MedWorm Tags: britain

Disgraceful Soundbite from the London Riots

Cato-at-liberty — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 16:53:24 +0100

By Sallie JamesI don’t know which part of this truly dismaying interview is more upsetting: the joy in their voices as these girls describe the “fun” they are having at the riots and their hope that they continue the next day, the class-warfare-based justification they feel for the looting and burning of shops, or their almost comic ignorance of which party holds control of the government (“Conservatives. Yeah. Whatever who it is. I dunno…”). Listen and Weep, courtesy of the Beeb. Disgraceful Soundbite from the London Riots is a post from Cato @ Liberty - Cato Institute Blog (Source: Cato-at-liberty)

Random Thoughts: EMR Projects Decentralized; Problems Persist Despite ‘Solutions’

EMR and HIPAA — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 22:22:35 +0100

Once in a while, I run out of Big Ideas to share and resort to a rundown of short items. This is one of those times. Often, though, that approach turns out to be more interesting than a well-thought-out commentary. (Thus, the popularity of Twitter, right?) Speaking of Big Ideas, I’m thinking that the age of the massive EMR project may be coming to an end. You may have seen my piece in InformationWeek today about the reported end of the national EMR in England. London’s The Independent reported earlier this week that the Cameron government will announce next month that it will scrap the national strategy in favor of allowing local hospitals and trusts to make independent EMR purchasing and implementation decisions. This news comes on the heels of a decision by the government of ...

Cancer Patient Threatened With Legal Action Because He Blogged About Bad Hospital Experience

Better Health — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 20:00:10 +0100

I’ve recently come across a really controversial story about a cancer patient who blogged and complained about his hospital treatment and has been threatened with legal action by an NHS trust. Daniel Sencier was worried about delays at Carlisle’s Cumberland Infirmary and had surgery at another hospital. He complained to North Cumbria University Hospital Trust and it came up with an action plan to improve care. But Mr Sencier, 59, of Penrith, then received a letter threatening legal action. The trust declined to comment. Mr Sencier, a photography student, had expected an apology but then received a letter saying the trust would consider legal action if his blog contained “unsubstantiated criticism”. *This blog post was originally published at ScienceRoll* (Source: Better H...

A ‘Special’ Relationship?

Cato-at-liberty — Mon, 23 May 2011 15:39:42 +0100

By Christopher PrebleWhen President Obama meets with British Prime Minister David Cameron in London, they should focus on the two wars that involve both the U.S. and British militaries (Afghanistan and Libya). But these discussions will take place in the context of diminishing British military capability. At a time when the United States should be shedding some of the burdens of policing the globe, and encouraging other countries to step forward to defend themselves, the British are moving in the opposite direction. They are cutting their military, and tacitly becoming more dependent upon U.S. power. The end result will be a United Kingdom that is less able to assist us in the future. The United States today spends far more on its military than does the United Kingdom, and the gap is like...

Let Europe Be—and Defend—Europe

Cato-at-liberty — Mon, 23 May 2011 14:10:00 +0100

By Doug BandowIn the midst of difficult domestic political battles, Barack Obama begins a lengthy European trip today. He should encourage the continent to increase its defense capabilities and take on greater regional security responsibilities. Presidential visits typically result in little of substance. President Obama’s latest trip will be no different if he reinforces the status quo. His policy mantra once was “change.” No where is “change” more necessary than in America’s foreign policy, especially towards Europe. Despite obvious differences spanning the Atlantic, the U.S. and European relationship remains extraordinarily important. The administration should press for increased economic integration, with lower trade barriers and streamlined regulations to encoura...

Tina Brown and the Economics of Recession

Cato-at-liberty — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 21:29:32 +0100

By David BoazTalking about royal weddings on NPR, Tina Brown says that there’s high unemployment in Britain, as there was in 1981, because of Conservative governments’ budget cuts (transcript edited to match broadcast): Of course, the wedding of Prince Charles and Diana occurred three decades ago, but Brown points out that there are plenty of similarities between the two eras. “2.5 million are out of work right now with the budget slashes and all the economic austerity that’s happening in England,” Brown says. “There were actually the same amount of people exactly out of work at the time of Charles and Diana, when Mrs. Thatcher came in and began her draconian moves.” I know that Tina Brown is a journalist, not an economist, but surely she’s h...

