Do You Want to Do Something to Save the NHS? Of Course You Do!

My third post in twenty four hours; howzat? Well, the internet lines are buzzing just now and there's a lot going on. If you're looking for something useful to do about the Health and Social Care Bill, then you could do worse than visit this link and pick a task. You could email your MP. You could adopt a peer (but you don't have to keep them in the house). You could read up the latest erudite articles on the situation. If you were really charitable you could leave a comment on the Scottish Health Campaigns Network site that wasn't spam. Or you could make a donation and pay someone else to worry about it.It's all here from the NHS Support Federation. Go on. Do something. Not a lot. Just a little. And if a lot do a little then it's lots. I think..

The Health Bill Will End the NHS - Official Report from 38 Degrees

Have just received word from 38 Degrees, who are campaiging against the Health and Social Care Bill. They paid for legal advice on the possible consequences of the HSCB, and their lawyers have concluded;

a) This does signal the end of the Health Secretary's duty to provide healthcare;

b) It will open the NHS to privatisation and by that route, exposure to European competition rules for service procurement.

You can find the full report here. Please read it and email your MP. We've got seven days until the next vote on this. We can't slack now.

The Best of the NHS

I was wading my way through the misery porn that passes for news these days, when I came across this article. It's not often that a story can move me to tears, but this one did. Dr Jim Swire is a retired GP who lost his daughter Flora in the Lockerbie bombing. When the news reached him that Abdelbaset Megrahi had been deprived of his pain medication in Tripoli he said that it was wrong and if he could, he would treat him himself.

I know some would regard this as foolishness. There are those who think that forgiveness is weakness. But there is something piercing about the sheer graciousness and humanity of this man in the face of the callous evil that he experienced. And at a time when the NHS is collapsing around our ears, Dr Jim Swire is a shining example of the utter professionalism of the NHS trained doctor; to treat the patient and relieve their distress, no matter who they are. Dr Jim Swire is a product of the NHS that understands their profession as a vocation and treats it as such. He is the very best of the NHS.

£100 000 Reward for NHS Whistleblowers!

But only if it's for copyright violation...

Brad Pitt Comes to Glasgow

Which isn't as glamorous as might appear at first glance. I'm very glad to hear that the location manager's reason for picking Glasgow for this film was because of its architecture, wide roads and grid layout. We could take it the wrong way you know...

We'll Set Aboot Ye

It's a pretty lousy time for the country just now, with the riots and an ugly mood abroad in the country generally. But in amongst all the misery, I couldn't help smiling at one account of fifty rioters being repulsed by six policemen. Yep, the guy leading the charge was a Scot. This is why we don't riot in Scotland. We're too feart of the opposition. As John Smeaton put it; we'll set aboot ye..

The Most Ignorant BBC Interview Ever?

I Predict a Riot

A couple of weeks ago I was having a discussion with a friend about energy prices. My gas bill has gone up again and we were talking about all the areas that fuel prices affects; transport of goods, factory production prices, reduced consumer spending because people have less money, in fact everything. I said, 'There's going to be riots in the streets if this goes on.' Seems I was right..