Happy Monday everyone. Back from a fun weekend in Regina where I ran into a lot of friends and watched a good football game despite the result.
The American news in recent weeks has been talking about a bill to reform their health care system. Naturally, this is a very emotional debate that contains a lot of rhetoric and not a lot of information of what this reform actually entails. The "Con" side of the debate often involves vilifying "socialized" systems in countries like Great Britain, Canada, and France. I won't get into that today, but in a later post this week I will discuss the comparisons between various health care systems in industrialized nations.
No health care system in the world is perfect, our system and the American system are glaring examples of that. The American system is a reflection of their culture in that everything should be profit driven. The argument is that being profit driven increases efficiency and fosters creativity and innovation. Health care is not a typical industry however, and the Americans have missed the mark incredibly on efficiency. Currently, the US system costs more per capita then the Canadian "socialized" system does.
However, where they haven't missed the mark is innovation. US companies are by far the leaders on innovation in the health care industry for new surgical techniques, tests and pharmaceuticals. It is likely that the drive for profit has fostered this. The US healthcare industry has places such as the Mayo Clinic and Cancer Centers of America who are specialized care centers that provide care for cancer and other deadly diseases that is second to none in the world. Are these centers cheap? Not by a long shot. However, it is nice to know that this care is available.
What has happened over the last several decades is that the rest of the industrialized world has piggybacked off of American health care innovation to make their own systems better. I remember twenty years ago, my father was very ill and one of his three surgeries to fix him was to remove a benign tumor off his adrenaline gland (the tumor, although benign was causing issues with blood pressure and creating chemical imbalances in his system). The surgery to fix this was very invasive, and he still walks around with a large scar that surrounds nearly half his torso. Today, that same procedure can be done via an incision a fraction of the size and lasers. The new technology is more expensive, but the greatly reduced recovery time makes for a much reduced hospital stay and cost savings. Not to mention the improved quality of life afterwards.
I am not against parts of health care being a "For-profit" enterprise. However, the struggle for the United States will be to ensure that any much needed reform does not stymie innovation. As distasteful as it is to some to make money off the suffering of people, increasing profit margin is a much better motivator for innovation and efficiency than cost savings. If the current administration can accomplish quality health care reform that genuinely makes the system better for the majority of Americans, it will be a monumental achievements. Think of the stakeholders that potentially have something to lose by health care reform - insurance companies (both for healthcare and malpractice insurance), trial lawyers, pharmaceutical companies, and big healthcare management firms such as Aetna. All incredibly powerful lobby groups that have an interest in keeping the system pretty much the same.
That's all for today.
Cheers.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Misguided Creativity
Hey everyone, hope the summer is going well. My self taken "teacher's summer" is getting very boring. I should be starting work again next week or the week after for a long time, and it can't come soon enough. I, in general, really enjoy what I do and I realise that although my last gig was not a good fit I do identify my work with who I am quite a lot.
Anyways a quick, fun post today. I'm sure everyone has one or two groups of good friends that in the course of the usual buffoonery, come up with some good ideas. Or, stupid ideas that are still very creative. My post today is about my friends and I and misguided creativity. You know, something very clever that is done, that while funny really adds nothing to the betterment of society. Here are some examples. I will not mention any names, but everybody knows who they are.
1. Grade 12. Having decided on a career, I purchased a top of the line computer for the time in 1996. It even had the Internet. Aside from looking at porn, my good friends and I made a series of commercials and short audio skits with sound effects and everything. It included:
a) A Chrysler Cordoba commercial - which involved it exploding and hurling off the side of a cliff.
b) An ad for a weapons seller ("Bazooka Hut"), who's main selling feature was giving local farmers the ability to blow up a hutterite van.
c) A news cast where we shot down the helicopter.
2. In University and looking for cheap entertainment, some friends and I would pass time by playing croquet a couple times a week. One said friend, in the middle of studying for finals, developed a 10 page croquet manual from scratch which included our take on the game. It had logos, graphics, colour, and was done in PDF format. Very professionally done. Why? I'm not sure.
3. As payback for a previous joke, a friend needed a method to get back at one of his female friends. The payback? Rewire her car so that whenever she hit the brake, the horn would go off. The truly cunning part? They had an attachment that they could take out to return the car to normal, so when she tried to take the car to the garage it would not repeat the behaviour.
4. Invention of the game "death-beer". Again, this is myself and my old college roommates. Fill up a tub with water, ice, and beer. One beer is an empty filled with water with "XXX" written on the bottle. To grab a beer, you must close your eyes and reach in the tub to grab one. Whoever grabs the death beer must drink the 1.14L bottle of Colt 45 in the fridge.
5. Ambient bathroom music. One of my college roommates decided to wire up a walkman with a pair of speakers in the bathroom. Whenever the light would turn on and the door would close, music would come on. As soon as the light turned off or the door opened, the music would stop. This was a big hit at parties.
I'm sure everyone has stories like this about groups of friends and goofy stuff like this. Feel free to share. The requirement? Has to be clever, and contribute a disproportionate amount to the betterment of society for the amount of effort involved.
Cheers.
Anyways a quick, fun post today. I'm sure everyone has one or two groups of good friends that in the course of the usual buffoonery, come up with some good ideas. Or, stupid ideas that are still very creative. My post today is about my friends and I and misguided creativity. You know, something very clever that is done, that while funny really adds nothing to the betterment of society. Here are some examples. I will not mention any names, but everybody knows who they are.