Would You Prefer Longevity Or A Perfect Figure?

Better Health — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 21:00:00 +0100

I’ve spent some time thinking about this survey. I couldn’t find any better information on the survey than the press release from the University of the West of England (UWE). Perhaps in the future it will be published in a journal for better review. The survey was apparently done by the new eating disorder charity The Succeed Foundation in partnership with the University of the West of England (UWE). The editor’s notes indicate 320 women (ages 18 – 65 years, average age 24.49) studying at 20 British universities completed The Succeed Foundation Body Image Survey in March 2011. Notably, the survey found that 30% of women would trade at least one year of their life to achieve their ideal body weight and shape. (more…) *This blog post was originally publi...

British Women Would Trade Longer Life For Thinner Bodies

Better Health — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 17:00:00 +0100

College-aged women in the UK say they would trade longevity for an ideal body weight. 320 women studying at 20 British universities (ages 18-65; average, 24.49) completed a survey in March. The research, conducted for new eating disorder charity The Succeed Foundation, in partnership with the University of the West of England (UWE), found that nearly 30% of women would trade at least one year of their life to achieve their ideal body weight and shape: –16% would trade 1 year of their life –10% would trade 2-5 years –2% would trade 6-10 years –1% would trade 21 years or more (more…) *This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist* (Source: Better Health)

The Salzburg Statement: Patients Must Be Involved In Healthcare Decisions

Better Health — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 11:00:46 +0100

Last Thursday at the headquarters of the British Medical Journal in London, an important announcement will be made about patients’ rights to be actively involved in decisions about their treatment. Below is the press release about it. The subject is shared decision making, which we’ve been posting about recently (series here; initial post here.) Developed by the participants in a Salzburg Global Seminar last December, the document is called the Salzburg Statement. The pivotal distinction here is the difference between informed consent, in which the physician assesses the options and selects one, and gets your consent to do it; and informed choice, in which clinicians tell you the options, with all the pros and cons, and let you choose, based on your preferences. Click the image to do...

Journal of the American Medical Association 2010 (Vol. 304 No. 21)

Fade Library — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 12:14:42 +0100

Contents Page Fade Fave: Toward an Outcomes-Based Health Care System: A View From the United Kingdom Fade Skinny: In a comprehensive, publicly funded system like the United Kingdom’s National Health Service (NHS) there is an overriding imperative to deliver maximum health benefit per pound spent. Quality, effectiveness, and efficiency are the goals. Following a decade of above-inflation increases in NHS funding, the urgent need to reduce the United Kingdom’s national debt means the NHS is entering a sustained period of flat or declining funding, while demand for services continues to increase (from technological progress, an aging population, increasing expectations, and population growth). Striving for value therefore becomes an ethical imp...

New AA Speaker Tapes – MP3

Recovery Is Sexy.com — Fri, 26 Nov 2010 15:19:00 +0100

A new collection of Speaker Tapes has been found in America. The collection of MP3 tracks includes; Alcoholics Anonymous AA Founders AA Pioneers Big Book Authors Al-anon Narcotics Anonymous This library of tapes is estimated at 50,000 on wire recordings, reel-to-reel tapes, cassettes and dates back to the 1940′s. Collected by Bill and Arbutus O’Neal of Texas. This collection is progressively being converted to MP3 however there are currently several hundred available for free down load. These AA speaker tapes are mostly American but there are talks from Australia, Britain, Germany and Tokyo. Go to; Recovery Speakers Donations to the project are welcome Related articles MP3 Recovery Tracks for Lesbians in AA (recoveryissexy.com) The AA Tools of Recovery (recoveryi...

Do The Elderly Benefit From The “Fury Of American Medicine?”

