29 January 2010

Doctors Without Boundaries

Goddammit.

Our response--as a people, as a nation--to the devastation in Haiti has been exemplary. Almost $4 million in cash so far, over $9 million in food, clothing, medical supplies and hundreds of volunteers placing themselves heart and soul into trying to help Our neighbors. From an island with 4 million people and problems of its own, Our reaching out and giving aid and comfort to Haitians can barely be matched by any other nation.

In a display of take-charge attention-getting, Our senate president Thomas "Tantrum" Rivera organized a medical mission, aimed as a series of efforts, to transport doctors, nurses and medical supplies to the Haitian/Dominican Republic border to help in any way possible. The mission was mounted quickly and medical personnel from around the Island quickly volunteered.  

The missions have been successful, tending to patients under grueling conditions and putting forth a display that lets Our people feel proud that in the midst of a tragedy of almost unbelievable proportions, Puerto Rico is pulling its weight and much more amidst the efforts of countries both larger and with more resources.

But guess what will be remembered, what will be seared into the minds of people here and around the world? Pictures taken at the scene, posted on Facebook, of Our doctors posing with rifles and machines guns, having drinks, violating patient privacy and even mugging next to a coffin.

God fucking dammit. Nobody ever said Life was fair, but some things are just too much beyond the pale.

To the doctors who posed for pictures, holding weapons and liquoring up: You are putrid idiots, disgraces to your profession and embarrassments to Us all. And for allowing pictures to be taken of patients, some of whom were agonizing, naked and unaware of what was going on, you deserve to lose your licenses. Your Hippocratic Oath, vermin, pledges you to "First do no harm." You are the patients' protector, you failed them miserably and the sooner We get rid of you, the better.

To the people who posted those pictures on Facebook: You are fetid idiots, utterly stupid about the power and reach of the Internet, incapable of grasping the simple concept of "On the Web, to the World." You thought you were "celebrating" the medical mission, or were you trying to "celebrate" the retarded-monkey antics of some idiots? Well celebrate now, cretins.

To the newspaper and reporter who outed the story: You are to journalism what a turd compote is to créme brulée. You didn't bother to check or scrutinize what was behind the 1,179 pictures posted: you simply fired away with the worst of them, exposing the few who deserved it and savagely smearing the vast majority who did yeoman work, who get no recognition because you can't be bothered with that. The assrag in question trumpets the "worldwide impact" of its brainlessness and all I want to throw up in their faces. Repeatedly. I hope the wretched rag and its "reporter" collapse like a leper's final days.

As for Tantrum, this is not his fault. If he wants be "the man," then he has to learn to roll with the punches. His best move would be to pursue the guilty, bring forth the eminently worthy and place the emphasis where it should have been all the time: on Our help to a nation in need. 

It won't do much, but for the people who have done, are doing and will continue to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the rest of the world in helping Haiti, it will mean the world.

But the world will still have the pictures of Our imbecile doctors to really remember Us by.

The Jenius Has Spoken.

 

4 comments:

Jose Arroyo said...

Thank You for a great Post

Asal said...

To add insult to injury, they're refusing to release the names of the jerkoffs, but the Domincan soldiers who lent their guns to the shitheels are being fired.

Why Jenius? Why?

GCSchmidt said...

You're welcome, José.

Asal, maybe the doctors remain anonymous while the solders get fired because:

A) Doctors can't be fired.

B) Soldiers are NEVER supposed to lose control of their weapon and this breach of military discipline is a court martial offense in almost every army.

C) Doctors have friends in higher places than soldiers (than most soldiers, I should say...)

D) Doctors are hard to train (takes 20-30 years) while soldiers take 6 months, so it's easier to replace soldiers than doctors...even stupid, stupid doctors.

E) Racism. Most of the doctors were white, most of the soldiers weren't.

F) The soldiers are citizens of the Dominican Republic while the doctors were "guests": human nature lets guests make mistakes that "family" gets excoriated for.

G) Integrity: The Dominican Republic army has it...and Our Medical Board doesn't.

Here's a good idea: Have someone post the names of the doctors with his or her photos taken in Haiti included. They deserve to be identified because, after all, they had the guts to pose for the pictures, didn't they? And as for damaging their professional reputation, judgment is a a key component of a person's reputation and knowing who has good judgment or who has bad is vital in evaluating any professional, especially one who deals with one's health and life.

One last item: Let this be a lesson to the tech deadheads out there--the vast majority of My Brethren--that the Web is NOT your bedroom drawer, the one where you keep the stuff you don't want kids to see. The Web, in all its aspects, is an open e-book. If you want privacy--for your good moments and for the times when you are a pluperfect idiot--then keep that stuff off the Web. Better yet: don't be a goddamn idiot in the first place...especially in front of a camera.

GCSchmidt said...

The first item I see after posting My comment response is "'Public' should not be default", referring to how Web content should have a "private" setting as default. And who do they SPECIFICALLY mention as a "public place considered private by users?" Facebook.

And what does Facebook get out of this? Eyeballs. People coming in to look. At you. At your stuff. At your supposedly private stuff. If you don't get that, you could get burned.

Like Our idiot doctors.

Link: http://blog.twitalbums.com/public-should-not-be-the-default