Sen. Vitter Hopes to Retire Well on Earth Before It Turns Into Venus

In his Jan. 20, 2011 email update, Sen. David Vitter proudly proclaimed: "In 2009, I was the first member of Congress to challenge the radical environmentalists' attempt to regulate greenhouse gases by introducing a bill declaring that carbon dioxide, methane from agriculture and livestock, and water vapor are not air pollutants."

First of all, calling everyone who disagrees with you "radical" or "leftist" is not toning down political rhetoric. No need to overdo it, Senator. "Environmentalists" alone was enough for your supporters to open their pocketbooks.

Second of all, not wanting to breathe polluted air is not all that radical an agenda to espouse. Neither is the contention that too much of a good thing, even if it is a source of life, can be a bad thing. Just ask the gulf seafood you want us to eat, Senator. (Tip: you should pose your question before you consume them.) According to Dr. Jeff Masters, guru of wunderground.com who did his dissertation on carbon dioxide (CO2): "increased CO2 from burning fossil fuels has already harmed sea life."

Dr. Masters further explains:

the fossil fuel industry's slogan, "Carbon dioxide: they call it pollution, we call it life!" could just as truthfully be phrased, "Carbon dioxide. We call it pollution, and we call it death." One need only look at our sister planet, Venus, to see that too much "life" can be a bad thing. There, an atmosphere of 96% carbon dioxide has created a hellish greenhouse effect. The temperatures of 860 F at the surface are hot enough to melt lead. There's not too much life there! [Is Carbon Dioxide a Pollutant?]

Maybe the Senator's objection to cap-and-trade regulation of CO2 comes from a good place, say, a healthy skepticism of science. I don't know, but I'm going to maintain my own healthy skepticism of his motives. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, a.k.a. opensecrets.org, 70% of Senator Vitter's wealth comes from the Energy & Natural Resources sector of the economy. Too much carbon dioxide may be bad for your health, but too much regulation might be even worse for Sen. Vitter's checkbook.

Turns Out Rust Colored Water Probably Not So Good After All

This always happens when I can't sleep. I lie in bed checking my CrackBerry and come across something that angers or excites me leaving me even more awake. You'd think I'd have learned my lesson by now, but alas, I am just as human as you are.

This time the culprit was a brand spanking new study showing that exposure to the substance manganese found in groundwater is linked, for perhaps the first time, to IQ deficits in children. "Yawn." I know. Big deal considering exposure to the current sociopolitical climate is making all of us more stupid by the day.

Then I suffered (because insomnia IS suffering) the thought that woke me up. Even though I can't find it anywhere online, I swear I saw a recent news story about rust colored water in St. Tammany Parish homes. I'm almost certain a spokesman in that story said it was probably because of the high levels of manganese in the area and that while the water looks weird, the manganese is harmless. An online document from the St. Tammany Parish government website calls manganese "a nontoxic substance" (see Why Is My Water Discolored on page 2).

Maybe not:

Lead author Maryse Bouchard explains, "We found significant deficits in the intelligence quotient (IQ) of children exposed to higher concentration of manganese in drinking water. Yet, manganese concentrations were well below current guidelines."

The analyses of the association between manganese in tap water and children's IQ took into account various factors such as family income, maternal intelligence, maternal education, and the presence of other metals in the water. For co-author Donna Mergler, "This is a very marked effect; few environmental contaminants have shown such a strong correlation with intellectual ability." The authors state that the amount of manganese present in food showed no relationship to the children's IQ.

-Bouchard et al., Environmental Health Perspectives, September 2010

The difference in IQ was 6 points. To put that in some perspective, the current black-white IQ gap for 12-year-olds in America is approximately 9.5 points. That realization then led me to ponder the strength of the environment-over-genetics argument for the gap in racial achievement in the U.S., and you better believe that thought REALLY had me wide awake! That's going to have to be a whole other series of posts for another day.

There was definitely no sleeping after that because now I had to get up out of bed and...sigh...save the children. So I just emailed Tammany Utilities to alert them to this. In their defense, as indicated in the research article, while airborne exposure to manganese is harmful to adults and children, manganese in the levels present in groundwater in North America has heretofore not been widely known to be a neurotoxin. Lots of other public water systems need to take heed too.

Anyway, the moral of the story is: the next time some snot-nosed, smart aleck kid mouths off at you, smile and offer them a nice glass of water.