Better Health — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 16:00:00 +0100

I don’t consider myself a right-wing healthcare fear monger, but if I were this study would be worthy of amplification. As reported concisely in the New York Times, from the journal Demography (not previously known to me), population researchers reported that even though elderly Americans have more medical problems than their peers in Britain, older Americans live longer once they make it to 70. Why would this be? Is it because Americans who reach 70 are “heartier” than Britons, as Columbia University PhD (but now on leave and working at HHS) Sherry Giled says. Or is better survival of the American elderly one of the benefits of the “fury of American medicine?” (more…) *This blog post was originally published at Dr John M* (Source: Better Health)

British Military Cuts, Conservatives, and Neocons

Cato-at-liberty — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 16:56:31 +0100

By Christopher PrebleYesterday, Prime Minister David Cameron announced Britain’s biggest defense cuts since World War II. The cuts affect the British military across the board. The Army will shed 7,000 troops; the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force will each lose 5,000 personnel; the total workforce in the Ministry of Defence, including civilians, will contract by 42,000. The Navy’s destroyer fleet will shrink from 23 to 19. Two aircraft carriers — already under construction — will be completed, but one of the two will be either mothballed or sold within a few years. Whether the one remaining flattop in the British fleet will actually deploy with an operational fixed-wing aircraft is an open question. They’ve decided to jettison their Harriers; a technological marvel ...

Pomp & Ceremony

Baggas' Blog — Tue, 25 May 2010 14:59:15 +0100

I know many people will disagree, but I think it’s very cool that stuff like this still goes on in our 21st century world. I’m all for progress, but it’s a bit sad that our societies are so quick to throw history and tradition to the wind. We’ve lost our sense of majesty and reverence, which is a shame… Anyway check out this video of The Queen’s opening of Parliament… (Source: Baggas' Blog)

Scientific critique of BBC/ Nature Brain Training Experiment

SharpBrains — Mon, 10 May 2010 23:11:43 +0100

In conclusion In conclusion, in my opinion, the Owen et al. (2010) study contributes to the literature on computerized brain training, by showing that a substantial number of individuals can be recruited to participate, with a wide range of actual amount of practice, and that transfer as measured did not occur in tasks measured as spans, but did show small effects similar to that of drug effects on the one test measured as number correct. Transfer effects have been observed in studies with older adults as well as younger ones in more controlled research environments; it remains to be seen whether the data collected by the Nature study authors on older adults, which were not included in the published article, will show different results. Obviously, few studies in general have been conducted...

Mark Penn Mourns the Plight of Libertarian Voters

Cato-at-liberty — Thu, 06 May 2010 15:51:58 +0100

By David BoazMark Penn, who has been a pollster and consultant to the presidential campaigns of Bill and Hillary Clinton, John Anderson, and Ross Perot, writes about political discontent in Britain and the United States in the Washington Post today, noting that in this country socially liberal and fiscally conservative voters believe, especially after what happened with health care, that they have no clear choice: They must sign on with the religious right or the economic left. Exactly the point that David Kirby and I have been making in our studies on the libertarian vote, as in the first line of this January study: Libertarian — or fiscally conservative, socially liberal — voters are often torn between their aversions to the Republicans’ social conservatism and the Democrats&#...

BBC “Brain Training” Experiment: the Good, the Bad, the Ugly

SharpBrains — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 05:50:29 +0100

You may already have read the hundreds of media articles today titled “brain training doesn’t work” and similar, based on the BBC “Brain Test Britain” experiment. Once more, claims seem to go beyond the science backing them up … except that in this case it is the researchers, not the developers, who are responsible. Let’s recap what we learned today. The Good Science The study showed that putting together a variety of brain games in one website and asking people who happen to show up to play around for a grand total of 3-4 hours over 6 weeks (10 minutes 3 times a week for 6 weeks) didn’t result in meaningful improvements in cognitive functioning. This is useful information for consumers to know, because in fact there are websites and compani...

Felony Charges for Recording a Plainclothes Officer

Cato-at-liberty — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 15:23:42 +0100

By David RittgersYesterday I wrote about the University of Maryland student beaten by police and falsely charged with assault during a post-game celebration. I concluded with a warning that a law barring citizens from taking photos or videos of law enforcement officers (such as those in force in Great Britain) would have prevented the false charges and beating from coming to light. I did not know that Maryland was already heading that direction. Video: // < ![CDATA[ // < ![CDATA[ DayPortPlayer.newPlayer({articleID:"22384",accSite:"WMAR",accPos:"CCTVI.NEWS.LOCAL",categoryID:"14",rootCategory:"",domain:"wmar.web.entriq.net",playerInstanceID:"24FAD9E0-DC70-2532-414F-7E6F051C4C2F",videoAdConDefID:"2",videoAdObjectID:"4",bannerAdObjectID:"5"}); // ]]> Anthony Graber was riding his motorcycle...

