a heap 0′trouble…and it’s going to get worse.
Watergate worse? Don’t know…but we have enough problems in this country, that AREN’T Bush’s fault, and really don’t need another big national issue to get in the way…but, you know the liberal media is GOING to do it anyway…so they can make a profit selling books, newspapers, magazines, infomercials, and Lord know what else.
Rich
October 26, 2005 — Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald quickly departed the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Court House at 1:00 PM EDT. The Grand Jury met again in a court room in the new annex to the court house. Fitzgerald had no comment in response to several questions asked by a throng of reporters who huddled around him as he walked to his waiting car, which drove him from the court house to his New York Avenue offices. One question was whether Fitzgerald has requested an extension of the grand jury, which is due to expire on Friday.
There is informed speculation that Fitzgerald may have requested an extension of the current grand jury. Others have speculated that Fitzgerald delivered sealed indictments on Leakgate today and will ask for a new grand jury in order to seek further indictments outside the scope of the original leak probe because of additional evidence that other crimes were committed related to the use of forged documents by the Bush administration.
Some details have emerged about the makeup of the grand jury. There is a majority of African-American women, a large number of which are employed by the Federal government.
There are also unconfirmed reports that Fitzgerald met with Karl Rove’s attorney yesterday. A deal was reportedly offered to Rove in return for his cooperation. I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby reportedly also reached a deal with the prosecutor in return for his cooperation against Vice President Cheney. Fitzgerald reportedly met with Cheney’s lawyers last Friday. Monday a questionnaire was reportedly delivered to Cheney by the prosecutor’s staff seeking additional information on Cheney’s knowledge of the CIA leak.
Fitzgerald entered the Court House this morning with a number of documents. Fitzgerald departed without the documents he he had in his possession when he entered the court house, giving rise to speculation that he delivered sealed indictments as WMR reported yesterday.
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This report is startling…probably over 30,000 dead Iraqi civilians. Now over 2000 dead American Soldiers.
But, what the following report does NOT state, and what NO ONE has attempted to break out of the above numbers is this.
Of the 30,000 dead civilians…HOW MANY were killed by THEIR OWN COUNTRYMEN?
In the story below, THREE car bombs killed mostly civilians. In most other stories about car bombs, the numbers are ALWAYS “mostly civilians”.
My point is that AMERICANS have NOT killed 30,000 civilians. No where close…I don’t know enough to state exactly how many WERE killed by Americans, and no one else does either.
I think it’s very inappropriate to make a blanket statement that basically says we’ve traded 2000 Americans for 30,000 civilians.
If the American forces weren’t there, then how much HIGHER would the civilian death counts be?
I believe it would be much higher…and thank God for letting the US be able to help save a nation of people from the tyranny that they were under, and in many cases certain death for just BELIEVING differently than the leadership. Remember what happened in Rwanda….Remember Stalin, and Lenin…Remember Hitler.
Don’t EVER let one man have that much power ever again to decide the fate of entire generations of a people that just want to be free.
A superpower must show its force, by NOT using it when it might, and ONLY using it when it must. The US does this better than any nation on the planet.
IN IRAQ, RISING CIVILIAN TOLL IS WAR’S SILENT, SINISTER PULSE
By SABRINA TAVERNISE
NYT Express
10/25/2005
BAGHDAD, Iraq — The scene was grimly familiar. Three car bombs in rapid succession sent plumes of smoke into the evening sky. The target was foreign reporters and contractors inside two hotels here. But the victims, as is often the case, were Iraqis.
The war here has claimed the life of the 2,000th American soldier, but in the cold calculus of the killing here, far more Iraqis have been left dead. The figures vary widely, with Iraqi and American officials reluctant to release even the most incomplete of tallies. In one count, compiled by Iraq Body Count, a U.S.-based nonprofit group that tracks the deaths using news media reports, the total of Iraqi dead since the American invasion ranges from 26,690 to 30,051.
Anthony H. Cordesman, a military expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, a nonprofit research group, who has analyzed statistics of American deaths in Iraq, called the group’s count “the best guesstimate in town,” but warned that the figures were far from complete.
