M. Bliss: William Osler: A Life in Medicine -Review

Osler's life was a remarkable achievement as a medical teacher (important in America in giving medical students real medical experience, as clinical clerks in hospitals) physician, prolific author, councilor, researcher and mentor to literately thousands of men and women embarking on the profession in the medicos. It was the philosopher and great teacher, William James, who commented to Osler, marveling and his energy and interests. Osler replied that he was terribly conscious of the time that it was a commodity he wished he could buy more of, as there was so much, he could do with it. (p. 502) Osler's zest for work and unbending passion for medicine set the standard for medical women and men in the twentieth century.

After reading Michael Bliss's brilliant biography of the pioneering neurosurgeon, Harvey Cushing, another remarkable medical man, and Osler's first biographer, it seemed only natural to read about Cushing's mentor. Both biographies are first-rate, and it really would be a disservice to compare them, because both works are thorough, educational, inspiring, and definitive contributions to the greats of medical history.

Osler is the author of the currently classic text, The Principles and Practice of Medicine, which became the core textbook for students and practicing physicians during his life. It became a yearly task for the doctor to revise later editions (sixteen in all) and in present time, for modern doctors, according to Bliss, has now become patient-centered and a historical document of the state of 19th century medicine.

Osler is famous for his bedside manner, the notion of empowering patients and autonomy in clinical practice. The man's faith in medicine and the legendary "aura" of healing that surrounded him, causing patients to regain faith in their own healing ability, has caused a renewed interest in humanities joining forces with science, a proper balance, ensuring optimal treatment and outcome for the patient.

How did the man accomplish so much in one lifetime? Similar to the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant, people close to him could adjust their clocks to the second by the philosopher's movements. Osler was the same: his day was usually planned down to the minute, rising at seven and retiring by ten-thirty every day.

He was also a man born with writing disease; never a day would go by without putting pen to paper, as his articles, correspondence, speeches and books certainly reveal. A consummate bibliophile, his collection of medical texts and related subjects, at the end of his life reached eight thousand, taking many years to catalog, ending up being donated, as was his wish, to McGill University.

An excellent biography of an extraordinary man of medicine.

The Disturbing Censorship on Social Media

One must admit that the most disturbing and egregious censorship occurring is the persecution and imprisonment of the journalist/publisher, Julian Assange. The man languishes in a UK maximum security prison for revealing to the world the dark machinations and war crimes of the US and other first world countries. When we discuss freedom of the press and speech, the subject of Assange should be on the lips of every journalist and publisher across the planet. Yet, the MSM generally ignores this injustice and prefers to side with the wealthy establishment and their fellow media cronies. 

Particularly in the 21^st century, adversarial journalism has all but disappeared, replaced by scribes forwarding the messages of corporations and the military Industrial Complex. Unfortunately, when social media once acted as a true “public square” for many voices, now they act as censors for any voice that challenges the dominant narrative. This is anti-democratic in the fullest sense of this term.

Logging on Twitter the other day, I was surprised to see thegrayzone.com story, labeled as possibly hacked material, revealing mainstream media outlets, specifically the BBC, Reuters, and the infamous Bellingcat publication, by way of “leaked documents,” covertly participating with the UK Foreign Office, funding programs to “weaken Russia.” In other words, paid-propaganda to enhance hate for the country in order to possibly debilitate relations and justify a future war.

From 2016-2020, the US MSM pushed evidence-free propaganda concerning Russia and the Donald Trump campaign “colluding” to win the presidential election. The New York Times also played a significant role in this misinformation onslaught until the Mueller report surfaced, showing zero evidence for this conspiracy. None of this conspiracy misinformation has been retracted. Yet The Grayzone's above-said story was labeled by Twitter as: “These materials may have been obtained through Hacking.” This is the first step to outright censorship of The Grayzone by the social media giant Twitter.

Interestingly but certainly not surprising this “hacking label” backfired, releasing thousands of memes about the matter. And as human nature dictates, labeling the article as possibly sourced by hacking only created further curiosity about its content, giving an incredible rise in the articles viewership.