Addicted Lawyers & Recovery

Recovery Is Sexy.com — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 11:38:40 +0100

Addicted lawyers can overcome barriers to recovery Robert started drinking at age 18 and was an alcoholic by the time he entered law school. “I managed to get my degree and go to work for a Wall Street firm. After that I changed jobs every two years or less. I just couldn’t hang on to one. Nobody ever mentioned drinking to me. But I’m sure that with every job I lost, drinking was the main reason.” Images of hard-headed, hard-drinking lawyers abound in popular culture. These images make a point: The professional status granted by a law degree offers no immunity from addiction. The same can be said for people in other prominent professions, such as physicians, pilots and politicians. In fact, the rate of addiction for attorneys may exceed that for the general population. In 2...

Cost Overruns: It’s the Same in Britain

Cato-at-liberty — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:25:20 +0100

The Taxpayers’ Alliance has published a new study examining a sample of 240 government capital projects in Britain, including weapons systems, highway projects, computer upgrades, health care spending, and other items. The results mirror the serious cost overrun problems we have in the U.S. federal government. The Alliance study found that 32 percent of projects sampled had cost overruns, while 24 percent came in under budget, but that the projects with overruns were generally much larger. As a result, the average net cost overrun on all the projects was 38 percent. Thus, when the government says that a new project will cost taxpayers 1 billion UK pounds, on average it will actually cost them 1.38 billion. The study also explores the reasons why UK government projects run into troub...

How the Government Broke up the Beatles

Cato-at-liberty — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 15:27:39 +0100

Forget the effect on production incentives and GDP growth—Matt Lewis at Politics Daily points to an article in the Times of London arguing that confiscatory tax rates broke up the Beatles, which may be the most heinous crime of government since the liquidation of the kulaks. (Source: Cato-at-liberty)

Siblings, College, and Hacking

Autism Vox — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 20:05:19 +0100

A new study on the siblings of children with autism is showing that signs associated with the behavioral disorder appear in babies in their first weeks of life. Preliminary research, at Australia-based Flinders University, studied the Photo courtesy Eccentric Scholar (flickr.com) behavior of infants who have an increased risk of developing autism from as young as 10 days, and preliminary results show children in an at-risk group (with an older sibling with an ASD, including Asperger’s) were developing different behavioral patterns from children from families with no history of autism. Autism affects up to 16 children per 10,000 in Australia. More is here. • • • The University of Central Florida’s College Internship Program in Melbourne, Fla., is yet another campu...

A Cure for Breast Cancer in Two Years?

Life with Breast Cancer — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 15:03:52 +0100

So here I am sitting and listening to the late night local news. The newscaster suddenly announces that a potential cure for cancer may be only two years away. At first I am stunned as he explains how researchers in Britain have isolated molecules that allow cancer cells to spread which could lead to drugs to turn off the process. Then I realize that he used the word “cure” and not “treatment.” This makes me cry, bawl in fact. A real cure for breast cancer could be imminent and I had no idea how emotional I would be about this possibility becoming a reality. I have been watching TV for most of the night and I should consider the night wasted, but instead I am elated. I was caught up with the show “America’s Got Talent” because of a young woman named Barbara Padilla. This ...

Health Care Reform and Breast Cancer

Life with Breast Cancer — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:46:37 +0100

Too many women are still finding breast cancer too late only because they don’t have insurance and can’t afford regular check-ups. Even with the best hospitals, treatment facilities, medicine, doctors and follow up care in the world, it is not helping those who don’t have access to it. Several of the comments that were posted to my blog last week on genetic testing were from people desperate for the test, needing it, but not able to afford it. It may appear that I have been silent about health care but the truth is that I have been discussing it on another forum. I have had the opportunity to participate in a panel to discuss health care reform on The Washington Post’s Web site. As a member of the panel I get to give my views on a weekly question concerning health c...

