Bothers me to aggrandize ex presidents as some sort of exclusive club. They are retired ex presidents, some incompetent, some liars, some big spenders...and they no longer serve as presidents. They rule. It is not a good thing that we have a federal government so big and intrusive, the retired presidents have monuments built for themselves and then what...we pay for the upkeep?

The NP's really don't work independently, and they also "practice" medicine without any input by doctors as to how that practice is working out. In other words, in some states which allow NP practice, a doctor who believes that they are practicing bad medicine can only complain to the board of nursing...which does not have the expertise to decide what good medicine is...and these boards typically dismiss complaints made by doctors without appeal. They don't know what they don't know, and there is a lot more of that universe out there than they understand. Arguing that a little bit of training makes them equivalent to doctors (and they do), and then simultaneously arguing a doctor's training doesn't matter, is nonsense.

In the meantime, the silent destruction of the physician patient relationship, which is being replaced by a government controlled, organization patient relationship is not getting the attention it deserves. The government is pushing private practice physicians out of business and into employment by hospitals, which in turn will be financially rewarded by denial of care. The duty of a physician to a patient is destroyed, and the doctor is now dependent upon satisfying his or her employer's dictates, which will put protocols and cost savings first. If a doctor seems to spend too much money on a patient's care...even if indicated...the doctor will face punishment. Who do you want your doctor working for...you or corporate/government org?

The EMR is already being abused as protocols are set into place by hospitals for doctors to follow or face pressure to follow without dissent. So called "evidence based medicine". If the EMR were isolated from the government and insurance payers, I might be in favor of it, but the goal is for hospitals, insurance companies,and the government to completely be able to control what medical care people receive irregardless of what a physician might think is best. This is already happening in small ways...and some not so small ways. As more doctors are employed, they are being pressured to follow guidelines and protocols set by their hospital employers. See the recent 60 minutes episode on HMA and the abuse of an EMR in the Emergency Room.

This is all true, but the reason the government is pushing the EMR has little to do with providing good medical care, and everything to do with control. How do you think the "death panel" recommendations are going to be implemented? I think that within 5 years, it will be illegal to practice medicine without using the EMR. In addition, the government and insurance companies will mandate more and more medical care be provided using protocols they hand down, ostensibly in the name of "quality", but in reality, for controlling costs. So your doctor might decide you need an MRI for something based on his/her evaluation. But population guidelines in the EMR will simply not allow that to be ordered. See where this goes? Command/control.

Utter balderdash. The birth rate is falling among Americans because of a lousy economy. The current bias towards unfettered immigration in Mexico ignores the fact that the offspring of such immigrants do not constitute a paying class of citizen. Rather, we get more people who live off the government. Ms. Chavez buys into the idea that the government exists to transfer payments from one person to another. That is a bastardization of what government responsibilities really are, but it is what the Democrats and Obama are increasingly turning the government into. Even if we were to adopt her solution today, assuming the offspring were a net positive contributors to government, we are too broke now.

"In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act." George Orwell

All is going according to Obamacare. The plan is to create doctor shortages, then promote people of lesser training as substitutes. The faux MDs will be happy to blindly follow the death panel protocols on the electronic medical record. Oh, in case you didn't know...if doctors are sued and lose, that information has to be posted to a data bank. When hospitals are sued and lose or settle...they don't have to tell anyone. With more and more doctors being hired by hospitals, the hospital settles, keeps it quiet, and nobody knows. Just another way to eliminate accountability.

The notion that a CCW permit holder firing in the theater might have caused collateral injuries or death is an interesting one to ponder...could happen even with a police officer. Interestingly, John Lott said on last night's Mark Levin show that he can't find a case where a CCW involved in a shooting involved a bystander. It is likely that active training scenario's for CCW holders, if not already, will be tailored to include low light situations against "hardened targets" wearing apparent body armor. It is still not clear that what this nut had was actual body armor, even though it looked like it. Always amazing the mindset that liberals have taken on as doctrine. Non law enforcement people with guns are de facto dangerous.

Chris Rock isn't as smart or clever as he thinks, but responding to his twaddle only encourages him.