1. Grade 12. Having decided on a career, I purchased a top of the line computer for the time in 1996. It even had the Internet. Aside from looking at porn, my good friends and I made a series of commercials and short audio skits with sound effects and everything. It included:
a) A Chrysler Cordoba commercial - which involved it exploding and hurling off the side of a cliff.
b) An ad for a weapons seller ("Bazooka Hut"), who's main selling feature was giving local farmers the ability to blow up a hutterite van.
c) A news cast where we shot down the helicopter.
2. In University and looking for cheap entertainment, some friends and I would pass time by playing croquet a couple times a week. One said friend, in the middle of studying for finals, developed a 10 page croquet manual from scratch which included our take on the game. It had logos, graphics, colour, and was done in PDF format. Very professionally done. Why? I'm not sure.
3. As payback for a previous joke, a friend needed a method to get back at one of his female friends. The payback? Rewire her car so that whenever she hit the brake, the horn would go off. The truly cunning part? They had an attachment that they could take out to return the car to normal, so when she tried to take the car to the garage it would not repeat the behaviour.
4. Invention of the game "death-beer". Again, this is myself and my old college roommates. Fill up a tub with water, ice, and beer. One beer is an empty filled with water with "XXX" written on the bottle. To grab a beer, you must close your eyes and reach in the tub to grab one. Whoever grabs the death beer must drink the 1.14L bottle of Colt 45 in the fridge.
5. Ambient bathroom music. One of my college roommates decided to wire up a walkman with a pair of speakers in the bathroom. Whenever the light would turn on and the door would close, music would come on. As soon as the light turned off or the door opened, the music would stop. This was a big hit at parties.
I'm sure everyone has stories like this about groups of friends and goofy stuff like this. Feel free to share. The requirement? Has to be clever, and contribute a disproportionate amount to the betterment of society for the amount of effort involved.
Cheers.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Mid July Musings
Hope everyone is enjoying their summer so far. Been a while since my last update, and there is enough to talk about.
Of course, the big story recently is the death of Michael Jackson and the extensive media coverage that has followed. I didn't grow up with "Thriller" and "Bad" so I've never been a big Jackson fan. I respect what he did for music, and music videos especially, and tip my hat to the fact that he did put out some good tunes.
I am fascinated by the overwhelming reaction however. Here is a man who is a very tragic figure; he could have been the lead character in a 5 act Shakespearean play that we studied in high school English. A talented and beloved person whose life turned into a punch line in the last years of his life (even without the legal troubles). I think what this speaks to is the affect music has on people, and this is an affect I am having trouble relating to.
Anyone who knows me well knows I am a music guy. I listen to it constantly and I also play it. I don't have many DVDs and half the ones I do have are of concerts. I have a wide ranging taste in music, and finding new music that I like is my primary hobby. That being said, I can't compare any one of my favourite artists to the passion millions of people feel for Jackson. If my favourite artist, Bono, passed away I would be bummed out for sure but nothing close to the reaction that Jackson is getting.
A common cliche you hear about artists like Jackson or Elvis is "he shaped my life". I'm not sure what that means. Good music will trigger good memories of childhood and teen years. However music being a memory trigger doesn't really mean that is was responsible for someone's growth as an individual. I've went to a lot of concerts since the mid-90s and most of them were great experiences and a lot of fun. To say that those artists shaped me into the person I am is a stretch. My friends, family, and education hav been responsible for that.
The closest example in my lifetime I can relate to this is the death of Kurt Cobain. I was 14 I believe, but I do remember a lot of strong reactions by my fellow classmates. To a point where some guys wanted to "win this hockey game for Kurt!". Again, a common quote was "His music spoke to me!". I don't know how Cobain's anti-establishment angst grunge music spoke to middle class white kids from Swift Current, but maybe I just needed a more open mind.
Not sure what the point of this one is completely, other than I'm looking for some help in understanding how a music figure can ellicit this type of reaction.
Cheers.
Of course, the big story recently is the death of Michael Jackson and the extensive media coverage that has followed. I didn't grow up with "Thriller" and "Bad" so I've never been a big Jackson fan. I respect what he did for music, and music videos especially, and tip my hat to the fact that he did put out some good tunes.
I am fascinated by the overwhelming reaction however. Here is a man who is a very tragic figure; he could have been the lead character in a 5 act Shakespearean play that we studied in high school English. A talented and beloved person whose life turned into a punch line in the last years of his life (even without the legal troubles). I think what this speaks to is the affect music has on people, and this is an affect I am having trouble relating to.
Anyone who knows me well knows I am a music guy. I listen to it constantly and I also play it. I don't have many DVDs and half the ones I do have are of concerts. I have a wide ranging taste in music, and finding new music that I like is my primary hobby. That being said, I can't compare any one of my favourite artists to the passion millions of people feel for Jackson. If my favourite artist, Bono, passed away I would be bummed out for sure but nothing close to the reaction that Jackson is getting.
A common cliche you hear about artists like Jackson or Elvis is "he shaped my life". I'm not sure what that means. Good music will trigger good memories of childhood and teen years. However music being a memory trigger doesn't really mean that is was responsible for someone's growth as an individual. I've went to a lot of concerts since the mid-90s and most of them were great experiences and a lot of fun. To say that those artists shaped me into the person I am is a stretch. My friends, family, and education hav been responsible for that.
The closest example in my lifetime I can relate to this is the death of Kurt Cobain. I was 14 I believe, but I do remember a lot of strong reactions by my fellow classmates. To a point where some guys wanted to "win this hockey game for Kurt!". Again, a common quote was "His music spoke to me!". I don't know how Cobain's anti-establishment angst grunge music spoke to middle class white kids from Swift Current, but maybe I just needed a more open mind.
Not sure what the point of this one is completely, other than I'm looking for some help in understanding how a music figure can ellicit this type of reaction.
Cheers.
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