Since the Biden Administration came into power, censorship, smearing, and demonetizing certain left-wing publications and YouTube channels rose. These news outlets and podcasts have not violated the rules and regulations of these social media platforms. They've indeed challenged many of the mainstream narratives in the areas of Geo-politics, politics, and economic content. Most of the YouTube channels that were demonetized were not given any reason for the move. The Grayzone story was also covered by The Intercept (a faux progressive publication), yet they were overlooked for the hacking label.

The Grayzone is a true adversarial journal, challenging the US and other countries regime-change operations. Unfortunately, it is one of the few true journals that give its readers other perspectives on political issues around the planet. Considering the unhinged misinformation vomited by the MSM over the last 4 years at least, The Grayzone is one of the only publications that seek the truth, informing its readers about world events.

Social media, especially Twitter has been a source of news and information for me for some years. So it's disappointing to see blatant censorship of news and information outlets that merely at times run counter to mainstream perspectives.

Note: the action of hacking into classified information by way of the computer is a complex exercise. It's also terribly hard to prove. Twitter claiming The Grayzone article may have been obtained through hacking is a guess at best. More than likely, these documents were obtained from a whistleblower and simply handed over. And by the way, these actions are the meat and potatoes of investigative journalism.

 

James Brabazon – Albert Schweitzer: A Biography - Review

 

This second edition of Brabazon's incredible biography contains new material regarding the relationship between Schweitzer and his wife, Helene, due to the discovery of numerous letters between them. The author also adds material in the later chapters, focusing on the antagonism that erupted between the United States government and the old doctor, as Schweitzer and other activists, such as Albert Einstein and philosopher Bertrand Russell exposed the public at large to the fall-out hazards of the hydrogen bomb testing that the government wanted to keep secret, as the Cold War was then in full swing. This new material is rich in insight, revealing that Albert. Schweitzer the myth, the modern saint, "The Greatest Man in the World", was indeed human, and whose long and arduous work in West Africa paved the way, or at least set an example for present day and future humanitarians.

What is most striking about this man was his incredible capacity for work. He held Doctorates in three major subjects - theology, philosophy and medicine and was an accomplished organist and world expert on Bach. Schweitzer's published works in theology, philosophy, and music remain in circulation, shedding light on these areas. His "Reverence for Life" philosophy, on the surface, appears almost too simplistic. Still, on closer examination, it is a worldview that encompasses an attitude of mind that could radically change the world for the better if practiced. Schweitzer was not a philosopher of the abstract variety, at home in an ivory tower creating complex theories that only a select few would understand. As the man said and wrote many times, "he lived his argument," and his accomplishments certainly prove this.

Brabazon's biography of this great man is thorough. He delightfully brings together Schweitzer's letters, books, articles, and interviews with friends, colleagues, and family, including sermons from his early career as a young minister that tells us that his love of Jesus and the foundations of his philosophy were already set in his mind and spirit, well before embarking into his long and productive life. Brabazon brings Schweitzer to life in these pages as only a great biographer wholly connected to their subject can do. It is extremely well written and engaging.

If you are only slightly interested in one of the great humanitarians of the twentieth century, an intellectual, a man of God, Samaritan, healer and example of goodness, read this engrossing biography - a labor of love and inspiring in every sense.

Musings: Impeachment 2 & Jan 6th

My innate masochistic nature got the better of me last week, when deciding to tune in on the Impeachment 2 trial of President Donald J. Trump. As predicted, of course, there were several obvious red flags. The most flagrant was the Democrat's decision not to call witnesses. Calling these witnesses would have certainly strengthened their case against the former president. This also would have extended the trial for many months. The prosecution didn't desire a drawn-out trial because let's call a spade a spade, they didn't have the votes, and in the end, Trump was found not guilty.

Rather than purely logical arguments, in other words, a prosecution strategy of rationality, their tactic was emotionally driven. Democrats stood before the congress and American people and cried like trauma-laden teenage girls about their own experiences during Jan 6^th, and the stain on democracy that Trump allegedly instigated on-line. To a large extent, I can relate to their trauma as a true mob ascended on the Capitol building looking for the heads of both democrat and republican government members. These are supposedly leaders of the “free world,” focusing only on themselves, all the while the majority of American people are dying in droves from COVID 19, have no health care, lost their jobs, and are about to lose their homes. The number of people that fall into this category runs into the millions. To be sure, this was a “show trial,” another congressional Barnum and Bailey circus without the bread for its citizens. There are other red flags concerning Jan 6^th that were not addressed and thus smells to high heaven.

