Is Free Health Care truly Free?

             

                     I am a Doctor by profession and presently working in a Government Hospital  in India. Since it is a Govt hospital and treatment is provided free of cost, the usual patients mostly belong to the poor class who cannot really afford to pay medical bills. Most are daily wage workers and  barely earn enough to get by with their day to day lives..therefore proper premium treatment for their illnesses is a luxury they cannot afford. Therefore, pressed on by their financial burdens, they come to Govt Hospitals where they  hope they can get the treatment they need and gain their health back.

           

Govt Hospitals are indeed a blessing to them, as they get admitted free of cost, get a hospital bed, get the bulk of their treatment done free. But, is providing ‘all’ the treatment truly free of cost even possible for these hospitals? The answer is a no.

      Medicine is such that the full spectrum of a persons treatment is never really carried out in one place all the time. Sometimes there can be referrals eg.to other super speciality hospitals  or the patient has to  be sent out for diagnostic tests to other centres. Sometimes he might have to run for speciality blood tests not done where he is admitted or just run around to  get blood of a particular group to get the transfusion he needs. Now, all this costs money. The hospital where is is admitted might well be free of cost..but referrals, tests, etc outside the hospital are not. The patient ‘will’ have to spend money.  An example of  this  I came across was when a patient suffering from haemolytic anemia was admitted to our hospital. We did all we could to provide him with  the best treatment free of cost, but ultimately a bone marrow biopsy was needed for which he was referred out to a diagnostic centre. The biopsy would cost him over a thousand rupees. On being told about this, he asked whether it was possible to perform the test in the hospital as he was low on finances. On being told no, there was a clear take-over of despair on his  face..wondering as to from where would he arrange a thousand rupees for a test so necessary to his well-being.

       The Hospital in these cases is thought to be at fault but it is not the case. These hospitals, the treatment in them being free, have a tremendous amount of patient influx. The medicine wards, surgery and gynaecology wards are sights to see. Patients even lie down on the floor when beds are not available.  In these circumstances, maintaining a continuous supply of medical drugs and equipments are not possible. The sheer flow of patients completely overwhelms the supply of medical items in the hospitals. It is a common sight to see supplies running out as newer patients keep getting admitted. In these circumstances, the patient has to spend money in buying supplies that would have otherwise been available free of cost.

      Therefore, we see that even free healthcare is not truly free when we look at the big picture. So who is to blame here? The people? The hospital? None. It is poverty. Until poverty is not done away  with, until the financial state of people does not improve – even healthcare – being such an essential element of life that should be provided to anyone and everyone free of cost – will only remain a dream come true for people who can afford it.

Not so Super Heroes

I am a big cominc book fan. I see almost every superhero movie that releases..and drool over them for hours and days after trying to make sense of the plot, trying to find plot-holes  etc etc. I cant help but notice, simple elements in a superheros characterization, that would perhaps make his life very very difficult.

        Lets start with - ' The Man who was born Super ' - Superman.

Superman aka the man of steel, a human looking alien with superpowers of flying, shooting lasers from his eyes, and okay..total invincibility. Now, when he's not superman, he's Clark Kent..a reporter with a newspaper. When needed, he turns into the all invincible superman - with  his super huge cape and big orange boots.

Okay, now where does he hide his cape when he's dressed as Clark Kent? obviously, its too large to fit from his back to all through his pants. I tried to figure it  out..it just wont.

Boots ? Same issue as the cape.

 Is wearing a pair of spectacles to hide your identity as superman enough? seriously? People familiar with Clark Kent wont know that Superman and Clark Kent atleast have a similar face?

                                                                 No Similarity? Really?        

   

The Batman

-Human super hero. Bleeds, gets his back broken, sweats. Has to. He's human!

Heavy Fighting = Sweaty Suit

- His costume is all high tech, gadgets, deceptions, etc etc. Ventilation? not quite! Intense fighting sequences, jumping, climbing, gliding - Wheres all the sweat going? No where! Its all inside his suit.

-The Batman usually stays active from 12 to 4 in the morning. Thats 4 hrs. Pee problems?? no? He's human right? By the looks of it..doesn't look as if  getting in and out of his suit seems like an easy task..

Spiderman

-Mutated human with spider like capabilities such as sticking to walls, spinning webs n swinging etc.