Monday’s bombs, which exploded near the Palestine and Sheraton Hotels in central Baghdad, added at least 10 people to the tally, according to Iraq’s Interior Ministry. They were coordinated for maximum damage, exploding just after sunset, when Iraqis were breaking their daily fast for Ramadan. The second bomb, carried in a Jeep Cherokee, killed the largest number of people, including a 19-year-old named Beshir, whose mother wandered aimlessly through the wreckage Monday night, searching for his body.
“He told me he would leave this dangerous area,” said the woman, who was crying and speaking to other women. “Death took him from me before he fulfilled his promise.”
The U.S. military said last week that sweeps it has conducted with Iraqi troops throughout Iraq have brought the number of suicide attacks down sharply, with 22 attacks in October, compared with 58 in June, not including Monday’s blasts.
But the drop in suicide attacks comes amid an overall rise in violence and a shift in the nature of the killing. Shortly after the Americans invaded, insurgent attacks were aimed almost exclusively at American troops, but as the months passed, Iraqis — civilians, police officers and soldiers — have suffered far greater losses, as insurgents, seeking maximum effect, focus their attacks on the softest targets.
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As a VERY amatuer astronomer (only two telescopes, one pair of binoculars, some cheap software, and a fair knowledge of the night sky, I love staying abreast of the lastest interstellar news. Mars is getting the big attention lately, and now is a great time to take the scopes out and get some quiet time with one of our closest neighbors in the sky.
Rich
AS MARS’ ORBIT NEARS EARTH, USE OUR TUTORIAL TO BECOME A MORE INTELLIGENT LIFE-FORM
By KARALEE MILLER
Fort Worth Star Telegram
10/26/2005
Space lovers everywhere are seeing red this week — and they couldn’t be happier.
Mars is the talk of the galaxy right now as its orbit inches closer and closer to our humble abode, Earth. The big moment comes into full view Saturday. And you know what that means — break out the telescopes; set up the lawn chairs; call a friend.
Mars will come closest to Earth at about 10:20 p.m. Oct. 29, when it will be a stone’s throw from Earth at 43.1 million miles. Mars will reach opposition to the sun — it will be opposite the sun from our view here on Earth — on Nov. 7.
Although it won’t be as close as it was two years ago — when it drew closer to Earth than it has been in nearly 60,000 years — it still will be a sight to see.
Armed with a telescope, sky gazers should be able to make out many of the planet’s surface details, like bright clouds, large dust storms and polar caps, says Karen Massey, an assistant at the Noble Planetarium at the Fort Worth (Texas) Museum of Science and History.
“What’s interesting about this event that’s different from August 2003 is that Mars is farther north and higher in the sky this time, so we’re looking through less atmosphere,” she says. “It will have a better, clearer view.”
Oh, and if you think you’ll just catch this the next time it happens, patience had better be one of your virtues. The next time Mars will be closer than this: summer 2018.
Did you know Mars . . .
– is the fourth planet from the sun and the seventh largest?
– is the only planet with a surface that can be plainly seen and charted from Earth?
– has polar ice caps, clouds, dust storms and four seasons?
– shines brighter than anything else in the sky except the sun, moon and Venus?
– is about half the size of the Earth and twice the size of the moon?
– takes almost twice as long as the Earth to go around the sun?
– is named after the Roman god of war?
– would be a dieter’s dream? That’s because we’d all weigh less on Mars than we do here on Earth. Mars is less dense than Earth and has much less gravity.
Touchdown:
Three methods have been used to explore Mars: flybys, orbiters, and landers and rovers. NASA says future Mars exploration may use airplanes and balloons, subsurface explorers and sample returns.
Mariner 4 was the first spacecraft to have a successful flyby of Mars, on July 14, 1965, snapping the first pictures of Mars’ surface. The spacecraft was not expected to survive past its eight-month voyage, but it ended up lasting about three years in solar orbit.
Two Mars rovers — Spirit, above, and Opportunity — have been exploring sites on opposite ends of Mars since January 2004. They are now in the third extension of their missions.