Why did the DC police not stop the mob, and in some cases, actually “wave them in” to the building? The world knows that the US people are the most-watched and listened to citizens on the planet. America is a surveillance state par excellence. When you include social media, there is no excuse in the world why this riot on the Capitol building could not have been prevented. The US has more “security alphabet agencies” than any other country. And somehow, these hooligans broke into the building? At face value, this is highly suspect. But it gets a little worse.

Despite video evidence revealing on-duty police taking “ selfies” with the mob members and the DC police's video evidence permitting the mob into the building. This was glossed over in the hearings if not ignored completely.

The Guardian reported that the leader of the infamous Proud Boys, Enrique Tarrio, an extremist right-wing gang mainly responsible for the January 6^th “insurrection” was once an FBI informant in 2012. Of course, he denies any knowledge of this, but this fact remains, causing many to believe that January 6^th was an inside job.

The Washington Post reported that Navy veteran Thomas Edward Cadwell, who once held Top Security Clearance, led his band of fellow Oath Keeper members into the Capitol on January 6^th. This also raised a few eyebrows as to the true source for the attack on the Capitol.

It would be foolish to make evidence-free allegations that the insurrection could have well been an inside job to secure even further crackdowns on political groups critical of the current US government. However, that said, the focus of the democratic prosecution during the impeachment hearings glossed over these blatant anomalies. Now, there is talk of new censorship laws and the possible creation of what some call Patriot Act 2.0.

The Impeachment 2 hearings displayed true bipartisan theatre, relating the impression that our leaders “care” about our democracy. All said and done, former President Trump was found not guilty for instigating the insurrection in such a short time, which leads many to believe that this was simply a distraction from the country's real issues in the present time.

Many around the world were not surprised at the riot in the Capitol on January 6^th, 2021. The US government has failed the people on so many levels over the last 30 years that it is a wonder this event didn't happen earlier.

So many questions that will never be answered. And the government's response will be even further sanctions on people's Human Rights.

All in the name of Democracy.

Ryan Holiday – Lives of the Stoics – Review

The philosophy of Stoicism has been around for well over 2000 years. Because of its pragmatic application to our everyday lives, this view of ourselves and the world has persisted and remained relevant to the present time. Holiday's first line of the text is, The only reason to study philosophy is to become a better person. Personally as a student of the discipline of philosophy for well over 30 years, the reasons to study it range from self-understanding and nature of existence itself. The history of ideas is a worthwhile study, as it can give you the source for the reasons why we do the things we do. Lives of the Stoics gives us a simple history/biography of Stoicism founders and practitioners from Zeno the Profit, Seneca to the “philosopher king”, Marcus Aurelius.

The text is written in simple prose and entertaining enough to maintain the attention of anyone not familiar with philosophy. Holiday/Hanselman writes in a conversational tone, tying the ancient philosophers together in the context of the era. The tenets of Stoicism revolve around our nature and how to deal with the vagaries of our lives. A major focus of the Stoics is in the area of philosophy known as Ethics. Is the pursuit of virtue for its own sake essential to our happiness as human beings or, more specifically, living a better life?

The Stoics would answer the question in the resounding affirmative. Our lives' purpose is to engage in society in productive ways, and our lifetime activity is to become better human beings. What is discussed later in the text under the chapters on Seneca and Aurelius is our preparation and notions of death. There's no fear of death because we are born to die. This theme of death is a recurrent subject for many ancient philosophies and Initiation societies. Overcoming one's fear of death and understanding our inevitable demise is a level of enlightenment for many of these ancient societies. Acceptance of death in oneself and others is central to Stoicism.

As the text illustrates, at its most basic, Stoicism is the understanding and practice of “justice, honesty, self-control, courage...” Taking this further, the emphasis is put on what we can't control and what we can. Knowing the difference between the two is essential to our relative happiness. Following these ethical lines, orderliness, propriety, modesty, and self-mastery should be part of our daily practices. By our essential nature we all know what is right or wrong, and we must have the courage to do the right thing no matter the opposition or circumstances.

