How do you feel about making a Jamaican Fruit Cake mix (Christmas Cake/Black Cake) out of a box this Christmas season? Do you think it is lazy? Would you miss the tradition of soaking fruits, rubbing the mix, licking the spoon etc? Is this laziness? Well the a company named Annilu has a Jamaican Fruit Cake Mix in a box for those who are ready to break tradition.
Good post, George.
Here’s my take on the insanity (I’m another old guy)…
http://www.possumgolightly.com/possum-main.htm
Thank you Tom. I found your blog very helpful. I didn’t grow up in America and I find a lot of the public debates here baffling. Obviously there’s more to what’s being said than the words used by the debaters. Your blog provided a fascinating peek behind the curtain.
The ignorance about that one provision that simply allows families to consult with their doctors about a patient’s wishes for care is so baffling. I wish it had not been included in the bill. It was unnecessary to begin with. If my most adored husband were in the hospital seriously ill, I would chain myself to his bedside, asking questions, insisting on answers, harassing nurses and doctors to go beyond the call of duty to make him well. My dad was in the hospital a couple of times and each time, those Living Wills were thrown at him from all sides. He just threw the damn things in the trash can. As anybody can still do if the provision is included. How can anyone believe they will be forced to sign a Living Will. All this provision will do is have more doctors suggest a “counseling” session so they can get paid for it by Medicare. Doctors already stand bedside and talk to families when an aged family member is ill. Take the provision out and be done with it.
Loved the McFarlane column, George. Especially this excerpt:
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“Paradoxically, members of the Congress and the US federal civil service enjoy comprehensive health benefits. Last year US taxpayers laid out some US$15 billion to insure 8.5 million federal employees and their dependents, who can choose from among 10 health care plans that provide access to a national roster of doctors and treatment networks in each member’s state. The legislators in Washington have some other advantages – they are eligible for treatment at federal medical facilities in the capital city and for a low monthly rate have access to doctors, nurses and medical technicians stationed in a clinic between the House and Senate chambers, as well as an on-site pharmacy. But in the private sector, 85 per cent of the companies that provide coverage for their employees offer only one choice.
One member of Congress is trying to set an example. Steve Kagen, a Democrat representing a Congressional district in the state of Wisconsin, has declined to avail himself of those benefits and says he will continue to do so until everyone in the US can enjoy the same coverage as federal lawmakers. Kagen, who worked as a doctor for many years before winning a seat in 2006, recently had knee surgery and paid more than US$4,500 after bargaining for reductions on the operation and ancillary costs. He says if every member of Congress knew they could lose their house over health costs, “we’d fix health care in a week”.