Mars in pop culture
Our collective fascination with the red planet has yielded everything from great (and mediocre) literature to tasty small consumables and expensive Hollywood films. Arm yourself for your next Trivial Pursuit game with these facts:
“– War of the Worlds:” The sci-fi novel by H.G. Wells was published in 1898 and describes the invasion of Earth by Martians. In 1938, Orson Welles presented it as a radio play, creating panic among some listeners. Movie director Steven Spielberg revisited the extraterrestrial storyline with this year’s film, starring Tom Cruise and the ubiquitous Dakota Fanning.
– Marvin the Martian: Looney Tunes got on the Mars bandwagon in 1948 by introducing Marvin the Martian in the short cartoon film “Haredevil Hare”.
– Mars Bars: Can’t seem to get your hands on a yummy Mars Bar these days? Just reach for a Snickers Almond Bar. Confused? Don’t be. The folks at Mars Inc. stopped marketing the candy bar in the United States as the Mars Bar and now sell it as the Snickers Almond Bar. However, elsewhere in the world, the same candy bar is sold as the Mars Almond bar.
“– Veronica Mars”: This junior detective lives in a town called Neptune and sports the last name Mars. No wonder fans think the show and its star, Kristen Bell, are out of this world.
“– Mars Attacks!” Wacky film director Tim Burton gave audiences this 1996 sci-fi spoof about Martians invading Earth that has become a cult favorite.
“– Red Planet”: Val Kilmer, Carrie-Anne Moss and Benjamin Bratt jumped aboard this 2000 flick about astronauts searching Mars to find ways to save Earth. The movie’s original title was “Mars”, but was changed to avoid confusion with the Brian D Palma-directed “Mission to Mars”, released the same year.
“– Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus”: In 1993, counselor and author John Gray gave readers something to think about with his book about how the sexes can learn to better understand, relate to and appreciate each other. Many found his advice down-to-earth, while others thought he should buy a one-way ticket to Pluto.
– Blondie: This new wave group, led by rock diva Debbie Harry, gave music listeners this little lyrical gem in 1981′s “Rapture” — “‘Cause the man from Mars stopped eatin’ cars and eatin’ bars/And now he only eats guitars” The song was the first chart-topping rap single.
Face time
Some people believe a mysterious “face” on Mars is evidence that there is life on the Red Planet. The face was discovered in 1976 by NASA’s Viking 1 spacecraft while it was scoping potential landing sites for its sister ship. Mission controllers noticed a likeness of a human face jutting from the ground in the planet’s Cydonia region.
After much talk and further investigation, most planetary scientists agree the face was created when unusual lighting conditions fell upon a Martian hill. But that hasn’t killed speculation — or Hollywood’s interest.
The face has been used as a plot device in the TV shows “The X-Files” and “Futurama” and the film “Mission to Mars.”
SOURCES: Fort Worth Museum of Science and History; http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov; www.planetary.org; www.mars.com; http://science.nasa.gov; “Entertainment Weekly”; www.imdb.com
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It’s not just America that keeps getting smacked by Mother Nature…
AUSTIN, Texas — Hurricane Wilma didn’t just uproot trees and flood homes from the Caribbean to Florida — she dealt a walloping blow to Mexico’s $11 billion tourism industry.
If you have a trip to the Yucatan coast booked, the storm might have thrown a soggy punch to your vacation plans.
The hurricane smashed Cozumel, a popular spot for divers and cruise ship stops 11 miles off the Mexican mainland. Last weekend Wilma substantially damaged hotels and the Punta Maya Pier for cruise ships was destroyed. White-sand beaches disappeared in some areas, but early reports from dive shops indicate the famous coral reefs off the island escaped major damage.
Although airport and ferry services were restored Tuesday, electricity was still out late last week and cruise ship dockings remained suspended.
After battering Cozumel, Wilma came ashore in a sparsely populated area near Playa de– Carmen, a tourist town about 30 miles south of Cancun. It flattened dozens of wooden houses before creeping north.
In Cancun, the hurricane sent ocean waves surging over the narrow strip of land known as the hotel zone, flooding streets, shattering windows and tearing off hotel roofs. Falling trees crushed cars and pay phones jutted from waist-deep water. Some beaches were washed away and officials said high-rise resorts could take weeks, if not months, to repair.
So what do you do if you’ve already booked a trip to the area? “Number one is keep in close contact with your travel agent,” said Holly Botsford, public relations manager of Funjet Vacations, which books about 1 million passengers a year to Mexico.