The two most informative and interesting chapters are Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius. For me, these two historical figures embody, through their actions and way of life, the core tenets of Stoicism's philosophy. One can see from the vigor and enthusiasm of these chapters that the authors feel the same.

As Holiday so emphatically points out, although ancient in its origins, Stoicism is an applicable philosophy for our turbulent and uncertain times. 

Musings on a Failing Empire

If one could pinpoint the beginning of the fall of the United States, it would be post WW ll around 1947 with the creation of the National Security State. After this date, the CIA went into full swing, creating “secret” wars across the planet. The National Security apparatus joined with big business, and the actions of war became an economic necessity. The cursory evidence of this observation is the US has been in perpetual war from this time. Dwight Eisenhower, in his farewell speech, cautioned the American people of what he called “The Military-Industrial Complex.” This is the coalescing of the military, Wall Street, corporations, and the main stream media. There's no doubt that “Ike” would be turning in his grave at the sight of what his beloved country has become in the present time.

There are two other times in American history that has guaranteed the eventual fall of the American empire. The first was the Telecommunications Act of 1996. This Law consolidated all the media companies that are currently owned by only five corporations. The largest media conglomerates that earn the most revenue are Comcast, Walt Disney Company, AT&T, and ViacomCBS. Many critics call this concentration of media authoritarian and State-controlled. As these corporations own all our news and information, many have compared them to past totalitarian regimes. The only source of news in communist Russia, for example, was the newspaper Pravda and the state-run television station.

Currently with the advent of the major internet companies such as Google, we have gigantic social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, which are privately owned companies and have total control over their content and editorial rights. Although these social media platforms claim that censorship is only incurred when hate speech or inciting violence is published, one only needs to glance at who's been de-platformed over the last few years to know this is simply not true.

Centralized media is a tool of an authoritarian centralized government. Allowing tech giants like Facebook to decide what is fake news and what isn't is at least a 'freedom of the press' issue, and a steep, slippery slope, that will lead us no-where but towards authoritarian rule.

The second most damaging law that has contributed to the failing of the American Empire was the reversal of the Glass Steagal Act of 1933. This Law separated investment banking from retail banking. By repealing this law enabled commercial banking and investment banking to merge. This led to the housing crisis of 2008 and the significant recession of the same year. Contributing harshly to the economic suffering, President Obama bailed out the banks for billions of dollars, ignoring the millions of American people that had lost their homes.

Also during the nineties under the Clinton administration, created NAFTA. In essence, this trading Law allowed large companies to ship their businesses overseas to acquire cheap labor, enhancing their profits. Again, the American people lost out, losing their jobs on a mass scale. This is not to mention the nation-wide infrastructure crumbling (where huge factories once existed), creating ghost towns across the land.

What we have seen over more than a decade is a huge transference of wealth away from the poor and middle classes to the top of the economic food chain.

At the start of COVID 19, the world witnessed the largest transference of wealth to the top 1% in the US that has ever been seen before in the world's history. While the corporations, banks, political donors, and other countries received billions, a suffering American people received a measly $600. And even as I write this today, the government continues to quibble about $1400.

Slowly but consistently, the American government has set the system in favor of themselves and the wealthy. And indeed, the rules are different for them as well.

A great example of this was the Robin Hood incident a few weeks ago. A group of ordinary Americans decided to play the stock market. This group bought into bricks and mortar company Game Stop that the big hedge fund companies began to short, betting on the video store chain to go out of business. This, of course, brought up the stock price, and as a result, the hedge fund companies lost billions of dollars. Robin Hood blocked these little investors from buying any more stocks. This is unheard of from a broker. Politicians and denizens of Wall Street appeared on cable news crying foul. What this revealed is that the system is fixed. Only the rich can play this game, and the ordinary guy “needs to get a life.”

Back in the seventies, one could work a factory job, own a house, raise a family, and save for the kids to go to college. Because the government has rigged the entire system in their favor, hoarding all the money for themselves, the 99% are left with virtually nothing.

