9 June 2014 An elephant never forgets

9 June 2014  An elephant never forgets

11 June 2014  Fear the fed

12 June 2014   Only the names have been changed

The Congress will hold “hearings” to determine why they were not notified of the imminent POW exchange arranged by the Obama Administration.  The partly bi-partisan reaction to the release of five prisoners until recently held at Guantanamo Naval Base has Congress highly offended and feeling as if they were prevented from doing the job they were elected to perform.  Of course, the Congress has spent the last 5.5 years doing as little as possible, while the House has done nothing unless it revolved around making it impossible for Obama to perform his job. 

          I’d have kept Congress in the dark until after the exchange.  The ability of Congress to keep information secret is non-existant.  We’d have most likely have captured bin Laden in 2001 but for the actions of one Senator who leaked the information entrusted to him for political advantage.  There’s been no improvement in the nature of Congress since then

          Now the GOP/teabaggers are displaying the high degree of concern they hold for the average members of our armed services by approving wars but refusing to provide care for the men and women who fight those wars and suffer the injuries and deaths inherent in all wars.  The anger directed at Sgt Burgdahl and his family is a prime example of the makeup of the political base the GOP has chosen to play to in the 15^th year of the 21^st century. 

          The current war in Afghanistan will spin out of all control once we leave.  The history of the region after the Soviet withdrawal, and the rapidly exploding wars in the Middle East are of sufficient predictive value to erase any doubts as to the future of the Arab states and the SW Asian tribal cultures.  However, the international energy companies, arms manufacturers, and other profiteering conglomerates such as Halliburton will make every effort to keep us involved in Afghanistan, while pushing us back toward military intervention in the religious/cultural upheavals that are currently consuming the Arab states. 

          The video images of Iraqi “soldiers” throwing down their weapons, or even worse, handing them over to the advancing ISIS forces is highly reminiscent of the final months of the VietNam war.  We need to remain outside that conflict.  We can’t solve it and we can’t superimpose over a thousand years of Western Civilization onto the basic mental maps of 9^th century tribal cultures.  The Islamic part of the world will have to decide if another Caliphate is what it wants to live with and under.  The next Caliphate, if it comes into being, will most likely bring about the next dark ages. 

          Someone should tell the teabaggers that the Gadsden Flag was intended to be a symbol of unification, not of cultural destruction.  The misappropriation of historically significant symbols by splinter groups of pretend soldiers who fantasize about attacking and destroying the U.S. government without realizing that they are being used to further enrich the upper 1% needs to be halted and reversed. 

          The comparison of the teabaggers to Afghani Taliban is entire accurate and bodes nothing good for the future United States.

6 June 2014 short walk on a beach

70 years ago the Allies launched the Normandy invasion to retake Europe from Hitler’s 3^rd Reich.  This was the largest amphibious assault ever staged by modern armies.  130,000 Allied troops  took part in the initial report.  By 4 July1944 over 1,300,000 had been poured into Normandy.

          They were opposed by over 380,000 German troops   Allied losses were computed at 120,000 killed and wounded.  German losses were calculated to be 113,059 killed and wounded. 

          The landing was in doubt for much of the first day.  Assaulting units were stopped by heavy German fire.  Entire units became non-functional due to casualties. 

          The numbers can only begin to detail the courage and determination of the men who made the long slog into the beaches in deep cold water, under continuous shelling and nearly solid walls of small arms fire from an enemy well dug in and protected by natural and man-made bunkers and shelters.

          The courage it took for men to leave the meager shelter of their landing craft and begin the long walk to the beach head carrying 80 pounds of equipment in water neck deep or deeper is beyond measure. 

          The men who fought at Normandy and/or other amphibious assaults, are true American Heroes.  It is unlikely we’ll see their match again. 

23 May 2014 from a Grateful nation

25 May 2014 Cassi Creek  Back to where it was

          In 1972 I did part of my clinical rotations at HST  VA Hospital.  The system then was restricted to vets with service-connected injuries.  The patient wards were occupied by older men who were essentially being warehoused after their service in WWI, WWII, &/or Korea. 

          In those days clinical lab instrumentation didn’t all have the high-pitched alarms to summon the operator.  I learned to keep a mechanical timer with me so that I could work with the instruments of my profession. 

          My hearing loss and tinnitus, was documented by the Army but no one suggested that I might be eligible for follow-on care with VA.  I didn’t have enough information about service connected hearing loss to file my own claim with VA.  My hearing deteriorated progressively and I was finally brought into the VA system in 2002.  The criteria for admission to the system and the hospitals had been expanded since my last contact with VA in 1980 – Agent Orange screening .  It took about 6 months to run through various screening appointments and I spent a lot of days in the VA waiting rooms. 

          After moving to TN, my hearing was re-evaluated and I was provided a 2^nd set of hearing aids.  I’ve also become further disabled (service connected) due to PTSD and Parkinson’s Disease – both service connected.  There is an appeal pending on the degree of disability due to Parkinson’s that has been somewhere in the clerical chain for about 6 months now.  I’m told it will take another 18 or so to migrate toward review. 