You say Appalachia, I say Argentina…

My journey with AIDS — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 19:22:21 +0100

Mark Sanford, it turns out, did not get his hiking boots dusty along the Appalachian Trail – as his staff had been telling the media while he was AWOL. He was doing the dirty down in South America. Hiking? Yes, hiking a skirt. The Republicans and their ‘family values’ have another poster boy [...] (Source: My journey with AIDS)

The Wonders of Socialized Dentistry

Cato-at-liberty — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 12:19:55 +0100

As we all know, the American health care system is less than perfect. An inefficient amalgam of government spending, federal tax incentives, employer-based insurance, and private providers, the U.S. system costs us more than it should for the services provided. Nevertheless, medicine in America remains far more directed by and for patients, in contrast to nationalized systems, which are usually organized by and for bureaucrats. The results sometimes are horrific. Indeed, the best way to understand the consequences of Britain’s National Health Service is simply to read stories in British newspapers. Consider this one in the Daily Mail about the lack of adequate dental care: Like so many young women, Amy King always took great pride in her appearance. Standing in front of...

Dumbing down : twelve years of Labour

NHS Blog Doctor — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 10:06:00 +0100

No, it is not a joke from a Christmas Cracker. It is a question from an Edexcel GCSE physics paper. There are further examples of this dumbing down in an excellent article from Amused Cynicism. It is particularly depressing that, despite all the dumbing down, the education achievements of are children are still poor.At GCSE 54% still fail to gain 5 A-C grades including both English and MathsChris WoodheadIt is going to get worse for, as Wat Tyler describes this morning, it is proposed to: ...scrap the teaching of history in primary schools in favour of lessons in Twittering. According to the Guardian:"Children will no longer have to study the Victorians or the second world war under proposals to overhaul the primary school curriculum. However, the draft plans will require children to maste...

Third-World Accommodations

Cato-at-liberty — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 12:31:45 +0100

In the 2003 film The Barbarian Invasions, a patient’s wealthy son offers a handsome bribe to the administrator of a decrepit, chaotic, state-run hospital in Montreal that is (mis)treating his dying father. “This is silly,” the startled administrator exclaims. “We’re not in the Third World.” Britain’s health-care system is perhaps slightly less state-dominated than Canada’s. Yet today comes the following report: The British government apologised Wednesday after a damning official report into a hospital likened by one patient’s relative to “a Third World” health centre… Between 400 and 1,200 more people died than would have been expected in a three-year period at the National Health Service (NHS) hospital, accordin...

Comparison With British National Health System EMR Implementation

EMR and HIPAA — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 20:25:18 +0100

I’ve been really amazed at the number of people I’ve heard talking about the HITECH Act bringing in a “new age of EHR” and other similar phrases. Then, I usually consider who’s been saying it and I realize that their pocketbooks are going to be lined with money from the HITECH Act and EHR adoption. So, I take it with a grain of salt. Instead, I like to look at examples to help me better understand what might happen with the $18 billion Obama’s planning to spend on EHR adoption. The best example I know of comes from the British National Health System. It’s certainly not a perfect match, but should open our eyes on government funded EHR systems. The Examiner (San Francisco) provided an interesting editorial on Britain’s National Health Service&...

Who’s Blogging about Cato

Cato-at-liberty — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 16:38:31 +0100

Here’s a few bloggers who are writing, citing and linking to Cato research and commentary: Blogging from the 2009 International Conference on Climate Change, The Foundry’s Nick Loris covers Patrick J. Michaels’s lecture on an EPA program that will “circumvent Congressional legislation to curb greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and regulate carbon dioxide.” Natch Greyes pens his thoughts on Thursday’s book forum featuring Patrick J. Michaels’s new book, Climate of Extremes: Global Warming Science They Don’t Want You to Know. Dan Kenitz cites an article by David Lamp0 on gun control. David Kirkpatrick links to Richard W. Rahn’s op-ed in The Washington Times about the increasing loss of liberty in the United Kingdom. Free-market energy...