Too many Webs.

Spiderman swings around  NYC by the help of his webs. So, as a side effect, thers a lot of used spidey webs all around NYC from skyscrapers, bridges, walls etc. Not gona go very well with the New York Municipality and atleast a few people will it?

-Okay he can stick to walls..some skin  mutation right? Now how does the sticking work even through his spidey suit? Dont his fingers get covered? how does he stick?

Ironman

"How do you control it Tony?"

-Billionaire Tony Stark wears an Iron suit and goes around kicking butt.

-How does  he control his suit? buttons? ( we dont see any ). Voice ( he doesnt speak out every command ). gestures (not very obvious, but maybe). Machines need buttons or atleast some form of input to control them right? Jarvis reading Tony Starks mind? umm..maybe..

Wolverine

Adamantium and Muscles = A very heavy wieght

Mutant human with Adamantium claws and exoskeleton.

Getting through metal detectors everywhere must be pretty difficult right?

Super smelling  and hearing capabilities - He smells and Hears everything - even if he doesn't want to. lol.

Adamantium exoskeletan. The strongest metal in the world. Has to be really heavy. Is getting around and jumping and killing bad guys really that easy? with an adamantium exoskeletan?

Horoscopes and Future telling? Really?

Astrology is a booming business..one that never  fades out or even has the slightest potential of decreasing in value over time. People look to astrology to understanding themselves, their near and dear ones, to improve business or work, to find peace...and even perhaps to know what the future holds. There are numerous books  on astrology, some even going onto entire volumes..describing the alignment of stars and planets..and how they seem to affect our lives. Palms are read, tarot readings are done, the alignment understood and the results obtained. But is it really as true as it seems to be? Do the stars and planets really affect us and our personalities? Is future telling possible through these means?

    

  I read the Horoscope section in a weekly based magazine where I live. I do not read it for what it says about my future and what the forthcoming week holds in store for me, but I read it to understand a general pattern of horoscope telling. This pattern is neither specific to any sign nor does it carry any detail of what the future might hold. 

An example of a particular horoscope :

Things may come to you more easily than usual today, Scorpio. This is a sign that you're on the right path and doing things correctly. Life shouldn't have to be full of stress and heartache. If something isn't flowing smoothly, you should consider taking a new approach toward it. Keep a smile on your face and be respectful of the people around you.

Okay..here is for another sign :

Try not to be overwhelmed by the frenzied activity around you, Pisces. Unexpected variables are popping up everywhere, and your first reaction may be to flip out. This is the opposite reaction that you need to have now. Calm yourself down and take small bites. Don't try to eat the whole eight-course meal in one five-minute sitting.

Yet another one:

You may feel like the smallest issue is suddenly a life or death situation, Libra. Depending on your mood, you may think you're on the brink of complete disaster, but the next minute be soaring high in the clouds. The drama that surrounds you is more a product of your reaction to your environment rather than the environment itself.

The Scorpio is told directly that if things seem tough..take a new approach towards it. The Pieces is told that if theres any un-expected problem, stay calm. The Libra..well..

 If you notice above, the so called horoscope are so written, the least one can say is that they’re general. There happens to be no specificity  to any zodiac sign above whatsoever - scorpio, pieces or libra. A person can believe whatever he wants to believe after reading this. The horoscopes are  so general, that things like these keep happening everyday to people eg. unexpected problems. Now, say just by chance, a pieces happens to read this before going to work, and at work she gets a headache and her work efficiency is low..”Bravo!” she thinks..”I should’ve believed that horoscope I read!” She starts following it religiously, and as time goes by..she wants it in more detail. Thats where she starts spending money and gets consumed by it. Maybe she didn’t happen to realize in the first place, the headache she got was probably due to the power of her spectacles changing, rather than a very starry influence.

The things these horoscopes mention, are generalised. They are day to day situations a person faces and can happen to anybody. People like to blame what they face on external factors, hence, they start believing that their lives are under the influence of stars. – And over the years, this has changed into a money making business, making profits of millions of dollars per year.

Perhaps we should try to look at our lives at another angle, away from astrology, and we’d be surprised as to how general things really are in life whether you are a scorpio, a pieces, a libra or any of the other 9 signs. I do not deny that personalities of all people are the same, but future telling, scaring people, and charging them money to give them more information on how to better their lives, is truly fraudulent.