Forget the identity politics and fighting each other over “cultural issues," we must focus our attention on policies that will benefit the people.

The US began its descent in 1947 with the creation of the National Security State. This led to many propagandized and expensive wars that are forged for profit. During the Clinton administration, Wall Street was deregulated, causing economic havoc for millions. Large companies that used to give millions of Americans' jobs are now gone, sent overseas to gain maximum profit. Obama decided to bail out the bankers rather than the American people. This caused an ever-widening economic chasm between the population and the few oligarchs at the top, including government officials.

The time of “rugged individualism” and “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” is gone; all the money is centralized and owned by the few.

Honestly, I don't have an answer for these issues, but the system cannot be continued to run by a few capitalist sociopaths and a pack of chickenhawk warmongers. The world is headed in a whole new direction.

 

Julian Assange and Censoring the Left

It would not be an exaggeration, but I think about the political prisoner, Julian Assange, every day. I imagine the man sitting in a cold cell, not permitted any reading materials, bullied daily by guards, and feeling more ill by the minute. Let's not bicker about the truth. Assange is a political prisoner. The man's only crime was to jump bail so many years ago, which comes with a maximum sentence of one year. We all realize why he is really behind bars: exposing the War Crimes of the United States during the illegal Iraqi war. Wikileaks has exposed corruption in governments all over the world. The man continues to be locked-up in a high-security maximum prison along with serial killers and pedophiles. He remains there because the British Justice system takes orders from the US State Department. The enlightened world sees this misuse of power, yet the 'permanent governments' that are truly in power commit these egregious crimes against humanity in plain sight. Why? Because they just can.

In the US, now that there is a new administration under Joseph Biden, nothing of real significance has changed for the better, particularly for the American people. The political duopoly continues to debate whether to give the people a $2000 check to alleviate their suffering due to the COVID Pandemic. Similar to all governments around the world, they lie as a matter of course. Indeed the world outside America views the US government as more entertaining than the Barnum and Bailey Circus of the early 20^th century. Gun totting Senators screaming Q anon conspiracies and calling for the execution of their colleagues across the aisle. It was disturbing viewing popular congresspeople going on social media describing their horror and worry for their lives during the “insurrection” of the Capitol on January 6, 2021. From across the pond, this resembles the political upheaval of a third world country. But I'm afraid it is getting worse.

After the silencing on social media of extremist right-wing groups inciting violence and lies about the 2020 election, I knew that it would only be a matter of time before the Left started to be censored without real justification. This has happened today on certain Left-wing YouTube channels. To be fair, they haven't been silenced completely but demonetized for their content. Personally, I use YouTube for my news on mainstream channels like CNN and MSNBC, including the occasional visit to Fox News. However, that said, I also watch the Jimmy Dore Show, the Convo Couch, Useful Idiots, Secular Talk, the Rational National, the Political Vigilantly, and The Grayzone. All of these channels are considered Left, and never over the years of my viewership have they incited violence of any kind. 

The above-said channels are antiwar and simply critical of the establishment mainstream narrative that is pushed down audiences' throats for clicks and ratings. To gain a clearer understanding of geopolitics and politics in general, it is vital to read beyond the mainstream daily-crises-24hour-news-cycle that they call 'Breaking News.' I find it necessary to read and listen to all sides to understand the world. By silencing the so-called Left in the general political discourse, we will lose a valuable perspective of the whole. Silencing the Left or the 'Truth' in the news, that is, other political perspectives, freedom of the press, and speech is stifled... and that's called Totalitarianism.

To be certain, I'm all for silencing those voices that incite violence. According to the Supreme Court, rabble-rousing for the purposes of insurrection and violence does not fall under the umbrella of Freedom of Speech. The YouTube channels mentioned above have never incited their viewers to storm the Capitol or murder public figures. Generally, they are critical of pro-war stances in the government and the economic inequality in the US.

YouTube demonetizing these channels is a direct violation of the US constitution.

We must maintain all political voices in the political discourse aside from those blatant groups or individuals that call for chaos and violence. This is not 'free speech' but 'hate speech.'

The US government answers to corporations; corporations do not answer to governments.

This is the state of affairs that must change for the health of true democracy around the planet.