          In the mean time, I see various providers for glaucoma, Parkinson’s and my primary care doctor.  Previously, I’ve been happy with the quality of care I’ve received.  I would probably be seeing private- outside – physicians at about the same frequency as I currently see my VA providers.  Lately, my hearing has become even more damaged and my hearing aids less useful and less comfortable.  I’ve been trying to schedule a new audiology evaluation for almost a year now.  Audiology  is one of the services that is poorly staffed when the number of veterans with hearing loss is considered.  My primary care doctor’s clerk was asked to schedule an appointment.   He told me that I could call and schedule my own.  That led nowhere when I was told by the Audiology intake desk that I hadn’t been seen in over two years and would need a referral from my primary care doc, or from the audiology techs who work on hearing aids.  So far, I’ve been going round in circles with no one able or willing to schedule a new evaluation. 

          While I really haven’t encountered much delay and misdirection, I have hit some walls in obtaining treatment.  When I tried to schedule a screening colonoscopy the first available appointment was 11 months distant.  That was then canceled and rescheduled for 13 months from the initial request.  The vision clinics are also overloaded and under staffed.  Now I’m finding the same delays as I try to have my hearing re-evaluated. 

          I’ve looked at my VA outpatient care as objectively as possible.  I don’t believe that private insurance and providers would have offered any higher level of care.  But I’m running into situations and delays now that seem to stem from what has once more become an over-loaded, under-staffed, and badly underfunded system.  While I’ve never encountered any resentment or been made to feel unwelcome by VA staff, I see the levels of satisfaction with VA care dropping as other veterans experience the same problems. 

          I don’t think that I’m encountering the hidden schedules that have surfaced in Arizona and other facilities.  But the possibility that VA is once more becoming the agency it was in the 1970’s is very disturbing.  

6 May 2014 Shake shuffle and slice

Cassi Creek:  after a long delay mostly due to some serious fatigue and a desire to actually say something of significant value, I take pen in hand once more.

          It’s called literary license.  Did we fail to listen in high school English?  Of course we did.  Well, most of us did not listen.

          Into VA today for neurology follow-up.  0800 appointment, requiring me to roll out at 0500 to make check in time.  The parking lot dance was not too bad this morning and I made check in with 10 minutes of window remaining.  The LPN for the Neuro OP clinic did her bit, vitals, within two minutes of the time I sat down in Neuro OP waiting.  Then there was no action until 0920.  Today was Neuro grand rounds.  So my early appointment generated a long hold time but I was still the first patient to be seen by a neuro resident this morning. 

          Naturally, my tremor was fairly well controlled this morning and I was able to walk without shuffling.  They were both quite pronounced about 0500, the trough level for the dopamine meds I take.

          Tomorrow, we send the generator out for overhaul.  It has been unnecessary since 2011.  I’m fine with that lack of need.  But it does need some replacement parts.  It will be accompanied by the riding mower.  That valiant tool encountered some sort of rock or other frost-heaved obstacle last weekend.  It will run no more until it is seen by a small engine mechanic. 

          The generator may take some time to find and obtain parts.  It was manufactured in China.  The mower probably was as well but the label, at least, indicates U.S. manufacture. 

          Burgers to grill tonight.  Prep is done  for dinner.  Last Saturday I managed to slice one finger and one thumb while slicing garlic.  The unwanted protein was extremely thin and not even deep enough to bleed.  But that is decidedly a warning about future days in the kitchen.

28 April 2014 Hear the wind blow

Cassi Creek:  three years ago we were sitting here in the heat and humidity, happy that we had been fortunate to be missed by the tornadoes that ripped a path just to our north.  We could hear them but could not see them in the thunder storm that spawned and directed them. 

          The NWS Severe Storms Prediction center publishes convection forecasts that indicate the degree of risk and the location of risk for severe storms.  Most of the time we are lucky to be on the outside edge of the more serious storms.  Today, tornado watch 110 has us right in the middle of the box. 

          The high temperature today has been around 87°F.  The muggy, oppressive feeling that we associate with tornadic storms has been evident.  We’re about to see the first wave of storms roll in. 

          The forecast also calls for high winds, hail, and heavy rains producing flash flooding.  Spring is definitely here. 

24 April 2014 Up the long ladders and down the steep slopes!

Cassi Creek:  Warm, dry, and lacking in Sherpas

Hillary must be spinning about now.  Once upon a time, climbers actually carried some of their own gear, found and forced their own routes, and regarded Sherpas as climbing partners rather than beasts of burden and delivery services. 

There are plenty more minimum wage workers where the last batch came from. 

25 April 2014  Still down the steep slopes 

When will we ever learn?  over-sized implants do not increase intelligence or protect from idiocy

Hike with Mike began as walk in the rain.  The day promises to be wet and windy.  Need to have the Pathfinder lubed and oiled.  Also need new wipers.  The driver’s side wiper is horribly ineffective, leaving an obscured visual field. 

          The rain let up about ¼ of the way through the hike.  Instead of drizzle, I spent the morning listening to drivel about it being illegal for the U.S. government to own land.  I guess those “all powerful states” just popped into existence, fully formed, bordered, and populated after the various land purchases and annexations. 

22 April 2014 The annual eastern nation hunt

This cartoon stands by itself.

Hike with Mike this morning was touched with a bit of rain.  1^st drops hit about half way down valley.  The rest of the hike was more or less rainy.  The dog seemed not to mind it.  It’s been raining as small cells slide by, dropping small amounts of rain.  The forecast called for rain.  It has been here. 

          Need to get a new battery for the riding mower.  That’s on tap for this afternoon.