Funjet canceled all its trips to the area through Monday, and could extend that depending on damage reports. The company has sent a representative to the Yucatan, where he will spend a week assessing damage.
Damage to specific resorts was expected to vary. “You may hear that a certain hotel has structural damage and won’t be open for some time. The hotel next door may just have to do cleanup and open in a few weeks,” she said. “Keep an eye on your specific hotel.”
The company was encouraging people to rebook, offering $50 incentives to those who rescheduled for travel before Jan. 31. “We want to save your vacation,” she said.
Juan Portillo, owner of Austin-based Tramex Travel, says this season’s hurricanes — which struck Mexico, Cuba and Honduras as well as the Gulf Coast of the United States — have wreaked havoc on his business.
“We do about $2 million in business to Mexico every year, and we haven’t seen much since the middle of July. I’m hoping this gets it over with for a while.”
The six-month hurricane season in the Atlantic does not officially end until Nov. 30.
Rose Marie Hagman of Tramex Travel Tarrytown, who has been fielding calls from worried customers who have Mexico trips booked over Christmas and spring break, expects the resorts to push for a quick reopening. “They’re going to do everything they possibly can to get ready to start accepting guests, because they’re going into peak season,” she said.
Mexico President Vicente Fox said it would take two months to restore 80 percent to 90 percent of Cancun’s tourist capacity,. Quintana Roo, the Caribbean coastal state that includes the hurricane-ravaged resorts, accounted for half the nights spent by foreign tourists in Mexico last year.
Officials were striving to reopen the airport to commercial traffic and restore power and water service to the area, but estimated it would probably take until Monday to restore most electricity.
Pamela LeBlance writes for the Austin American-Statesman. E-miail: pleblanc@statesman.com. This article contains material from wire services.
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Got this on my e-mail today… Thought I’de share. Nobody quite puts it like George Carlin.
“Been sitting here with my ass in a wad, wanting to speak out about the bullshit going on in New Orleans. For the people of New Orleans… First we would like to say, Sorry for your loss. With that said, Let’s go through a few hurricane rules: (Unlike an earthquake, we know it’s coming)
#1. A mandatory evacuation means just that…Get the hell out.
Don’t blame the Government after they tell you to go. If they hadn’t said anything, I can see the argument. They said get out… if you didn’t, it’s your fault, not theirs. (We don’t want to hear it, even if you don’t have a car, you can get out.)
#2. If there is an emergency, stock up on water and non-perishables. If you didn’t do this, it’s not the Government’s fault you’re starving.
#2a. If you run out of food and water, find a store that has some.
(Remember, shoes, TV’s, DVD’s and CD’s are not edible. Leave them alone.)
#2b. If the local store has been looted of food or water, leave your neighbor’s TV and stereo alone. (See #2a) They worked hard to get their stuff. Just because they were smart enough to leave during a mandatory
evacuation, doesn’t give you the right to take their stuff…it’s theirs, not yours.
#3. If someone comes in to help you, don’t shoot at them and then complain no one is helping you. I’m not getting shot to help save some dumbass who didn’t leave when told to do so.
#4. If you are in your house that is completely under water, your belongings are probably too far gone for anyone to want them. If someone does want them, let them have them and hopefully they’ll die in the filth. Just leave! (It’s New Orleans, find a voodoo warrior and put a curse on them.)
#5. My tax money should not pay to rebuild a 2 million dollar house, a sports stadium or a floating casino.. Also, my tax money shouldn’t go to rebuild a city that is under sea level. You wouldn’t build your house on quicksand would you? You want to live below sea-level, do your country some good and join the Navy.
#6. Regardless of what the Poverty Pimps Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton want you to believe, The US Government didn’t create the Hurricane as a way to eradicate the black people of New Orleans; (Neither did Russia as a way to destroy America). The US Government didn’t cause global warming that caused the hurricane (We’ve been coming out of an ice age for over a million years).
#7. The government isn’t responsible for giving you anything. This is the land of the free and the home of the brave, but you gotta work for what you want. McDonalds and Wal-Mart are always hiring, get a damn job and stop spooning off the people who are actually working for a living. President Kennedy said it best…”Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.”
Thank you for allowing me to rant.
