Claudia Elliott <[log in to unmask]> wrote:"Hi Ron. So who are you? Are
you a PD patient? A Psychologist? A Philosopher? Bon Vivante? How
come you know and that, and think all those big thoughts? I'm impressed.
I"m a PD patient, clinical social worker, and general noodler-ruminator!
On top of that I only live in the middle west!"
As Saul, later Paul, said, I will boast that I am all that and more. I am
as angry as Alan Bonander and Dr. Kelly and Barbara Yacos. I am angry
about many attitudes and actions of too many people. I am a seeker,
learner, analyst, activist, and eclectic agitator for improving the riders
of this spaceship earth. My heroes include Gautama, Gandhi, Jesus, Stephen
Hawking, Einstein, Harry Truman, Abe Lincoln, as well as kind yet assertive
teachers and friends including many found in books ... including Alfred
Korzybski in "Science and Sanity", ETC, et cetera.
I resemble my parents who were amateurs for me, their firstborn. I will
continue with some information about my illness and some sample 'lectures'
I have 'preached' to an often uninterested audience of typical homo
sapiens.
Was stricken with typhoid fever in May of fifth grade school year, 1948.
Was involved with several joint sessions with first wife and her
psychiatrists - and a few group sessions. Did some testing, interviews,
evaluations at St Francis mental hospital facility. Agreed to start
sessions alone with the head psychiatrist although their 'votes' had been
half thinking I should and half should not be psychoanalyzed. The doctor
died before the first appointment - heart attack.
Lost some weight and gained much insight during eight day sensitivity
training session in June 1968.
Difficulty in writing at work (pain in arm) was one of the main reasons for
getting a thorough medical examination at Sansum Clinic in Santa Barbara,
CA in November of 1984. The prognosis was Parkinson's Disease. 25/100
Sinemet was taken just before three meals each day. 3/23/87; saw Dr.
Northrup and Dr. Harbaugh (PD neurologist) at Sansum Clinic. After a
while, more was taken with halves of these and 25/250 tablets taken
together. To simplify the process, the switch was made to 25/250 pills
only at the 3 meals after a couple of years. Later, the effect seemed
better if the noon and evening pills were taken about a half-hour before
eating.
6/4/90: saw Dr. A. Douglas Will at Loma Linda .. and started taking 1000 IU
per day of Vitamin E since this antioxidant might slow the PD oxidation
damage. Visited Will again 5/27/92 .. and started taking one 5 mg.
Eldepryl each morning. This helped symptoms including down feeling or
attitude.
Joined local PD Support Group (charter meeting) 2nd Thursday in November, 93.
5/18/94: Saw Dr. Yu-en Lee; added another Eldepryl at lunch-time starting
5/27/94. Used half-tablets with second half an hour or so after meal that
followed half-hour after first pill, half, and vitamins E & C.
My current medication regimen:
upon arising
1 half-25/250 carbidopa/levodopa
1 5-mg Eldepryl
400 IU vitamin E
500 mg vitamin C
taken with gragefruit juice and a prune, then dry cereals
after about 40 minutes
an hour or two later
1 half-25/250 carbidopa/levodopa with snack about 30-45
minutes later
30 minutes before lunch with another 500 mg vitamin C
1 half-25/250 carbidopa/levodopa
1 5-mg Eldepryl
400 IU vitamin E
an hour or two later
1 half-25/250 carbidopa/levodopa with snack about 30-45
minutes later
30 minutes before supper with another 500 mg vitamin C
1 half-25/250 carbidopa/levodopa
1 5-mg Eldepryl
400 IU vitamin E
an hour or two later
1 half-25/250 carbidopa/levodopa with snack about 30-45
minutes later
Am experiencing more foot cramps in left foot soon after arising. Until
several months ago, there were few cramps ever in left side. Right toes
still usually curl up - left foot curls down.
Spunky People (an essay I got into several papers and newslettters)
Our bodies 'wear out'. Take care that this process does not get
accelerated by your 'indiscretions'.
Chance will place you in harm's way many times on it's own. You are
foolish to take chances - especially when the potential gain for you is
insignificant compared to the hazard. In other words, poisoning your
homeostatic system with booze, other drugs-chemicals to reduce inhibitions
is foolish. There are ways to reduce your inhibitions harmlessly.
Increased self-esteem will also decrease inhibitions. These often have
partial origin in early-life-events when powerful-righteous adults told you
to "Be Quiet!", "Shut Your Mouth!", or "You can't do anything right!".
