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Ridgefield Press
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Columns
Jan 23, 2008
SERVING OUR NATION:
Updated Feb. 21
This list includes Ridgefielders or former Ridgefielders serving in the
U.S. military at home or abroad.
Ridgefield Press
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Columns
Jun 5, 2008
COMMENT:
Lessons learned by an accidental addict
Medical doctors are essential members of every human community.
Physicians and the services they provide are so familiar to most of us
that we easily take them for granted. What we are apt to forget is that
doctors are human beings too, who are subject to the same human
weaknesses as the rest of us. We often forget this fact because we tend
to look upon doctors (and others who provide valued public services) as
authority figures. This is especially the case among members of the
baby boomer and older generations.
It is right and proper that we show due respect to people who do so
much good for others. But each one of us must never forget that we
retain ultimate responsibility for our own physical and mental health.
We cannot do without doctors but we cannot delegate that responsibility
to them.
The death earlier this year of Australian actor, Heath Ledger, from an
accidental overdose of prescription medications underlines the danger
of anything less than a very proactive approach to one’s own welfare. I
myself, over the past year, have received a very stark and convincing
lesson in the truth of these statements.
Ridgefield Press
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Columns
Jun 2, 2008
TALKING TRANSPORTATION:
When gas is $10 a gallon...
For
decades we’ve lived (and driven) in denial, somehow assuming we have
the “right” to cheap gas, and therefore, low-cost transportation.
Now it’s time to face reality and consider what will happen when (not if) gas hits $10 a gallon.
The following are my hypotheses.
(Follow the embedded links for recent news coverage that contribute to my theories.)
These things haven’t happened… yet:
Ridgefield Press
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Columns
May 30, 2008
REAL MEDICINE:
What hospitals teach doctors and nurses
Dozens of the top nurses in the New York Area march into Montefiore
every day. They are bright, seasoned veterans of nursing, and they’re
armed with laptop computers as they walk into the hospital. They are
there to review charts, and to teach nursing staff, and physicians.
With the obvious need to improve patient care, this effort would seem
to be exemplary. Finally, a center has invested heavily in the
education of their staff. However, reducing hospital-acquired
infections, removing the risk of prescription errors, improving
hospital services, and finding better ways to communicate with patients
... is not what these people were hired for.
They are there for one reason only: To make sure the hospital submits
bills for the most lucrative diagnoses, and specifically to educate
doctors on what to write in the chart so the hospital can bill for the
most substantial and remunerative DRG diagnosis.
Ridgefield Press
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Columns
May 26, 2008
THE JOYFUL ORGANIZER:
Summer success
Want to have a super summer? We all do, but often end of the school
year, projects and sports press us for time. This year, get it together
before the kids get out of school and before the temperature rises.
The most important part to a successful summer is to start preparation now.
Set some time aside each day, at least 10 minutes, to start preparations for those summer adventures now.
Start by asking your family what it is they would like to do.
Ridgefield Press
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Columns
May 26, 2008
TALKING TRANSPORTATION:
New rail cars are great
I have seen the future and it is cool... very cool.
Metro-North has finally unveiled a full scale, un-powered mock-up of
the new M8 rail car it designed and Kawasaki is building for
Connecticut commuters. All I can say is: “Wow!”
Much of the credit goes to renowned designer Cesar Vergara, who has
commuted for years from Connecticut and spent many months riding the
Harlem and Hudson line cars to learn from their successes and mistakes.
Ridgefield Press
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Columns
May 20, 2008
COMMENT:
The supermarket obstacle course
I often feel completely stressed out as I leave the grocery store, as
if I’d just run a marathon while solving a long algebraic problem in my
head at the same time. And, swirling in my head of stress is the guilt
that buying groceries is not rocket science; it’s not even weird
science. I don’t think it qualifies as science at all (perhaps as
math).
Grocery shopping is just that, the simple act of buying groceries for
the week (OK, that would imply planning, of which I am woefully
lacking). It shouldn’t be stressful. In fact, it could be fun, if I
didn’t weigh down my head with a massive list of things to get while
looking at the time and realizing I haven’t left myself enough time to
do this in any way that might be construed as leisurely.
Ridgefield Press
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Columns
May 2, 2008
COMMENT:
Antisemitism at Ridgefield High School
You always remember exactly where you are at the important times. You
might blink your eyes, or shake your head. You might say “what?” or
“no” or “why?” or “how?” You might say nothing.
I didn’t say anything the first time. Or the second. Or the third.
And I kept not saying anything until it become more habitual than a
conscious choice, and so each time something happened, it would no
longer be important to me, it would just be.
Ridgefield Press
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Columns
Apr 29, 2008
FAMILY MEDICINE
: Beware of hungry ticks
Without snow covering the ground, here come the ticks. Deer ticks
(Ixodes scapularis) truly prefer to feed on deer blood but when there
aren’t any handy, any mammal or bird will do just fine. And spring is
the prime time for them to be hungry.
This is particularly bad for us since their bite might transmit nasty
infections such as Lyme, and sometimes even Babesia, or Erlichia. As
always, prevention is the best course with several avenues to consider.
Next, be aware of possible symptoms to act quickly in case of suspected
infections. Thirdly, think environmentally and help work towards
correcting the underlying problems driving this seasonally accelerating
epidemic of tick borne infections.
Ridgefield Press
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Columns
Apr 28, 2008
TALKING TRANSPORTATION:
Bicycles and trains
Much has been written in recent weeks about allowing bicyclists to
bring their vehicles on board Metro North commuter trains, and I wanted
to add my two cents just as a commuter and not as chairman of the
Commuter Council. (Never be confused when I write here as I am always
and only speaking for myself and not the many groups on which I serve.)
What is it about “bikers” that they feel their rights trump those of
other commuters? How can such a well organized and vocal lobby be so
blind to the sad realities of commuting on Metro-North that they would
have standee commuters have to straddle their two-wheelers in
standee-filled vestibules in the name of personal liberties and “being
green”?
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