Filtered water, people! What kind of an animal do you think I am?!

Gov. Jindal DOES Care

I've always been pretty tough on Genius Boy Bobby, but maybe I was wrong about him. I cynically assumed the surprise announcement on Monday that he was giving state employees off on New Year's Eve had something to do with budget cuts (a la Nagin's 4-day work week proposal); however, I see now that his decision was completely driven out of concern for us.

He knew how difficult it would have been to work today anyway after being up all night worried sick about whether we're one of the hundreds who won't have a job by the end of next week.

Physician, Heal Thy Profession

I just stumbled upon this link: When Doctors Kill Themselves.

The unsettling truth is that doctors have the highest rate of suicide of any profession. Every year, between 300 and 400 physicians take their own lives—roughly one a day. And, in sharp contrast to the general population, where male suicides outnumber female suicides four to one, the suicide rate among male and female doctors is the same. (Newsweek)

Interestingly, it was written in April 2008 and not at all in response to the Ft. Hood incident yesterday. It reminded me of my thoughts from earlier today while listening to WWL talk radio. I guess because the gunman hadn't been deployed yet, it didn't occur to the callers or the host that occupational stress might have played a role -- at least not during the 45 mins. of the show that I heard.

There are obviously other factors involved (so do not go the hell off in my comments section about me being a "liberal/socialist" apologist for terrorists who hate America, or about Muslims, or tea bags, or big government, or whatever), but as a mental health professional, my first reaction was to wonder what stress military psychiatrists and psychologists, as well as civilian ones working for the VA, must be under. It's no secret that the soldiers returning from war have experienced serious psychiatric illnesses, and that the VA system is stretched very thin right now and, by extension, so are the doctors.

I wouldn't be surprised if being a doctor played a significant role in leading this psychiatrist to such a low point in his life. Physician suicide vs. going the hell off and killing others are two different things, but the two scenarios share some of the same causes.

Article on physician suicide:

they worry—not without reason—that if they admit to a mental-health problem they could lose respect, referrals, income and even their licenses...

...physicians are supposed to be the strong ones who care for the sick, not the sick ones who need to be cared for. "I did not want it to go on my medical record that I had been treated for depression," says Dr. Robert Lehmberg, 60, whose moving account of his struggle with the condition—and the stigma it carries.

Article on the Ft. Hood shooting:

The consensus at Walter Reed, Casscells said, was that Hasan was sent to Fort Hood for "a fresh start" after a difficult time at the medical center.

Hasan received a poor performance evaluation there, the Associated Press reported, quoting an official who spoke on condition of anonymity. While he was an intern, Hasan had some "difficulties" that required counseling and extra supervision, according to Dr. Thomas Grieger, who was the training director at the time...

...The military will look at all this closely and decide if there is any mental or physical illness, whether this is just a lonely guy with a remote personality who got a bad officer evaluation report and lost the confidence of his peers...

...Our focus was on the doctors to dig deep and do all they can for these guys (troops) and to have one of our own do this is personally crushing.

Healthcare providers, especially doctors, are supposed to "push through it" and perform perfectly no matter what is going on, an expectation that's hard to argue with since they're responsible for human lives. Still, at a certain point and with enough pressure, something's gotta give.

Louisiana To Cure Severe Psychological Disorders

Dr. Richard Dalton, medical director for the state Office of Mental Health, cited planned expansion of the clinical staffs of the outpatient clinics and new treatment programs. "Our goal is to get our community services to the point so we can in the next two years discontinue the hospitalization of children, " he said. "That's not a fiscal goal. That's a clinical goal."

A clinical goal I bet the American Psychiatric Association would be tickled pink to hear and probably jealous they didn't think of that first!

I've said it before, but I'll say it again. After all, if state officials can keep repeating the same senseless shit, then surely the rest of us can keep responding with some good old common horse sense. I too wish we didn't need hospitals for either physical or psychiatric illness. Really, who WANTS to be hospitalized? (OK, there are a few people who like being hospitalized but that is, ironically, a psychiatric disorder.) Hell, I've been trying this new "optimism" thing lately, so I'm even willing to believe that we can discontinue psychiatric hospitalizations in two years. Still, wouldn't it be prudent to have the hospital as a backup option until we have more success with the all-outpatient, all-the-time thing?