Several of my older friends are examples that more should emulate. They
remain independent and are proud that they have made their own way. Not
all are still able to accomplish every task they wish to do. The wise ones
have accepted help, but they continue to care and do what they can - for
themselves and others. They have learned-know that loving-caring is the
essence of their personal happiness.
I invite the reader to consider Professor Stephen Hawking. His body has
been a 'disaster' for many years - due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
(Lou Gehrig's disease). He is a leading theoretical physicist and
professor.
The fear of dying may be part of the causes of the current phenomenon that
is extant - much of one's medical costs are paid during the last year of
life. A second major factor is the "practice" of doctors to do all that
can be done. I am compelled by my honesty and concern for the "common
good" to say that greed appears prominent as motivator. The excuse of
avoiding malpractice law suits is somewhat real, but integrity, honor,
honesty, professionalism, et cetera and loving-caring should each be more
important to a physician than is money!
Living longer may be worth much, but wasting wealth is immoral at all times
in our lives. It seems a poor bargain, for instance, that my father
'lived' his final ten weeks in pain and anguish in hospitals; with Mom and
family being miserable in sympathy and frustration.
"Spunky" people are young in spirit - pay little attention relatively to
their body's age or complaints - grow every day - change for the better.
We live, laugh, love, give, learn-change and remain happy - even euphoric.
We hope to accept and complete the termination of life with dignity.
My most recent activist letter to three utilities company Boards with our
proxy cards not voting for any directors.
To the Board of Directors
from: Ronald Vetter, shareholder
The concept of annual percentage wage increases intrinsic in the federal
government COLA methodology is incompetent mathematics ... or intentional
bias for those holding political power or authority.
The increasing of compensation annually is not basic common sense ... which
would endorse goals of stable prices and wages. Wage increases after price
increases after wage increases ... ad infinitum is cyclical non-sense per
se.
The divergence of the difference between lowest wage and highest
compensation increases each time the wages increase when per centage
(rather than discrete) increases are made.
Since the entitlements of the OASDI social security insurance of the New
Deal were tied to the automatic percentage COLA, the maximum payments have
increased more than all those lesser. The unearned entitlements legislated
by Congresses have been tied to the COLA process also. These are now
becoming much larger projected expenditures because the growth is
compounding.
However, the application of the COLA to the entire federal wage scales has
much large maximum to minimum divergence than the SSA minimum pension had
in the years before about 1970. And, Congress saw fit to double their
wages with an ethics bill after corporations executives found compound
multiplication raises were legal and entitled themselves to such.
The label "cost of living adjustment" sounds fair, the increasing standard
of living rhetoric sounds good, and the multiplication rather than adding
being nicest to those at the top gave added impetus. We now have
compensations from less than $1 per hour being paid by corporations whose
Chairmen and CEOs feel entitled to over $208,000,000 per year. The ratio
is now 100,000.
Does the Chairman of the Board produce the same amount as 100,000 Mexicans?
Does it seem logical that money should earn 7.5% compound interest? This
will concentrate the earth's wealth into the control of fewer and fewer.
Capitalism should have open competition with wages and capital earning
comparably to productivity. Politicians in all organizations must be
espousing fair wages and prices as values again soon or the volatility of
monetary value and the effects of greed by the powerful will face the
revolt and violence of the poor because there will be no middle class on
the earth.
I suggest that your wages are too high compared to your employees and that
I would not be surprised if all of us unempowered shareowners refuse to
provide any proxy votes unless you stop doing what the greedy do.
Some overview thoughts and soon the End!
Perhaps private ownership and public ownership in whole earth or cosmic
terms ... that is, at the level of all the planet ... of international
scope ... will evolve to be defined and legislated in some manner such that
all evolvees (creatures if one uses the word derived from the possibility
that there was a creator) might be deemed as possessing some rights.
The perspective of philosophizing about the future evolution of life ...
living evolvees on earth ... might bring more sanity to governers and
encourage the dispersal of ownership and power for the general welfare of
all rather than allowing concentration to few. Wealth accumulated to
benefit the whole of living species with preference toward homo sapiens
might be sane, but allowing the unscrupulous to take advantage of the
majority is not.
Destroying, killing, or maiming seem unjustifiable. Taking life or
livelihood from others via legal means is no less loathsome. Laws that
allow economic bullying should be revised.
Ecological sensitivity and competence will perhaps be learned by enough of
humanity to keep us from destroying our beautiful biosphere "coating" with
all the living evolvees known to exist contained therein.
Ron <[log in to unmask]> Ronald F. Vetter
