Categories
Cardiovascular
Diagnostics
Endocrinology
Health Insurance
Medical Devices
Mental Health
Nutrition
Oncology
Public Health
Sexual Health
Popular Articles
Natural Remedies

Opinion Pieces Respond To Obama's Call For 'Empathy' In Supreme Court Justice
Two newspapers recently published opinion pieces responding to President Obama"s comments on the need for "empathy" in candidates to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice David Souter. Summaries appear below.~ Ellen Goodman, Boston Globe: When discussing Souter"s replacement, Obama said he will seek a nominee ""who understands that justice isn"t about some abstract theory. ... It is also about how our laws affect the daily realities of people"s lives,"" Globe columnist Goodman writes in an opinion piece. According to Goodman, Obama"s emphasis on the need for judicial "empathy" has sparked outrage among a "phalanx of horrified conservatives" who claim that "empathy is just a code word for the sentimental liberal bias in favor of underdogs over the Constitution." However, she continues, "let us remember that empathy is not sympathy. It doesn"t require that we take sides. Nor is it an emotional shortcut that upends all legal reasoning to declare a winner." According to Goodman, empathy "is rather the ability to imaginatively enter into the experience of others." She writes that the "capacity to recognize another person"s reality is not just liberal," adding that empathy "doesn"t trump reason, it informs reason." Goodman writes, "The truth is that we want judges who "get it,"" adding that the "myth of justice as a matter of pure objective reasoning that could be meted out by a computer is just that, a myth" (Goodman, Boston Globe, 5/22).~ Mike Rosen, Denver Post: Although Obama"s emphasis on empathy might seem "[c]ompassionate and seductive" to some, his stance "represents a radical and dangerous departure from traditional American jurisprudence," radio host Rosen writes in a Post opinion piece. Rosen writes, "When empathetic judges rule on their feelings, they are exceeding their authority," adding that the "role of the judicial branch of our government is to rule on the Constitution as written and the law as passed by Congress and signed by the president." According to Rosen, the courts "are a co-equal branch of government, not a superior branch," and judges should not "rule on what they think the law ought to be" because that would be "government by a presumptuous, unelected judiciary." Rosen continues that "judges are referees, not rule makers" because they are "not there to empathize with the fans or the players. They represent the rule book, and they aren"t authorized to … make it "fairer."" According to Rosen, the "dispute between conservatives and liberals on judicial activism is philosophical and irreconcilable." He concludes that Senate confirmation hearings for Obama"s nominee "should make for an interesting debate on these principles" (Rosen, Denver Post, 5/22).
generic viagra online
An Official End To WorkChoices - ANF Celebrates
The Australian Nursing Federation joined other unions in celebrating the end of WorkChoices.
News of the day
In Synaptic Process Protein 'Tweek' Rare But Critical
Recycling is a critical component in the process of transmitting information from one neuron to the next, and a large protein called Tweek plays a critical role, said an international consortium of researchers led by Baylor College of Medicine in a report in the current issue of the journal Neuron.
Diagnostics

Deep Vein Thrombosis: The Risk During A Flight Is Often Overestimated

The risk of developing deep vein thrombosis during a long flight is often overestimated. According to the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG), this condition is very unlikely in healthy travellers. When people wear a cast or splint after a sports accident, on the other hand, many are not aware that they have an increased risk of deep vein thrombosis in their leg and pelvic area. This is emphasised in information published on IQWiG"s website Informed Health Online. Blood clots can travel to lungs, leading to pulmonary embolism If you are unable to move your legs regularly, blood flow through your veins is slower than usual. As a result, blood may clump together, forming a blood clot which can lead to deep vein thrombosis. "This can become dangerous if the blood clot dislodges, travels to the lungs and blocks a blood vessel there," says the Institute"s Director, Professor Peter Sawicki. "This complication, called a pulmonary embolism, can reduce the supply of oxygen to the body"s cells, overstrain the heart and even cause heart failure." Even in higher-risk groups the risk of air-travel-related thrombosis is still well below half a percent During the travel season we often hear that long-haul flights increase the risk of deep vein thrombosis (sometimes called "economy class syndrome"). The Institute summarised the results of research on deep vein thrombosis and air travel, involving the experiences of millions of air travellers. They found that only about 2 to 5 out of every 10,000 people who took a flight longer than 6 to 8 hours developed deep vein thrombosis that caused symptoms (at the most 0.05%). Even people who had a higher risk - for example, because they had large varicose veins or were very overweight - were not highly likely to develop deep vein thrombosis: only 20 out of every 10,000 travellers were affected (0.2%). The Institute did not find any convincing evidence that people who flew for less than 4 to 6 hours had an increased risk of thrombosis. "By the way," says Professor Sawicki, "if you want to lower your risk by wearing compression stockings, you should put them on at least 2 hours before the flight and keep them on throughout the entire journey. Research has shown that these stockings lower the risk of deep vein thrombosis somewhat when used in this way." Wearing a cast or splint increases the risk of deep vein thrombosis If people have to wear a cast or splint, for example after fracturing a bone or tearing a ligament, they can only move their leg a little bit, if at all. Many people do not know that this also increases the risk of developing a blood clot in a vein in their leg or pelvis. "To prevent serious complications, it is important to get back on your feet and move around again as soon as possible," stresses Professor Sawicki. "If that is not possible, for example because putting strain on the leg too soon could slow down recovery, there are effective medications that can be used." These so-called "anticoagulant" medications reduce the blood"s ability to clot. Heparins are among the most established anticoagulant medications. They are injected subcutaneously (under the skin). The Institute has published up-to-date and evidence-based information about how effective these medications are at preventing thromboses in immobilised legs. The Institute"s website, http://www.informedhealthonline.org, provides the public with easy-to-understand information about current medical developments and research on important health issues. Hilda Bastian Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care


Add your comment:
Name:
Site address: http://
Your message:
Enter today\\\\'s date, 2 digits
(spam protection):

© Copyright 2009