Employees who provide NOAH outpatient services will transfer to two new clinics expected to open in August: one in Mid-City at 3801 Canal St., the other in Algiers at a location the state has yet to secure.

Or at least have the outpatient services in place before closing the hospital?

In Reality, which is apparently nowhere near Baton Rouge geographically nor metaphorically, some human illnesses simply cannot be treated on an outpatient basis; but Dr. Dalton would have us believe that in 2 years, we will be able to drag a suicidal teenager down from the Crescent City Connection, give him or her a ride home and one of those nice, pretty business cards with an appointment date/time on the back, and sleep comfortably for the next night or two until we get a chance to see them in the clinic -- or whenever their parents are able to bring them by.

La dee dah...whenever is fine!

While we're at it, let's just go back to having all women deliver their babies at home and scheduling surgeries between haircuts at the barbershop! Who the fuck needs hospitals anymore? They're so antiquated.

Wrap It Up, People!

I realize it's been a busy news day, but I would hope news this important is picked up by the local media SOON.

The HIV/AIDS Atlas found that 80 percent of U.S. cases are clustered in 20 percent of counties...

A random sampling of the 20 percent of counties with the highest HIV rates include: Marin and San Francisco counties, Calif; Miami-Dade county, Fla; Bronx, Queens and New York (Manhattan) counties, New York City; Richland (Columbia), S.C.; Orleans (New Orleans), La; Butts, Clayton and Dekalb counties (Atlanta), Ga; New Haven and Hartford counties, Conn; Multnomah (Portland) Ore; and Denver (Denver) Colo.

Dear Gov. Jindal, Do The Right Thing

Dear Governor Jindal,

I was so pleased to hear that you understand and are concerned about the link between dropping out of school and ending up in prison, and that you would like to address these problems.

Every year 14,000 high school students drop out of school. Every year we lock up about 14,000 people in our prisons. I don't think that's a coincidence. -Gov. Bobby Jindal on his initiatives to reduce Louisiana's dropout and recidivism rates. [Times Picayune, 1/4/09, p. A-13]

I was not so pleased to read on the very same newspaper page your plans to stave off a projected $341 million budget shortfall by delaying the opening of a mental health crisis center in New Orleans and by canceling plans to add 6 inpatient beds to the N.O. Adolescent Hospital. You should be aware that a recent study shows that children in LA impacted by Hurricane Katrina currently suffer from physical and mental health problems at rates double that of homeless children in New York City.

NY Times 12/5/08:
...41 percent under age 4 had iron-deficiency anemia -- twice the rate for children in New York City's homeless shelters. Anemia, often attributable to poor nutrition, is associated with developmental problems and academic underachievement.

More than half of those ages 6 to 11 had a behavior or learning problem, yet in the East Baton Rouge School District children can wait for as long as two years to be tested for learning disabilities.

...many of the children of Hurricane Katrina are behind in school, acting out and suffering from extraordinarily high rates of illness and mental health problems. Their parents, many still anxious or depressed themselves, are struggling to keep the lights on and the refrigerator stocked.

Governor, these are the children most likely to not finish high school and then end up in jail, and these are the very children that your budget cuts will hurt most. I think that the Obama administration and Congress would be hard-pressed to hand over $450 million for a new Charity hospital to a state that won't even spend $4.25 million to address the dire needs of its own citizens, needs which should have been addressed 3 years ago now.

Show us that you care about your citizens. Let us know whether a man of God would choose $385,040 in pay raises for 6 Cabinet members already making six figures a year over thousands of families who have nowhere else but you to turn to for survival. Six psychiatric inpatient beds at NOAH will cost $250,000.

Governor Jindal, do the right thing this time.

8 Percent...

I'm still shocked and quite unnerved about a story I heard on local radio nearly two days ago. EIGHT PERCENT of New Orleanians are apparently suicidal, according to a study that followed up on 800 of an original 1000 people surveyed 6 months post-Katrina. People in hard hit Mississippi aren't faring much better as about 6% of survivors there now admit to currently considering killing themselves. I hear a million disheartening stories a day about our (un)recovery, and they all upset me, but this one...I'm scared speechless.

I've been busy moving to a new place (don't worry, friends -- I'm still in N.O.!) but I don't think I've been SO removed from society that I may have missed our public officials' alarmed reaction to this news. Maybe I did. I know we're down on our politicians right now, and we have every reason to be. At the same time, I know they're so overloaded that they can't react to EVERY negative development right away. But, my Gawd, nearly one-tenth of their constituents is contemplating suicide seriously enough to tell research assistants from way across the country that they feel they can't go on anymore! Hello...that's a cry for help! What more do we need to do?! Throw up the fuckin' bat signal?

