Attended the Christian Socialist Movement AGM and Tawney Lecture/Dialogue last night (although I suppose as Vice Chair there is no getting out of it even if I wanted to). Packed to the rafters it was.
Whilst there were fascinating contributions from both Stephen Timms MP and Rev Canon Nick Sagovsky, I was rather more struck by one of the contributions made from the audience.
"We need faith in action", shouted one woman. A hearty "hear hear" echoed round the room.
Or did she actually shout "we need faith inaction"? There is a rather different meaning behind that suggestion, isn't there?
It's hard to tell, considering the two phrases sound the same, though they mean polar opposites.
I guess the appropriate reaction to the latter comment would be a universal shrug from the audience rather than showing positive approval though.
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Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Tory Mould On The Environment
Anyone heard of a guy called Stephen Mould?
No, I thought not, but it seems he is the Tories' Parliamentary Candidate in Derby North.
I was rather interested by the page of his website talking about the environment.
According to Stephen we need "to meet the great environmental threats of the age, to enhance the environment and to increase general well-being" and "today that means: Playing our part in tackling climate change by encouraging green growth through binding annual targets for carbon reduction, a long-term price for carbon, and the removal of barriers that hold us back from leading the world in new green technologies".
All absolutely laudable I am sure you agree.
I thought I'd even over-look the fact that the man opposes introducing a congestion charge to help address the over-use of cars in Derby City Centre and the effect that this causes on the enviroment - as I am sure he is passionate about the environment and is doing his own bit to tackle climate change.
I then had a look at the biog on his website and his list of interests:
"Stephen's interests include Formula 1 racing, motor cruising & flying small aircraft. Stephen & Nikki qualified for their RYA Day Skipper Qualification only last year. This year Stephen began learning to fly and hopes to gain his Private Pilot's License soon".
Do the Tories actually believe anything they say anymore?
It reminds me of David Cameron's announcement that he wanted to do something about reducing the number of flights taken in the UK because of the effect they had on the environment - but then only referred to short haul flights (often taken by the low paid) and not long haul flights (often taken by Tory businessmen).
That is David Cameron who's disgust for short haul flights is such that he and the rest of the Shadow Cabinet all flew to Scotland on a short haul flight for a meeting instead of the option of taking the train.
Perhaps he just heard how bad the trains to Scotland can be?
There is a Mould in the Tory Party, and everyone should be aware of it.
-
No, I thought not, but it seems he is the Tories' Parliamentary Candidate in Derby North.
I was rather interested by the page of his website talking about the environment.
According to Stephen we need "to meet the great environmental threats of the age, to enhance the environment and to increase general well-being" and "today that means: Playing our part in tackling climate change by encouraging green growth through binding annual targets for carbon reduction, a long-term price for carbon, and the removal of barriers that hold us back from leading the world in new green technologies".
All absolutely laudable I am sure you agree.
I thought I'd even over-look the fact that the man opposes introducing a congestion charge to help address the over-use of cars in Derby City Centre and the effect that this causes on the enviroment - as I am sure he is passionate about the environment and is doing his own bit to tackle climate change.
I then had a look at the biog on his website and his list of interests:
"Stephen's interests include Formula 1 racing, motor cruising & flying small aircraft. Stephen & Nikki qualified for their RYA Day Skipper Qualification only last year. This year Stephen began learning to fly and hopes to gain his Private Pilot's License soon".
Do the Tories actually believe anything they say anymore?
It reminds me of David Cameron's announcement that he wanted to do something about reducing the number of flights taken in the UK because of the effect they had on the environment - but then only referred to short haul flights (often taken by the low paid) and not long haul flights (often taken by Tory businessmen).
That is David Cameron who's disgust for short haul flights is such that he and the rest of the Shadow Cabinet all flew to Scotland on a short haul flight for a meeting instead of the option of taking the train.
Perhaps he just heard how bad the trains to Scotland can be?
There is a Mould in the Tory Party, and everyone should be aware of it.
-
Free Scoring Shoulders And Shoddy Exhausts
Played footy on a Saturday morning for the first time in ages this weekend - too many Council advice surgeries, kilts to buy, and other exciting things to do in recent weeks - and it was a great game as we came from 2-0 down against one of the best sides in the league to draw 2-2.
