In the News –Dumb at its finest

Fashion (?):
Good fashion in a few still primitive cultures inexplicably involves such female adornments as the stacking of metal neck rings and the inserting of saucer-size disks into pierced earlobes. But our "civilized" society can be just as inexplicable -as demonstrated in the annual Paris Fashion Week in September. Renowned designers outfitted brave, otherwise-gorgeous models in grotesque clothing. Among the ensembles this year: a hat resembling steroid-enhanced stalks of peas; a shoe appearing to sprout twig-studs; "a flexible cage covered in doughnuts of black satin"; and a pillow clutch with (for some reason) its own porthole. 

Medical Costs Out of Control? Perhaps this is why: 
We al know that hospitals charge for medical supplies far in excess of what the products would cost at drugstores, but an August New York Times investigation of "saline drips" demonstrated the abuse rather well. Though Medicare reimburses $1.07 for a 1-liter plastic bag of saltwater (supplied by a subsidiary of Morton Salt), White Plains (N.Y.) Hospital charged patients' insurance companies like Aetna $91 per bag. Other hospitals decline to charge per-bag, listing only "IV therapy" of, for example, $787 for hooking up the drip. 

Smile –no matter what! 
From the world's cosmetic-surgery capital (South Korea, where one woman in five has had at least one procedure) comes the "Smile Lipt" offered by Aone Plastic Surgery in the city of Yongin, designed to produce a permanent smile. The Smile Lipt turns downward-drooping lip corners upward, to allow a persistent smile. --How’d that work out for Batman's nemesis, The Joker? 

Exploitation:
Chinese agencies have stepped up "birth tourism" packages for rich pregnant women to book vacations in America timed to their due dates -- to exploit the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of citizenship to anyone born here and thus giving the Chinese children future competitive advantages against non-Americans who must apply for U.S. visas. A USA Today report indicated that most Chinese mothers now prefer to land in the U.S. territory of Northern Mariana Islands (where birth also bestows citizenship), to the consternation of Island officials, who would prefer traditional Chinese tourists instead of the "birthers." (The 14th Amendment guaranteeing the “birth right” was aimed at assuring citizenship for freed slaves. I’d recommend updating this amendment –but our Congress would probably find a way to tax citizenship) 

Are you laughing or crying at this point? I could understand either reaction. Unfortunately, there are more examples of human stupidity out there. But, I think we’ll give it a rest today and wade into those later. Have a great day.

Today's Reflection:
Hospitality: making your guests feel like they're at home

--even if you wish they were.

Live Long and Prosper...