Sen. Tom Coburn has scientific document reading training 9

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1. 

   davescott Posted 10:19 am
   27 Aug 2009

   Maybe Coburn can train the scientists at the National Academy of Sciences.

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2. 

   Baby Boomer Posted 12:35 pm
   27 Aug 2009

   Where was he trained and by who?  Was his textbook written on the 3rd grade level?

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3. 

   tom279 Posted 12:47 pm
   27 Aug 2009

   Coburn is a medical doctor.  They do tend to teach med school students how to read scientific documents.Also, the bracketed change to the quote mutilates Coburn's meaning.  As my article makes clear, Coburn was talking about the science showing that climate change is anthropogenic, NOT (as was edited in here) about whether climate change itself is occurring.Lastly, I'd also like to point out that Coburn was asked by an audience member how Jesus would "come down" on a public option.  He didn't spontaneously just start off on that topic, and he prefaced his comments by saying that he didn't know what Jesus would say about it.

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   1. 

      David Roberts Posted 12:57 pm
      27 Aug 2009

      Fair enough, Tom -- I added the word "anthropogenic." Clearly I, like the 98% of scientists who accept the scientific consensus, don't have enough scientific document reading training.

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      1. 

         tom279 Posted 1:18 pm
         27 Aug 2009

         Thank you very much.  I appreciate the correction.

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   2. 

      davescott Posted 1:23 pm
      27 Aug 2009

      There is no dispute among serious climate scientists that global warming is caused by human activity.  The NAS is the most respected scientific body in the world.   The time for tolerating buffoonery ended some time ago.

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4. 

   Baby Boomer Posted 12:51 pm
   27 Aug 2009

   Being a medical doctor doesn't mean you understand climate change.  Heck Georgia has Phil Gingrey as a congressman, and he's a medical doctor. 

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5. 

   David Roberts Posted 1:03 pm
   27 Aug 2009

   See also:http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_treatment/archive/2009/08/27/who-is-my-neighbor.aspx Harold Pollack is a professor at the University
   of Chicago School of
   Social Service Administration and Special Correspondent for The Treatment.If you have not seen this CNN clip, watch it now.
   Here is the transcript, which hardly does justice to the 2-minute clip of what
   was happening in that room. Unidentified participant: "My
   husband has traumatic brain injury. His health insurance will not cover him to
   eat and drink. And what I need to know is: Are you going to help him?We left the nursing home, and they
   told us we are on our own. He left with a feeding tube. I have been working
   with him, but I'm not a speech pathologist, a professional that takes six years
   for a masters', and I'm trying to get him to eat and drink again. [inaudible
   due to weeping]. Senator Coburn: "First of
   all, yeah. We'll help. The first thing we will do is to see what we can do, individually,
   to help you, through our office. But the other thing that is missing in this
   debate is us as neighbors, helping people that need our help. You know we tend
   to... [applause] The idea that the government is a solution to our problems is an
   inaccurate, a very inaccurate statement. [applause]. My wife and I watched this episode. She is a clinical nurse
   specialist who has cared for patients with delicate issues involving feeding
   tubes. We could not believe what we were watching. We were not the only ones. I've heard from many physician-researchers
   and health policy experts who have seen the clip. They react with virtually
   uniform dismay to Senator Coburn's comments. Among physicians, this dismay was
   tinged with embarrassment, since Senator Coburn is one of their own. Here, for example, is the reaction of Dr. Philip Pizzo, dean
   of the Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Pizzo practices in areas of pediatric
   oncology and HIV that have brought him intimate exposure to the profound traumas
   families face when a loved one is stricken with a life-threatening, costly, and
   prolonged illness. (I should mention that we cross paths since we are both
   advisors to Doctors for America.)
   In a phone call and a follow-up email, he noted: I thought this was a very sad
   display. Here is a member of the United States Senate, a physician, who is
   essentially brushing off the experiences of a woman bringing forth a very
   tragic situation involving her spouse. Dr. Pizzo went on to discuss romanticized notions of
   neighborhood and community help for people in medical crisis outside the realm
   of government. In my career in pediatric cancer
   and AIDS, I remember when parents needed to take up collections from the
   community for serious medical conditions that - including at one time, bone
   marrow transplants. This was an untenable situation. We all recognize that when
   there is an immediate illness, neighbors, friends, and family will respond. And
   while that is appreciated and helpful, it will rarely if ever be able to cover
   the cost of medical care - especially for the millions of individuals who are
   uninsured or underinsured That is not a sustainable response.. to a serious and
   chronic condition. Only serious health insurance and healthcare reform will
   address such crises and human tragedies. I'm sure that Senator Coburn is a compassionate man who
   will, "individually," do his best to help. He and much of his audience miss the
   larger point. This Oklahoma
   couple deserves better than to be treated as the pitiable objects of charity. They
   are entitled to effective help and support as fellow Americans whose lives have
   taken a tragic turn. They indeed need the love and support of their neighbors,
   friends, and family. They need more, too. They need skilled home health care to
   guard against infection. They need visiting nurses and home health workers to
   help him regain whatever function he is capable of regaining in eating,
   drinking, and speaking. Government, while not the solution to all problems, is the
   instrument through which a nation of 300 million people ensures that everyone receives
   proper care, even when some insurer or nursing home leaves him wounded by the
   road without adequate help. We owe each other that, in recognition of our
   common citizenship and our common humanity. Americans face a stark choice in health reform. On one side,
   we have the President and Democrats who produce the Senate HELP and House
   Dingell bills, which (among other things) would remove lifetime expenditure
   caps on coverage for people with traumatic brain injury and would provide specific
   benefits for disabled people and their caregivers through the Community
   Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act. We have the late Edward
   Kennedy, who
   declared last year that the cause of his life was to guarantee every
   American "decent, quality health care as a fundamental right." Opposing them, we have almost the entire Republican Party,
   which continues its fight against universal coverage. Even within this group,
   Coburn's inflammatory statements stand out. His claim that "the stimulus is a
   step towards a Soviet America" exemplifies a spirit which animates many Tea
   Party protesters, such as the man
   I recently met carrying a blunt sign that read: "Drop dead, I'm not paying
   for your health care." When you think of that desperate Oklahoma woman, which of these two sides is the
   more loving neighbor? That's a question that answers itself. --Harold Pollack

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6. 

   tmullins Posted 5:19 pm
   27 Aug 2009

   I know exactly what that woman was talking about.  No one knows until they've been there what really is the best health care system in the world.  http://www.wisecountyissues.com/?p=62  Clearly profit care is more important than patient care in America.  My mother was in the same situation until my father died and the health care system said it was her fault dad died because she wasn't experienced enough to take care of a man with so many complications ( he got in the hospital )...

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