I was taught that medicine is a profession, and I try to teach this to students. For those people who want to look at medicine as a job,thats fine. However,keep in mind what teachers unions did to their now extinct "profession" . It amazes me the number of people in our society,who think being a good christian or whatever religion one chooses, believe that it means"I've got mine,and I'm not sharing". They don't believe they have responsibily to anyone else,unless there's something in it for them. This philosophy starts at the top with our president who feels tax cuts for his friends the uber rich are clearly more important than health care for children. The best definition I've heard for compassionate conservatism is I feel your pain ,I just don't plan to to a damn thing about it. So be greedy,and selfish,but don't complain when some calls you that.
Anonymous--- I applaud your stand on professionalism, but I have some questions about your response.
Are you not selfish, even in the least? Perhaps you’re using the word in its most pejorative sense (after all, every person has a legitimate need to look after his/her own interests). Can you tell whether I am selfish or greedy? Do you really believe (as is strongly implied in your remarks) that such character attributes can be judged from ones political views? That liberals are more compassionate, for example, than conservatives or libertarians?
Medicine is much more than a job to me. I believe compassion and altruism are important to our professionalism, but these traits must come from within. They can’t be legislated, and doctors can’t be shamed into genuine compassion. To shame people into compassion or generosity is merely to appeal to their selfishness, that is, their vanity, their need for validation.
So RW the champion of critical thought & skepticism is championing a site that suggests medical students need to read ayn rand and propaganda material about how capitalism is good for medicine? Give me a break. I'm all for sticking it to Woo'sters and demanding rigor from all corners but this...? I've slowly been losing my appreciation of this blog and this, I'm sorry to say, is it for me.
I don't agree with everything on the site but it's a refreshing break from the hypocritical dogma of much of today's liberalism.
And what does my skepticism have to do with it? The site, as far as I can see, makes no health claims. The debate over capitalism vs socialism appeals to one's philosophical bent as much as it does evidence. My philosophical bent is to trust private enterprise more than government. That doesn't make me a less compassionate or generous person.
4 comments:
I was taught that medicine is a profession, and I try to teach this to students. For those people who want to look at medicine as a job,thats fine. However,keep in mind what teachers unions did to their now extinct "profession"
.
It amazes me the number of people in our society,who think being a good christian or whatever religion one chooses, believe that it means"I've got mine,and I'm not sharing". They don't believe they have responsibily to anyone else,unless there's something in it for them.
This philosophy starts at the top with our president who feels tax cuts for his friends the uber rich are clearly more important than health care for children.
The best definition I've heard for compassionate conservatism is I feel your pain ,I just don't plan to to a damn thing about it.
So be greedy,and selfish,but don't complain when some calls you that.
Anonymous---
I applaud your stand on professionalism, but I have some questions about your response.
Are you not selfish, even in the least? Perhaps you’re using the word in its most pejorative sense (after all, every person has a legitimate need to look after his/her own interests). Can you tell whether I am selfish or greedy? Do you really believe (as is strongly implied in your remarks) that such character attributes can be judged from ones political views? That liberals are more compassionate, for example, than conservatives or libertarians?
Medicine is much more than a job to me. I believe compassion and altruism are important to our professionalism, but these traits must come from within. They can’t be legislated, and doctors can’t be shamed into genuine compassion. To shame people into compassion or generosity is merely to appeal to their selfishness, that is, their vanity, their need for validation.
So RW the champion of critical thought & skepticism is championing a site that suggests medical students need to read ayn rand and propaganda material about how capitalism is good for medicine? Give me a break. I'm all for sticking it to Woo'sters and demanding rigor from all corners but this...? I've slowly been losing my appreciation of this blog and this, I'm sorry to say, is it for me.
I don't agree with everything on the site but it's a refreshing break from the hypocritical dogma of much of today's liberalism.
And what does my skepticism have to do with it? The site, as far as I can see, makes no health claims. The debate over capitalism vs socialism appeals to one's philosophical bent as much as it does evidence. My philosophical bent is to trust private enterprise more than government. That doesn't make me a less compassionate or generous person.
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