Don't Worry: Refusing to Fund Human/Animal Hybrid Cloning Not About Morals

Secondhand Smoke — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 23:05:00 +0100

With The Independent on a tear because moral concerns might have been behind the failure of scientists to garner public funding to conduct human cloning with animal eggs, we get this badly needed assurance. From the story: Reports in the British media that grant applications to create hybrid human--animal embryos for research were turned down on moral grounds, have been rejected by the funding bodies and scientists involved.The story broke in the Independent newspaper on Monday, which claimed Stephen Minger, a leading stem cell scientist at King's College London, said that the grant applications may have been blocked by scientists on the funding committees who are morally opposed to the creation of cloned hybrid embryos. But when Nature spoke to Minger he said the Independent misinterprete...

Genetic Cleansing and the Corruption of Science Through Political Redefinition

Secondhand Smoke — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 16:16:00 +0100

Slate's Will Saletan--a favorite of mine even though we often disagree because he is a very good writer and unfailingly honest in his reportage--is onto the story of the baby girl born in the UK who was selected in--as her siblings were destroyed--because she did not have a gene that can cause adult onset breast cancer. From his column "Eugenics Euphemisms:" It's happy news. But let's take a closer look at the announcement, starting with the test "before conception." This baby was tested as an embryo in a dish. She was one of 11 such embryos made by injecting drugs in the mother to stimulate production of excess eggs, which were then fertilized with the father's sperm. Six of the embryos had the gene for breast cancer. Three more had "other abnormalities." All nine were "discarded." The ot...

Whining Scientists Always Get Their Way in Brave New Britain

Secondhand Smoke — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 04:53:00 +0100

I posted yesterday about how "the scientists" in the UK are whining because their human/cow embryo cloning scheme has not been funded by the government. I said that once their whining hit the papers, things would change quickly, because in the UK--what the scientists want, the scientists get. That process of, ironically, imposing politics onto science funding is now well under way. From the story:The two research councils that have turned down requests to fund stem-cell studies using human-animal "hybrid" embryos are to be questioned by MPs on both sides of the House of Commons to explain why they have refused to issue the grants.As revealed by The Independent yesterday, the Medical Research Council (MRC) and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) have declined ...

Denying Funding for Human/Hybrid Cloning in Brave New Britain

Secondhand Smoke — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 01:33:00 +0100

"The scientists" in the UK are throwing a tantrum because their funding for the creation of human/cow hybrid embryos has apparently slowed. From the story:Britain's effort to lead the world in stem cell research with the creation of human-animal "hybrid" clones has ground to a halt through lack of funding less than a year after the controversial technique was legalised.Funding bodies are refusing to finance the research and existing projects have been run down to the point at which they may end completely within weeks. One of the researchers involved in the work said last night that the grant applications may have been blocked by scientists on the funding committees who are morally opposed to the creation of cloned hybrid embryos derived from mixing human cells with the eggs of cows, pigs ...

Eugenically Child Born in Brave New Britain

Secondhand Smoke — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 21:58:00 +0100

Several SHSers have sent me the story of the birth of the baby girl, who was selected "in" as an embryo, as her "defective" siblings were destroyed, and permitted to be implanted and born because she did not carry a gene that gives rise to breast cancer. Yuval Levin has already discussed this matter over at NRO's blog The Corner, and he points out both the ethical implications of this event and an example of post modernism in journalism in which the BBC redefined "conception" to mean implantation in the womb instead of fertilization. From Levin's post: Better to eradicate the carriers, it seems, than to risk a potentially curable if very serious adult-onset illness. So should cancer patients wish they had never been born? Should the rest of us wish they hadn't been? The BBC itself then [st...

UK Government Fights to Keep Details of Late Term Eugenic Abortions Secret

Secondhand Smoke — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 03:50:00 +0100

This is what we are becoming, aborting viable fetuses because they will not be physically perfect--and the the UK government wishes to keep it all under wraps. From the story:It centres on mothers who opt for termination because their unborn babies have been diagnosed with conditions such as club foot and cleft palate.Doctors say such conditions can usually be corrected by surgery.The Information Commissioner has ordered the release of the figures, but the Department of Health is resisting, claiming that disclosing the data could lead to women who have late abortions being identified.While abortion is only legal in the first 24 weeks of pregnancy if carried out on social grounds, "Ground E" of the 1967 Abortion Act makes it legal to abort a foetus which has a serious risk of physical or me...

