In the Public Eye

jtaylor's picture
Haiku of fatherhood
Tuesday, May 14, 2013 - 2:51pm

The frozen burgers rage against the propane grille. Our faces grow oily in afternoon sun there at the smog line, at my son’s home on the pathway to Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park.

In the Public Eye

Bright bulbs, icky food and "blanket coverage"
Wednesday, January 31, 2007 - 11:43am

Add Maryland to the ever-growing list of states proposing a universal health coverage initiative ... Speaking of seeing the light, the Sacramento Bee reports that two California lawmakers want to do away with common light bulbs by 2012 or 2018, replacing traditional incandescent globes with more energy-efficient illumination around the same time that hordes of Baby Boomers (present company included) will be kicking around darkened, chilly houses trying to save retirement dollars for health premiums. ...

Dollars = quality (sort of)
Monday, January 29, 2007 - 1:53pm

They tried to stitch up a gash in my daughter's chin without anesthetic or cleaning the wound ... Nobody on the medical staff washed their hands as they went from patient to patient ... A used syringe was discarded into a paper bag where the patient put her discarded tissues  ... The same smock worn while eating pizza -- extra tomatoes please -- was still on while wheeling a patient to radiology.

Smirks, tongue thrusts and applause
Thursday, January 25, 2007 - 1:15pm

 "The squints and smirks are staying hidden.... (but he) loses points for licking his lips excessively and sticking his tongue out -- sure signs of nervousness and dry mouth."


When politicians go public in a major way -- State of the Union, State of the State -- their advocates and their critics ask the two same questions: How well did (s)he present? What do the polls show?

Rubik's Cube "made easy"
Monday, January 22, 2007 - 10:52am

Hard to dodge the pandemonium. Just about every politician, insurer and social activist has made a headline recently with ideas to solve the nation's Rubik's Cube of a costly, yet inadequate health care system.

Have we reached the tipping point?
Wednesday, January 17, 2007 - 11:13am

I asked a Valley congressman last year what it would take for Congress to make significant changes in the nation's dysfunctional health care system.  It'll happen, he said, when General Motors and the other large industries lobby Capitol Hill as a coalition, demanding action.


Well, GM doesn't have the clout it once did, but a pent-up frustration with high cost, sometimes questionable quality and increasing numbers of sick, uninsured people still making our tossed salads has created unusual partnerships at the state and national level.