[Sidenote: Anyone planning to post a comment about how we are only whining for help and won't get off our asses or that we should let this "cesspool" sink into the sea can kiss my ass on Canal Street.]

I realize that stats and epidemiology comes across as Greek alot of times (assuming one doesn't speak Greek), so let me put some context around this:

• Six months after Katrina, the suicidality rate among the SAME sample of folks was 3%. A year ago, one study found that even though the percentage of people reporting having a mental illness had doubled after the storm, a surprisingly low 1% said they were suicidal.
  

• The National Mental Health Association estimate that 4% of American adults contemplate suicide. If I figure correctly, based on the optimistic population count of 300,000, the 8% translates into 8,000 New Orleanians per every 100,000 who are thinking of killing themselves.
  

• The National Institutes of Health reported that in 2004, 10.9 per every 100,000 people killed themselves, and estimated there are 8-25 attempts (or roughly 87.2-272.5 attempts per 100,000 persons) for every completed suicide. Attempting is different from contemplating, but I can't help but assume we're blowing national estimates out of the fucking water. If even 1% of those considering suicide here were to take their lives, that' d still put us at 80 (compared to 10.9) per every 100,000, which would mean 640 to 2000 New Orleanians per every 100,000 residents will attempt to take their lives within a year's time.
  

Overcoming major adversity can give people hope and perspective on things; feeling like there's no way out of hard times does not. I fear that the window for recovery has closed for some people. Everyone is worn down, I know, but we must somehow find the energy and concern to check on those around us. Sometimes a simple, "Seriously, how are you?" will give someone the chance to unload enough of their burden to get them through.

If you find yourself in the 8%, you are certainly not alone. Don't let shame or a sense of doom and hopelessness lead you to do something that will only add to the greater misery. And remember, you're doing alot to aid our recovery simply by not being a politician. (And if you're a politician, just remember you haven't even come close to fucking things up like those idiots we elected to serve with you).

In all seriousness, here are some resources if you or someone you know could use a few

It Figures...a Retard Analyzed Latest N.O. Death Rate Data

A follow-up to my previous post...

...wherein I commented about the state's recent conclusion that there has been no significant increase in New Orleans' death rate post-K: "There are idiots aplenty in B.R. but not stupid enough to make that sort of basic ass mistake."

Ever a slave to the truth, and thus beholden to setting the record straight, I have no choice but to point out the (irreverently humorous and insensitive politically incorrect) fact that a "Retard" was indeed responsible for analyzing the death rate data. State epidemiologist Raoult Retard, to be precise. See for yourself.

Posted: Saturday, 09 June 2007 9:10AM N.O. health official wants more than stats on city deaths Associated Press Reporting

NEW ORLEANS (AP) The director of the city's health department says a recent study by state health officials seriously downplays an increase in the New Orleans area's post-Katrina mortality rate.

Dr. Kevin Stephens says New Orleans has an astounding death rate and something needs to be done about it.

DHH epidemiologist Raoult Retard used death certificates from New Orleans and surrounding parishes for his study and said that the only increase was a ``slight'' one in early 2006, when it jumped from 11-point-3 per 1000 to 14-point-3 per thousand.

Stephens noted that the increase is a leap of more than 25 percent. He sent a letter to Department of Health and Hospitals Secretary Fred Cerise calling their study disappointing and saying it seriously downplays the true health care crisis facing New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina hit on August 29, 2005.

The state study did not include complete figures for the latter part of 2006. DHH spokesman bob Johannessen says those will be included in an updated study that should be released within a couple of weeks.

Stephens said the study should have been held until all the 2006 figures are available and it should include out-of-state deaths of residents who fled Katrina. But even though it was incomplete, Stephens said, the increase that it found should be alarming.

I was going to just end with that, but the following tidbit was the subject of an elaborate post that was lost forever just as I finished it, of course. The tidbit is that a band of either really loony or really ruthless legislators will present this week House Concurrent Resolution No. 171, which calls for moving the LSU School of Medicine to Baton Rouge -- because clearly they haven't fucked us enough.