Plot Holes : The Dark Knight Rises

Completeting Christopher Nolans Batman Trilogy was 'The Dark Knight Rises' which relased on the 20th of July 2012, and went to accumulate a net income in excess of $1.003 billion despite the tragedy in Aurora, Colorado. Well it a great movie ofcourse, but probably  the one of the trilogy with the maximum number of plot holes...and since this article is about the plot holes of movies..well..

*****************************SPOILERS AHEAD************************************

When? How long? Why?

1) This is the first and perhaps the greatest. When did the Batman get time to make the Bat logo on Gotham bridge? How did he do it? when did he do it? How long did it take him to do it?

Gordon and men crossing the frozen river.

2) Gordon and  his  associates crossing the frozen river: Just a few minutes before in the movie, we see John Daggets second in command trying to cross the river, and falling into it over a weak patch. However when Jim Gordon and his associates cross..nothing happens and they promptly meet Batman.

3) In the early stages of the movie, we see Commissioner Gordon getting captured by Banes men in the underground tunnels..however he manages to get away by purposely falling into the water and flowing away with it. Banes henchrman tells him 'we'll never find him, as the water runs to anyone of the outflows'..however..we see John Blake promptly arriving to the exact outflow when Jim Gordon lands up.

Blake saving Gordon at 'one of the outflows'

How did he get back?

4) How does Bruce Wayne get back into Gotham after he escapes from Banes prison?

'Every cop in Gotham'

5) When Gotham Police Department finds out about Banes work in the tunnels..orders are given to send 'every' cop in Gotham into the tunnels. Literally every cop in Gotham. Not a single cop is told to keep guard outside/elsewhere in the city.

'Where are the Guns?'

6)  The big showdown at the  end of the movie : Gotham PD have been underground for 5 straight months..okay. But they never lost their guns. When Gotham PD and Banes army go head-on, the cops run straight for Banes army (who are holding AK-47's) -  without any guns. Where'd their guns vanish?

'World famous Billionaire'

7) Bruce Wayne is a world famous billionaire. We see him sitting in a cafe in Florence with Catwoman where he sees Alfred and gives him a smiley nod. No one recognizes Bruce Wayne?  Its not like he's wearing make-up or anything.

8) Since all prisoners from Blackgate Prison  were released by Bane, what happened to the Joker?

Plot holes are in every movie, just that they get noticed more in the really famous ones - as the movies are just so well done, people search for mistakes in them.  

The Batman Trilogy by Christopher Nolan truly stands out as one of the greatest movie trilogies the world has ever seen.

Rise

What do I do  and what do I say
There's a tension over me that's made me go astray
There's a voice inside my head
that has forced me into a mess
Can anyone hear from me..a call against distress?

But why am I like this
I feel I'm about to fall
But I dont want to creep through life
I neither want to crawl

I dont want life to live me
I want to live life,  through my destiny
My spirit is the one
more powerful than the sun
My soul reigns supreme
Through all the pain, going upstream

Until the time I breathe
I shall believe
No one can get you down
for a good life is something, you yourself achieve.

Kai Po Che!

     I recently got time to watch Abhishek Kapoors Kai Po Che! at the movies. It starred  Shushant Singh Rajput , Amit Sadh and Raj Kumar Yadav and is based upon Chetan Bhagats 2008 novel 'The 3 mistakes of my life'..with changes here and there.

I read the novel back in 2008 when it was launched, simply loved Chetan Bhagats simple style of story  telling that can reach out to the common man, the novel  being short and sweet. Kai Po Che was released on  Februray the 22nd .The reviews to this movie mostly being positive, most critics gave it an average of 3-4  start out of 5.  Despite this,I did not know what to expect when I went for it, asIi was not sure how Abhishek Kapoor  – the director of  a Rock On! – would direct a movie based on the 3 mistakes of my life..the story of 3 friends at the turn of the century Gujarat.

(L to R) Raj Kumar Yadav, Shushant Singh Rajput, Amit Sadh

  I must say I was not disappointed. The movie crossed my expectations and a little more. A movie like this comes once in a blue moon -  A  near perfect movie with elements of  comedy, friendship, love ( Bollywoods favourite ), hate  and how a fit of rage can destroy people and change them and whatever they stood for. It is one of those movies, the experience of which lingers for a while. ( days in my case ).

