Medicine

Worthwhile Reading

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Attacks on Churchill…from the Right.  This sort of thing feeds the same “aren’t we just awful” mindset that we see so much of from the Left.

Student expectations for careers versus actual outcomes.

Trump, Peggy Noonan, and the Old Guard.

How the Past envisaged our Present.

Martin Gurri on the importance of free speech: The Great American Debate Begins Again. Indeed, a lot of people seem to reject the whole idea of debate and of adversary proceedings in courts: they want an Authority to tell them what is true.

Related: Obama’s messaging machine.

Do graphic design and aesthetics affect the credibility of political communications?

Propellers versus paddle wheels: a case study in the introduction of a disruptive technology.

Jet engine turbine blades and single-crystal casting. Interesting that this sort of thing is rarely referred to as ‘tech’ by the media.

What are the health effects of replacing incandescent bulbs with LEDs?

A Swarm of Sinecures

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Brown University Medical School…more specifically, the Department of Medicine within that school, whose divisions include cardiology, oncology, and primary care–now gives “diversity, equity, and inclusion” more weight than “excellent clinical skills” in its promotion criteria for faculty.

And, as has frequently been alluded to in recent days, the FAA in 2013 made some radical changes to its sourcing program for air traffic controllers…changes which surely had long-term impact, and not a positive one, on controller staffing.  (A very good article at the link, well worth reading.)

About a week ago, in a comment somewhere, I said:

It strikes me that jobs are increasingly viewed as sinecures…something that is given to someone to reward them with money and status. The idea that jobs actually involve work that actually needs to be done seems to play less and less of a part.

One might have thought that jobs like physician and air traffic controller would be reasonably exempt from this kind of thinking…but then one would have been wrong.

I suspect that the reason a lot of people view jobs as something where the incumbent receives value…but not where the incumbent necessarily adds value…is because their own jobs are like that.

John Konrad, who publishes the maritime site gGaptain, recently featured the S-word in a post:

The word is sinecure. NGO board seats, adjunct gigs, BS studies, book deals nobody is going to read… the list is endless Words have power. Start using this one.

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Worthwhile Reading & Watching

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A thoughtful piece on England and its influence.

Related: The rage of the British elites.  Note especially the guy who compares Musk’s purchase of Twitter with Paris under the Nazi occupation.

Katya Sedgwick, who grew up in the USSR, on the social costs of scarcity.  Not just of scarcity, I think, but of top-down economic planning.

A Norwegian study found that replacing one of the 5% worst general practitioners with one of average quality generates a social benefit of $9 million.   Surely true of many other occupations as well.

CDR Salamander writes about dependencies on China on US defense procurement.

Speaking of defense procurement, Tablet has a long profile of Palmer Luckey, founder of the defense startup Anduril:  American Vulcan.  The article also mentions General Bernard Schriever, who spearheaded USAF ballistic missile development in the 1950s and 1960s–and we need some Schrievers in government and well as entrepreneurial and creative people in the private sector if we are to become more nimble and effective in weapons-system development.  See my review of Schriever’s biography: A fiery peace in a cold war.

The WSJ book section last weekend had a review of Patrick Bishop’s “Paris 1944″…reminded me of an outstanding French TV series set during years of the Occupation. “A French Village,” as its name suggests, is set not in Paris but in the fictional town of Villeneuve.  One of the best television series I have ever seen.  Here’s my review.  That link goes to Ricochet, I also posted a review at Chicago Boyz, but the one at Ricochet is easier to read due to the WordPress typography plague.  This series should really not be missed.

You’ve Heard of Local Area Networks…

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Coming soon: Personal Area Networks.

Medicine and Obama’s Third Term.

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Obamacare changed American Medicine forever. I am becoming convinced that was a major purpose. Since 1978, Medicine and doctors have become the most regulated sector of the American economy.

Five years ago, I predicted one consequence. A doctor shortage. Why ?

A few years ago, it was reported that 10,000 doctors were leaving UK every year. How has the NHS dealt with this shortage?

By importing third world doctors.

The UK’s National Health Service (NHS) will soon begin a major campaign to recruit health workers from other countries to meet growing staff shortages.

Reports suggest a strategy has been drawn up to target a number of countries around the world, including poorer nations outside Europe.

One estimate in March this year said the NHS will need 5,000 extra nurses every year – three times the figure it currently recruits annually.

But what about the countries that it will recruit from – what impact will it have on them?

Where do non-UK staff come from?
The NHS already recruits globally to meet its staffing needs.

More than 12% of the workforce reported their nationality as not British, according to a report published last year.

How are we dealing with our doctor shortage ? By adding “Practitioners” instead of doctors.

How did this begin? In 1978, a new federal program was created called “Professional Standards Review Organizations.”

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