I would never suggest a sinister connection between downplaying the death rate in N.O. and this proposal arguing we don't need TWO whole med schools in N.O. (they say we already have Tulane!). Besides, a "Retard" could never pull off such a conspiracy, and it's pure coincidence that the first place most dying people think to go to not die is a hospital.

Like I said, just a tidbit I wanted to share

"Louisiana" Abandons New Orleans

It hasn't been easy for me to work lately. So when I just now got the rare urge to work on a manuscript that's been hanging over my head since God was a boy, I opened my browser to connect to a writing-friendly music station, only to be greeted by this headline on my homepage (the entire article is also at the end of this post):

"Katrina still killing, medical experts say:

They say stress-related deaths escaping official notice; state disagrees"

The state whats? Disagrees?! Seems logical to me that if post-K stress interferes with my normal psychological functioning (i.e., ability to be productive), it's not too far fetched to believe it's still stressful enough to kill people. The fact that I can't focus on my work because I get so angry I can't concentrate is all the proof I need that the goddamn state is wrong. The human body can only handle so much vitriol and despair.

But the state ain't wrong in the sense that it simply disagrees. They know exactly what the truth is, and they know they just don't give a damn about it. I don't need anymore proof that the folks in Baton Rouge: 1) don't care what happens to us; 2) doesn't realize that they need New Orleans to survive since we're the economic engine that keeps this state afloat; or 3) are trying to get rid of us holdouts so they can get their hands in the money pot once we're dead or have moved away out of disgust.

If they really wanted to acknowledge the truth, they'd use death rates from January 2005 as the basis for comparison, not rates from January 2006 -- after the storm. There are idiots aplenty in B.R. but not stupid enough to make that sort of basic ass mistake. Comparing post-K death rates to post-K death rates? C'mon, 7th graders could find the flaws in that sort of logic.

The legislature's failure to prioritize our area's needs is yet more proof that "Louisiana" (which I put in quotes because our REAL state government would be working for US) has abandoned us. They don't want to put up any of the $3 billion, which comes from OUR rebuilding boom, to draw down more federal money for the Road Home program. Jim Donelon and Blanco ain't doing shit to ease the insurance crisis except ease the insurance companies' burdens by giving them money instead of advocating for the people they represent. The state's insurance program of last resort, in its wind-only policies offered to people who can't otherwise get wind coverage, won't cover expenses incurred to live elsewhere while your home is damaged and only covers depreciated value and not replacement cost. And do we really think it's just happenstance that the state has not lifted a pinky finger to use state money or even FEMA money to provide one fucking inpatient psychiatric bed within 50 miles of the city? I guess I'd be denying that psychological stress was still killing people down here too.

I always thought the lack of action from the state was good ole Lou-ziana incompetence, but it seems clear to me now that they know exactly what they're NOT doing.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Katrina still killing, medical experts say

They say stress-related deaths escaping official notice; state disagrees

11:34 AM CDT on Sunday, June 3, 2007

Associated Press

NEW ORLEANS – The bodies are no longer being dragged from houses and buildings toppled or swamped by Hurricane Katrina, but nearly two years later, many medical experts think the storm is still killing.

Storm survivors are dying from the effects of both psychological and physical stress, with the causes including dust and mold still in dwellings, financial problems and fear of crime, health experts and officials said.

"There is no doubt in my mind that Katrina is still killing our residents," said Dr. Frank Minyard, coroner for Orleans Parish. "People with pre-existing conditions that are made worse by the stress of living here after the storm. Old people who are just giving up. People who are killing themselves because they feel they can't go on."

Some say an in-depth federal analysis is needed, despite a new state report that found no significant increase in deaths in the New Orleans area from January 2006 through June 2006. The state Department of Health and Hospitals is still compiling figures for the last six months of 2006.

Some New Orleans doctors questioned the accuracy of the population figures used to determine the death rate, saying they might have been too high. Dr. Fred Cerise, secretary for the Department of Health and Hospitals, said he is comfortable with the population data, which he said came from the Census Bureau and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The city was abandoned after Katrina struck Aug. 29, 2005, and many people did not begin returning until mid-2006.

The official Katrina death toll in New Orleans stands at about 1,100. State health officials said deaths haven't been listed as Katrina-related since the end of 2005, except for bodies found under storm wreckage. But Dr. Minyard said he believes that the hurricane is still behind many deaths.