Brave New Britain: Over Protecting Animals as the Intrinsic Worth of Being Human is Disdained

Secondhand Smoke — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 17:12:00 +0100

The UK has apparently promulgated a hyper-detailed set of regulations governing the treatment of animals. Rather than properly guard against actual abuse, it also bans permitting dogs to beg at the table and cats kept from looking out windows. From the story: The guidelines cover the environment for animals, diet, the company they enjoy, ensuring they exhibit normal behaviour patterns, as well as health and welfare issues. The code of practice for dogs advises against taking a dog for a walk during the hottest part of the day or feeding it less than an hour before vigorous exercise in order to avoid "bloating". Owners should groom dogs with long hair at least once a day and all dogs should have teeth cleaned with dog chews or canine toothpaste as part of routine care. Training dogs should ...

Stem Cell Brain Drain in UK--Due to ESCR!

Secondhand Smoke — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:54:00 +0100

For years we have been warned that there would be a "brain drain" if we did not pour billions into ESCR and human cloning research. I have called this the "blank check" demand.Meanwhile, in Brave New Britain--the country that never says no--scientists wanting increasing funds warned that unless they received all of their demands, stem cell scientists would flee to the USA when President Bush leaves office and the policy changes. And now, a brain drain may have begun in the UK--only it is over the country's insufficient support for adult stem cell research. From the story:A leading British scientist is leaving the country to work in France after claiming that British science gives too much priority to embryo experiments over "more ethical" alternatives.Colin McGuckin, professor of regenerat...

“I can tell there’s something in his head that I can’t find out”

Autism Vox — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 19:52:29 +0100

It’s been reported that the use of restraints has increased in public schools. The October 24th New Britain Herald describes symptoms of something like post-tramatic stress in two autistic students who were allegedly abused by a special education teacher: Arelis Kinard, a parent of the one of the students involved, said her 7-year-old son is nonverbal but has been having behavioral problems that may be attributed to abuse. “I’m angry, I’m angry at the school, I’m angry at the system,” she said during an often tearful press conference on the steps of New Britain Superior Court. Parent Alberta Marin said her son now fears going to bed after being locked in a dark closet. “It’s a struggle every day when you have a child with autism,” Marin...

Brave New Britain: You Can Be Cloned Without Consent in the UK

Secondhand Smoke — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 00:19:00 +0100

This is just unbelievable, or better stated given the UK's history in this field, it is all too believable. At the last minute, the Parliament in the UK added a provision to its omnibus embryo bill--that among other things permits human/animal hybrid cloned embryos to be manufactured--that if the bill passes into law as expected, permits the DNA of people to be used to clone embryos without consent. From a column about the story:How would you feel if your DNA were used without your permission to produce cloned human embryos for medical research? Regardless of whether it is right or wrong to experiment on human embryos, creating them would require either giving women high doses of drugs with unknown side effects to produce the large numbers of eggs needed for cloning research, or the placin...

School Placements and Parental Rights

Autism Vox — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 16:56:08 +0100

A 12-year-old autistic boy, Ben Haslam will be without a school by the end of the week and could be taken into care—into custody—by the Local Education Authority (LEA) in Bedfordshire, UK. The Haslams tried to get Ben into one school; the LEA protested; the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal (SENDIST) ruled in favor of Ben’s parents; the LEA then said they would take Ben into care and place him in a local school which is cheaper. While Ben has been doing very well at his current placement—-a newscast shows a big change in Ben since he’s been attending school there—-it’s not clear if the school the LEA wants him to attend is right for him. We’ve been down this road with our son, Charlie, finding ourselves in extreme dispute with...