But we all know that a 2-0 lead is the hardest score to have in football, so perhaps a 2-2 draw was not that surprising a result at that point.
And 2-2 draws are always more satisfying than 2-0 draws, I find.
Playing on pitch at right back (in the changing room, haha!) I even scored the first goal in the comeback - but was rather more impressed by goal line clearance at 2-0 down. The centre forward rounded the keeper and smashed the ball full force at the goal - I just stood there and manfully powered the ball off the line with my head, grunting like a Neanderthal as I repelled the shot upfield and chased the follow up. They shall not pass.
It was at this point, about 30 seconds after the impact of the shot that the adrenalin finally wore off and I just stood there with my head spinning, promising myself I would never be so stupid as to stop the ball with my head ever again. (Although in fairness the spinning head could have been due to the fact that our kit hadn't been washed from last week and probably could have been reclassified as chemically hazardous had a Government Inspector inspected it at the weekend. :-/)
But back to my goal. A glorious, well placed, looping effort into the far corner off my shoulder. I think the keeper was done for pace (a severe lack of it) as he attempted to flap it away. Not a lot of people are good enough to be able to score with their shoulder, a lot of people claimed it was a fluke, but when Cristiano Ronaldo tries it next weekend then you'll see the genius of it.
In fact I think my shoulder is probably the freest scoring shoulder in the whole of the league. It is potent. More deadly potent than even our kit. Respect my shoulder. ;-)
The other interesting thing from the game on Saturday was that on the way back the exhaust fell off my car. Now a lot of people will think this is coincidental, but it made me think back to the last time my exhaust blew up - again on that occasion I had scored a goal. Actually it was two goals that game.
So goodness only knows what will happen if I ever score a hat-trick!
-
(BTW this photo is just a helpful aid to let you know what my free scoring shoulder may look like - the picture wasn't taken on Saturday. Actually, it's my other shoulder that scored at the weekend, so perhaps I am just trying to lull people into a false sense of security about my secret weapon. The other shoulder is frightening...some say awesome...too awesome for a mere photograph on this blog. ;-))
But we all know that a 2-0 lead is the hardest score to have in football, so perhaps a 2-2 draw was not that surprising a result at that point.
And 2-2 draws are always more satisfying than 2-0 draws, I find.
Playing on pitch at right back (in the changing room, haha!) I even scored the first goal in the comeback - but was rather more impressed by goal line clearance at 2-0 down. The centre forward rounded the keeper and smashed the ball full force at the goal - I just stood there and manfully powered the ball off the line with my head, grunting like a Neanderthal as I repelled the shot upfield and chased the follow up. They shall not pass.
It was at this point, about 30 seconds after the impact of the shot that the adrenalin finally wore off and I just stood there with my head spinning, promising myself I would never be so stupid as to stop the ball with my head ever again. (Although in fairness the spinning head could have been due to the fact that our kit hadn't been washed from last week and probably could have been reclassified as chemically hazardous had a Government Inspector inspected it at the weekend. :-/)
But back to my goal. A glorious, well placed, looping effort into the far corner off my shoulder. I think the keeper was done for pace (a severe lack of it) as he attempted to flap it away. Not a lot of people are good enough to be able to score with their shoulder, a lot of people claimed it was a fluke, but when Cristiano Ronaldo tries it next weekend then you'll see the genius of it.
In fact I think my shoulder is probably the freest scoring shoulder in the whole of the league. It is potent. More deadly potent than even our kit. Respect my shoulder. ;-)
The other interesting thing from the game on Saturday was that on the way back the exhaust fell off my car. Now a lot of people will think this is coincidental, but it made me think back to the last time my exhaust blew up - again on that occasion I had scored a goal. Actually it was two goals that game.
So goodness only knows what will happen if I ever score a hat-trick!