Dr. Ronald Kessler, professor of health care policy at Harvard Medical School and head of a group that has monitored 3,000 exiled Katrina survivors, said reconstructing an individual's mental and physical state before death might help in determining exact causes of death.

"There are high rates of mental health problems among the survivors, and previous research has found that mental disorders are predictors of earlier death rates," Dr. Kessler said.

Said Dr. Minyard, "Years from now, when they talk about post-traumatic stress, New Orleans after Katrina will be the poster child."

but DO you have a right to property that's not yours?

I can't believe it's been almost a month since I posted. Where the fuck have I been?! Seriously, if you know, tell me where I was.

In hindsight, though, not posting probably had much more to do with K-fatigue than I realized. At first, it was hard to keep up with the goings-on because of work, being busy with life's responsibilities, etc. Just didn't have the time to post what I wanted to. Then I didn't have time to watch or read much news, and what happened next was probably like getting that first hit of crack for free: it felt so good I wanted more of it! Actually, it didn't feel "good," just less stressful.

I also fell victim to what I've experienced (at least in my own head, so humor me) as another round of communal K-fatigue, this time more potent than earlier rounds. But maybe what really happened is that Mardi Gras did lift spirits and take away cares for a bit. I don't know, just a thought.

Oh, and I almost forgot that I was also horribly ill for a week until about 2 days ago. I got that "respiratory thing" that has been going around, followed by that "stomach thing" 48 hours later. I'm pretty sure I saw "The Light" at least once. Moreso than I am about the city having collective moods, I'm sure the stress has taken a toll on our immune systems. It just seems like so many people have been ill in the past month, or having physical symptoms that are bothersome. I'm sure mold, high amounts of trash and rodent feces in the environment, contaminated ground water and rusted subterrace pipes, and the dust from crumbling streets have NOTHING to do with it!

Considering that we're strong enough to survive our cultural diet and health habits day after day after day, whatever the cause, if it's dangerous enough to make folks here sick, it's likely fatal to most other humans.


And what the fuck does this have to do with property rights, you're probably asking. The answer is nothing. Sorry, I went on a tangent. What I intended to post were my reactions to this whole public housing fiasco, and now the "Section 8" fiasco in N.O. East. I know some of my liberal friends disagree with me, and I consider myself pretty far left. My position, which I don't think even falls outside of liberal or progressive ideology, is this: RENTERS DO NOT HAVE PROPERTY RIGHTS. Don't get me wrong; I know there are exceptions but that's pretty much the way it is.

Alls I know is that in every place I've ever rented, once my lease agreement was up or even up to 90 days before the lease expired, my landlords had every right to say: "Sorry pal, I like ya and all, but I'm selling the place and the new owner will tear it down to build nice condos; so you have to go." And I would've had to really leave! And every judge in America would agree with my landlord, and my friends, after validating my anger and being very supportive of me and telling my landlord he sucks, would pretty much throw their hands up with me and ask: "so when are you moving?"

I'm not supporting not letting people back in to even retrieve their things or bullshit like that. Housing units that were inhabitable after the storm should have been re-opened as soon as people in that zip code were let back in after the storm. HANO probably could have also put minimal effort into making small repairs on lightly damaged units to get even more units open.

That, however, is a separate issue from efforts to stop ANY effort to change public housing in any way at all. The housing advocates and the good folks down at ACORN are right about wanting to keep structures that are sturdy and in good structural condition, but renovating them is not exactly a wacky idea.

But after modernizing them, they have to be converted to mixed-income housing or something. There is absolutely no good reason that I can see why we should keep it like it is. Not one. Don't poor kids deserve decent homes too? And how dare we advocate returning people to homes we wouldn't want our kids to live in?

I think it's sad that public housing residents can't trust the government to honor their commitment to not abandon them after all these changes are made. They have every reason to fear they'll be shoved out of the picture, based on previous experience. I think it's a shame that HANO doesn't seem capable of responding to the people they serve in a respectful and empathic manner. Most of all, I think it's sad that the opposing sides are unwilling, if not incapable, of finding some sort of middle-ground in the vast expanse sitting between "tear it all down NOW and build anew!" and "don't change a thing!" This intransigence is our collective problem, our drug of choice, the monkey on our back -- the one thing we can't shake. The reason we end up back where we've always been is because people are so scared, or skeptical, of change that it stops us from getting anywhere at all.