Possibly More...

It's Springtime & with that comes lawn mowing.  We've had a guy to do that up to now.  He's really the only person we can afford.  We called him today & he's not sure if he'll be able to do it this year.  This sucks.  That most likely means that we will have to handle this ourselves.  

That entails us buying a mower, keeping it maintained & dealing with weed eating.  The $ is an issue.  The more prominent problem is whether or not we can physically handle it.  This is a large lawn, a fact I'm not too happy about.  It's also an uneven lawn with many mowing issues.

We won't know until tomorrow whether or not the yard guy can do this or not.  I'm really hoping he can.  We can probably handle it ourselves.  But, I'd rather it have been a decision we made for ourselves than something forced upon us.

Cya...

Mass Testing & Impersonal Results...

This article details how people involved with the Tulsa Dentist fiasco will be informed if they are found free of  HIV & Hepatitis.  Both are standardized letters, but the 1st takes into consider the patients last appointment with the dentist was before September, 2012 & that they will need no further testing regarding this matter.

The 2nd also states the tests came back negative, but since they're last appointment was later than September 2012, they will need further testing in the future.   This test will be repeated in 6 months.  That's 6 months of having to wait to know whether or not you are +.   Waiting to know whether this dentist infected you.  That will be hell.

Or course now that the word's out, if you get a phone call on the matter, it's fairly safe to assume you're + for at least 1 of those illnesses.  This just sucks.  Someone's out there that's never been at risk before now finds themselves waiting to find out if they have HIV because some damned dentist couldn't follow the rules.  This is why pain & suffering is taken into consideration during law suits.  This will be totally unnerving. 

Again, if it's proven the dentist did this, they should just shoot him.

Cya...

More Stigma...

This article details a man who was fired from his job for being +.  He's suing the company.  I'm sure his former employers will come up with something to say it wasn't because of HIV.  The article details  some of the man's experiences. 

The point here is people act like there's only stigma against HIV + & gay people in other nations.  That's total BS!  There's plenty right here in our own country.   This instance was in NYC.  It wasn't like it was in some backwoods, Deliverance-type hell-hole.

Discrimination against gay people & + people is doing quite well in the old US.  I wonder what will come of this matter.  In my state, nothing would be done about it.   Hopefully, New York is better at handling this than Oklahoma.

Cya..

Keeping A Straight Face...

This article slightly details James Secrest II, attorney at law defending his client.  His client is Dr. Scott Harrington>  Perhaps Harrington is better known as the negligent dentist from Tulsa, OK, who may have exposed 7,000 people to Hepatitis, HIV & possibly other things.  

Secrest, says for 35 years his client has been an oral surgeon with an impeccable record.  Unless being impeccable can some how undo these people's exposure to who knows what because of negligent practices, then who gives a damn.  All his clean record shows is that he was never reported before.

Seriously, what class do lawyers take to be able to defend actions like this without cracking up?  Are they just natural born bullshitters or do they have to classes to perfect their crap?  Excuse me, I meant craft.   Really, I did.

I understand it's the nature of the US legal system, but there are some folks out there, that would be damned hard to defend.  It would seem like if Harrington screwed up, the best thing would be to come clean about it ASAP.  Maybe he might be able to salvage something of his career, if he did that.   Now, he's probably going to be known forever as the dentist who gave people HIV & tried to lie his way out of it.

Cya...

Busy, Still Stressfrul...

Well, the van got back.  It needed spark plugs, wires & a coil.  There went almost $300 US.  At least it wasn't something worse.  It's driving much better.  

I still havent' heard anything about my benefits renewal.  The waiting is a real pain in the ass.  I want to get this over with.

I'm probably going to stay stressed until I get some answers about this matter.   Hopefully, it gets resolved soon.  I'm tired of being this anxious.

Cya...

Just A Dash More Stress Please...

Yesterday, wasn't pleasant.  My roomie was supposed to have a doctor's appointment, but it fell through.   She's not much better than I am about wanting to go to the doctor.  It was just a cancelled appointment, but we both have to psych ourselves up to go the doctor's.  Then after all the prep, it's rescheduled.  Which just makes things last longer.

I'm still waiting for my call from social services about my benefits renewal.  I have no idea how long I could be waiting.  I'm such a big fan of waiting.  

To top things off, the van had to throw a fit yesterday & act weird.  It's sitting at the mechanic's. Hopefully, it's just some sparks or something relatively small.  Thanks van, really needed that right now.  It seems that in all this mess, a half gallon of milk got left in the van.  We had to run back to mechanic's to get it out before it wound up spilled & spoiled.

Yep, it's been real fun here.

Cya...

PS. It's dreary & raining, just for added gloom.

An Upside & A Downside...

According to this article, the drug maker Norvartis, just lost a major patent case in the courts of India.  This trial has been ongoing for years, but today, the pharmaceutical lost.  The case revolved the cancer medication, Glevic.  India has laws regarding public health & patents.  I'm not fully up to all the in's & out's of that law.  It seems that if a drug is deemed priced so high as to be beyond a normal person's reach or can be seem as being detrimental to the health of the population due to it's cost, then the patent can be called into question.

This article talks about how this was an older drug no longer considered protected by India's patent laws.   Norvartis claims they made changes in the medication & it should've be treated as a new medication.  The lawyers on the other side, said those changes were minor tweaks made in an attempt to extend the patent.  

The drug sells for $2,600 US per month while the generic costs $175. The upside here is a lot more people can afford treatment.   The downside is the drug maker has sworn to do no further research in India.  Norvartis claims this will have great repercussions on the industry.  Most likely they'll do less research so they can put more $ in their investors pockets.

While I agree with the court's decision, I think Norvartis & other pharmaceutical companies are about to pitch a big fit over this.  We'll just have to wait & see how this all plays out.  This could affect meds across the board.

Cya...