-
(BTW this photo is just a helpful aid to let you know what my free scoring shoulder may look like - the picture wasn't taken on Saturday. Actually, it's my other shoulder that scored at the weekend, so perhaps I am just trying to lull people into a false sense of security about my secret weapon. The other shoulder is frightening...some say awesome...too awesome for a mere photograph on this blog. ;-))
WikiEcho (cardiography wiki)
Added to the list of medical wikis:
WikiEcho
Self-description: “Wikiecho is a project to create a free, up-to-date and reliable online resource covering the rapidly advancing field of echocardiography.”
Intended Audience/Users: “This website is intended to be used by medical students, residents, physicians, cardiology fellows, cardiologists and cardiac sonographers.”
Contributors: Anyone who registers.
Editors/Administrators: Not listed.
Editorial Policies: Minimal, available here.
Consumer Reporting of Adverse Events to FDA
by Susan F. Wood, PhD
The FDA Amendments Act (FDAAA) of 2007 includes a small section addressing direct to consumer (DTC) advertising. The bill doesn’t limit advertising to consumers, nor does it give FDA authority to put a moratorium on advertising while more data on safety or effectiveness is collected during the first months or years that a product is on the market. A moratorium was recommended by the IOM in it’s drug safety report in 2006, but was not adopted by Congress - perhaps due to arguments about first amendment rights, but perhaps due to objections by both the pharmaceutical industry and the advertising industry.
What was included is a small section requiring that all print DTC ads carry “the following statment printed in conspicuous text: ‘You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch, or call 1-800-FDA-1088′ “
This is a good idea and it would be better if all DTC ads, including TV and web ads were required to provide this information as well. But what was included in the law regarding TV ads is - A Study. If such a study concludes that it is appropriate for TV ads to include information about Medwatch, then the FDA is to issued regulations to that effect.
The Consumers Union (producers of Consumer Reports) and the drug safety advocacy group WoodyMatters - named after the husband of founder Kim Witczak - has called for FDA to speed up the study and to require this information on all DTC advertising. They have submitted a citizens petition to FDA and collected over 56,000 signatures of consumers around the nation calling for this information.
They also conducted a poll about prescription drug advertising and found some interesting, if not surprising, results. One finding is that although the vast majority (81%) of people have seen prescription drug advertising (and 98% of these saw the ad on TV) only 7% identified FDA as the place that they would report a serious adverse event. Most (79%) identified their doctor, which is good, but they did not identify FDA as an additional place to report serious events.
When asked, 45% said they were aware that they could report to the FDA, leaving a majority in the dark about this possibility. This is a real problem given that 16% (and 22% of those over 55) reported having experienced a serious side effect from a prescription medication.
The public is a real resource for information, recognizing that it may not be complete or as accurate as a report from a health professional. But it is one way of gathering signal data that can be of use to the FDA and ultimately helping the agency fulfill its mission for the benefit of the public. Providing information about safety reporting to the FDA through DTC advertising also is a way of informing patients and families about the risks and benefits of prescription (and non-prescription) drugs. Increasing the health literacy of the public is a good thing. As long as we have DTC advertising, this is one step that can help improve communication to the public and to benefit by hearing directly back from them.
Both Rep. Jan Schakowsky (who inserted this provision into FDAAA) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro, chair of the House Agriculture, FDA Appropriations subcommittee, strongly advocate for FDA requiring this information be in TV ads.
FDA is planning a workshop or meeting in May on this subject - a part of the study required by the FDAAA. Concerns about how to handle an influx of data, and what will be the quality and utility of it will no doubt be raised. These are real questions and will require the FDA to have both the infrastructure and scientific resources to handle the information. But it shouldn’t stop FDA from requiring that all DTC ads, TV included, provide information to the public on how to report adverse events.
Susan F. Wood, PhD is Research Professor at George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, where she is part of the Project on Scientific Knowledge and Public Policy (SKAPP). She also served as Director of the FDA Office of Women's Health from 2000-2005
Provincial profile for Helmand Province
Provincial profile for Helmand Provincewww.aisa.org.afCites reasons why the insurgency hinders development of licit economy independent of the drug trade.Posted by AfghanistanPOLSCI to Insurgent Effects on Licit Economy Afghanistan on Mon Apr 07 2008 at 04:21 UTC | info | related
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