Crazy Brave New Britain

Secondhand Smoke — Wed, 21 May 2008 19:46:00 +0100

By Jennifer LahlMonday, as was expected, the United Kingdom approved the creation of human-animal hybrids for research. British officials have bought it hook line and sinker . . . they want to maintain their reputation as leaders in stem cell research. And since a strong contingent of organized groups have been successful at slowing down the human egg trade, creating a shortage of human eggs for research, the researchers are moving forward using enucleated animal eggs and adding in human genetic material, typically from a skin cell. Add a small jolt of electricity and Voila! The cybrid is here. Interspecies cloning has occurred. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said, “these embryos would bring to an end 'the critical limiting factor in stem cell research: the lack of human eggs from which ...

Huge Political Row Over Legalizing Brave New Britain

Secondhand Smoke — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 02:51:00 +0100

The British Government is finding the road to passage of its new Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill extremely controversial. One would hope so. Consider some of its provisions as described by the Telegraph: Hybrid embryos: The Bill permits the creation of hybrid or "chimera" embryos, where human DNA is inserted into an animal cell for research. Implanting them into a woman or animal will be forbidden and embryos must be discarded after use. Pro-life campaigners and Catholic leaders are bitterly opposed.Embryo screening: Embryos created in fertility treatment can be screened for certain genetic diseases but parents will not be allowed to choose embryos that will develop an abnormality, a clause that has angered deaf parents who want a deaf child. Sex selection is also banned, except to...

International Official Alcoholics Anonymous Website’s

Recovery Is Sexy.com — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 12:48:19 +0100

Argentina www.sinectis.com.ar/u/aa_osg Australia www.aa.org.au Austria www.anonyme-alkoholiker.at Belguim www.aavlaanderen.org Britain; www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk Canada; www.aacanada.com Chile www.alcoholicosanonimoschile.cl Denmark www.anonyme-alkoholikere.dk Ecuador www.aae.org.ec Europe; www.aa-europe.net/ Finland www.aa.fi France www.alcooliques-anonymes.fr Grapevine; www.aagrapevine.org/ Guatemala www.aa.com.gt Hungary www.anonimalkoholistak.hu Iceland www.aa.is India www.aagsoindia.org Ireland; www.alcoholicsanonymous.ie Italy www.alcolisti-anonimi.it Japan www.cam.hi-ho.ne.jp/aa-jso/ Korea www.aakorea.co....

Not Again OMG UK!

Gene Sherpas: Personalized Medicine and You — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 00:36:00 +0100

In another amazing step towards eugenics. Britain has awarded a couple the right to prenatal test for familial hypercholesterolemia. This way they can then terminate a pregnancy that may results in a child plagued with the disease of high cholesterol and heart attacks. In the TimesFH occurs in two forms. The more common version, heterozygous FH, affects 1 in 500 people. It is caused by a single mutated gene, which raises cholesterol and thus the risk of hardened arteries, heart disease and stroke. It can usually be managed with statin drugs and diet.Britain’s first licence to test embryos for FH will be awarded next week to Paul Serhal, of University College Hospital in London, by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA).Its decision breaks new ground because it permits Mr...

Avandia latest: Glaxo fights back

The Diabetes Blog — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 04:00:00 +0100

This article also notes that weekly prescriptions for Avandia have fallen by sixteen percent since the recent publication of a damaging article by Dr. Steven Nissen in the New England Journal of Medicine. Nissen asserted that Avandia could increase the risk of heart attack by forty-three percent and the risk of cardiac-related death by sixty-four percent.By the way, it is worth checking out the Wikipedia entry on Glaxo for a brief rundown of the company's history, including previous wrangles with the media and the law over its products. Note, though, the entry has not yet been updated in the wake of the Avandia scandal.Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments (Source: The Diabetes Blog)

Thought for the Day: Banning junk food ads

The Cancer Blog — Sat, 07 Apr 2007 04:00:00 +0100

Filed under: All Cancers, Diets, Television, Daily news, Thought for the DayIf eating junk food and watching television lead to obesity, a sedentary lifestyle, and a road marked by diminished health and increased illness, then kids living in Britain are about to get a whole lot healthier.Think about this:According to the March 19, 2007 issue of TIME magazine, British broadcasting regulator Ofcom will phase out all commercials on children's programming that promote junk food containing high fat, sugar, and salt. The ban will begin at the end of the year.Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments (Source: The Cancer Blog)