Comments on: Ask Your Doctor Whether Your Political Views Are Right For You

By: Harvard Researchers: Take Obese Kids Away From Their Parents

Harvard Researchers: Take Obese Kids Away From Their Parents — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 20:59:54 +0000

[...] be abused is one of the main reasons it shouldn't be adopted: The medical community is an increasingly popularvector for social agendas and state control of the individual. Norms about government control start [...]

By: DMS

DMS — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 22:55:16 +0000

Another sharp post – the first thing I thought when I saw this story elsewhere was "I wonder what my GP's view is on the safety of initialising the The Large Hadron Collider?".

By: Timothy Harris

Timothy Harris — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 18:32:17 +0000

> How does a doctor get to a point where they see themselves as
> representing and working for the government or Society,
> rather than their patients?

Ahhh, but this story is from the United Kingdom where doctors *are* employed by the National Health Service, aka the Government. Government run single payer health care can't help but shift the relationship between doctor & patient

By: Linus

Linus — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:52:23 +0000

It's interesting that you compare the doctor-patient relationship to the attorney-client one, because attorneys are explicitly officers of the court, yet it's much easier for attorneys to say (and have the attitude) that they represent and work for the client, and the client's interests are paramount (within broad ethical lines). How does a doctor get to a point where they see themselves as representing and working for the government or Society, rather than their patients? I realize it's an extreme example, but if a doctor thinks his primary duties run to Society, not you, and he honestly believes your continued existence is bad for Society, how is that going to end? Not well.

By: wfjag

wfjag — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:05:22 +0000

Sounds like what is needed is a 12-step program to help people eliminate carbon dioxide from their daily lives. Let's call it CO2 Anonymous.

Step 1: Stop exhaling.
Step 2: . . .

By: rxc

rxc — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 09:03:22 +0000

This is all part of the "nudge" strategy to control the populace. You enroll lots of people who don't otherwise have a role in a particular issue, and you get them to spread the message. Very Gramsci. Of course, when the behavior doean't change, you need to take stronger actions, and turn the "nudgers" into informers and enforcers...

By: “Ask Your Doctor Whether Your Political Views Are Right For You”

“Ask Your Doctor Whether Your Political Views Are Right For You” — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 05:09:40 +0000

[...] M.D.s to lecture their patients on the hazards of climate change. [Popehat, [...]