Gone to Texas

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I am going to be away for awhile. Not to worry: pleasure trip.
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Now This is REAL Health Care Reform

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Ho, boy, now we are cooking!

Amazing! I particularly liked "unlike other bone substitutes like metals and ceramics, this new material is just as strong and will most likely never need to be replaced." Now that is really good, good news.

And, who knew? Rattan wood makes the best bone substitute and soon is almost indistinguishable from the original.
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Scientists Turn Wood Into Bones

by Bridgette Meinhold

Doctors and scientists have long been using metals to replace broken bones, but new research from scientists in Italy shows that wood can be transformed into a more effective material that is very similar to human bone. Wood was chosen as a starting point because it already closely resembles the structure of bone, and after 10 days under pressure and heat in a furnace, it becomes a chalky porous material with bone-like properties. This could be a huge leap forward for people suffering from bone loss or traumatic injuries, and what’s even better, it all comes from a natural material – wood!

Researchers at the Istec Laboratory of Bioceramics in Faenza near Bologna, lead by Dr. Anna Tampieri, have been studying different types of wood to see which one would result in the most bone-like structure. They place pieces of normal wood into a furnace and heat them under pressure for 10 days, resulting in a white porous material. The researchers have found that rattan wood, often used to make furniture, creates the best bone substitute material because it has a similar porosity to bone, which allows blood, nerves and other compounds to travel through it.

Studies in which surgeons have placed the bone substitute into sheep, and so far the results show great promise. The bone begins to fuse with the sheep’s bone and after some time, it’s impossible to even see where the two are joined. And unlike other bone substitutes like metals and ceramics, this new material is just as strong and will most likely never need to be replaced. The researchers plan to start using this new material within 5 years on humans and have great hope that a natural, cheap and effective replacement for bones is now possible.

Cozy!

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And if you don't put the "roof" up, it can hide an awful lot of clutter when unexpected guests drop in! Just drape with a really long tablecloth.



Wow! An unassuming kitchen table that stealthily transforms into a playhouse or enclosed fort. Can you say, "Imagination"?

My poor mother endured years of a card table set up and draped with blankets. Usually, she made me take it down every day.

As I grew a little older, my concoctions got more elaborate and intricate. They soon took over the whole living room and had several "rooms." Sometimes I could make the case for them to stay up for days. (Remember, this was before we had a TV! Old, aren't I?)

Someday, my gentle snowflakes, I may tell you all about the "playhouse" my sister & I made in the back yard out of a refrigerator delivery case.

It is nice to see that some things never change.
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Here It Comes

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DISCLAIMER: Once again, my gentle snowflakes, I don't have a dog in this hunt. I will be well ensconced into Medicare long before any of this magic comes down the pike. But....

I have stomped my feet, held my breath until I turned blue, screamed and hollered, made a genuine nuisance of myself, and written to every elected official for whom I could find an email address. For answers I got almost universally boiler-plate: "Thank you for your inquiry. Your interest/issue is very important to xxxxxxxxxxx [insert the elected person's name here]."

All to no avail.

For, this mess our ivory-towered congressional critters are about to offer up is not reform. What it is, is another HUGE bail out. And this time the bail out is for one of the most despicable sections of this country--the health insurance companies.

That mandate for every one of us to buy health insurance is just a real-l-l-ly big giveaway to the already incredibly profitable health insurers (read pay-back for all those campaign contributions). And we all know that those giving, caring health insurance companies will still find a way to kick people off, stop coverage, refuse to pay claims. All that new money and they will still act like the cruel, evil monsters that they have heretofore proven themselves to be.

I, also, realize that I frequently say, "You can't do more until you have done something." But, but, but..... this is hardly "something."

Medicare for All!

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fear

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John Adams, in his 1776 Thoughts on Government,

Fear is the foundation of most governments; but it is so sordid and brutal a passion, and renders men in whose breasts it predominates so stupid and miserable, that Americans will not be likely to approve of any political institution which is founded on it.

Truly, the American Founding was predicated on exactly the opposite mindset. The Constitution is grounded in the premise that there are other values and priorities more important than mere Safety.

Even though the "Founding Fathers" knew that doing so would help murderers and other dangerous and vile criminals evade capture, the Framers,

1. banned the Government from searching homes without probable cause,
2. prohibited compelled self-incrimination, double jeopardy and convictions based on hearsay, and
3. outlawed cruel and unusual punishment.

That's because certain values -- privacy, due process, limiting the potential for abuse of government power -- were more important than mere survival and safety.

A central tenet of the Constitution is that we insist upon privacy, liberty and restraints on government power even when doing so means we live with less safety and a heightened risk of danger and death.

And if the Constitution is not a good enough basis for you, go to the Bible. “God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (2 Tim. 1:6,7).

There you have it--from both the bedrock of this country and the principles of Christian faith.
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Un-Intended Consequences

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An Old Chinese Curse

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"May you live in interesting times."

If the times get much more interesting, we are all going to have to ask for a transfer.
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