   The basic plot of the movie being about 3 friends..Ishaan ( shushant Singh Rajput ), Omi (amit sadh ) and Govind ( Raj kumar Yadav ) – 3 best friends who decide to start  a business and how each ones life and friendship  takes a turn  due to circumstances in Gujrat around 2001 ( the Earthquake in 2001 followed by the Riots in 2002). Abhishek Kapoor does a wonderful job in not letting the audience get bored- even for a minute, from the humble beginnings of the movie – slowly building up the plot, from 3 boys starting a sports shop and a cricket academy - to the classical portrayal of the Gujarat riots, and  finally -to the dramatic end of the movie. His directing stays consistent through out. It shows the versatility of a him as a director  - as it is hard to imagine that person who directed Rock on! is indeed the same person who has directed Kai Po Che!

Abhishek Kapoor on the sets of Kai Po Che!

   The acting performances given by the 3 leads is outstanding. Amit sadh plays a Omi- a dumb boy with no specific ambitions in life and in control by his mamaji. Raj Kumar plays Govind – a business oriented Gujarati boy, who is the accountant of the sports shop and gives tuition at the side to make extra bucks. Shushant plays Ishaan, a cricket freak who takes interested in a small boy called Ali – who is gifted in cricket – and makes it his passion for the young boy to learn and excel at the game. Out of the 3, shushants acting stands out, and is that of a seasoned movie actor – and not that of a newcomer. An actor who definitely has a long way to go in Bollywood.

If you still have not seen it, I suggest you do as it is undeniably a movie experience you will cherish. From the story to the acting, direction, music and everything else – it is a movie you would  not want to miss. I can easily imagine Abhishek Kapoor shouting out loud to the audience – “Kai Po Che! (Gotcha!)”.

The Inevitable Ageing ( of your Laptop )

 People buy gadgets with a lot of excitement. Use them. Years  pass by..and before you know it they’re old. Laptops being no exception. Once the age of the laptop starts to express itself in its performance as compared to other newer laptops, the owners are faced with a dilemma. ‘should I upgrade it?’ or ‘should I sell it?’. Well, the former of the two options works most of the times with the owner usually upgrading the performance of the laptop by either upgrading the RAM, or putting in a larger hard drive, or perhaps changing into a larger capacity battery. Or  if the laptop supports it, changing various internal components like the graphics card, optical drives, etc.

   

     No matter how many times or what the user upgrades,  the laptop will become old and the same old question- to sell or not to sell is going to pop up again. Looking at the prices the user will get to sell the laptop will be disheartening at the least, as values of older machines are worth scraps.

Instead of selling it for a worthless price that probably cant get you a decent meal in a good classy restaurant, the user can salvage parts out of his laptop, use them in other places or just sell them separately at a comparatively higher price. Well, atleast that’s what I did with my really old Compaq Presario when I knew I just could’nt go on upgrading it anymore-

An external Hard Drive Case

      1)      RAM –  I had upgraded my previous laptop with a 4gb RAM  module. My  new dell, fortunately for me had a single module of 2 gb RAM, therefore one slot for the RAM was free. I took the RAM from my Presario and transferred it to the Dell, hence, getting a combined 6 gb  of RAM  in  my Dell.

       

      2)      Hard Drive – I had upgraded my Compaq to a 500 gb Seagate Barracuda. For it, I went browsing at ebay and bought an external 2.5” hard drive casing. ( here ) – hence, getting an external 500 gb hard drive, which i use now to store movies.

      3)      Battery : I put a 9 cell Presario compatible battery which easily gave me a 5 hr battery backup. I sold it at a good price.

    

       4)      Power Adapter : Laptop users are continuously facing problems regarding their power adapter as these adapters can succumb to fluctuations in electricity, over heating, etc. Finding a buyer for my Power Adapter was not difficult.

      Once your deals are completed from the above mentioned points, just go to a local hardware store, put aside your emotional attachments with the machine, and dump it – all while playing your part in the re-cycling process. The motherboards used in computers have silicon chips, which to be honest, are quite expensive. Laptop manufacturers are always on the lookout for silicon circuits so that they can be recycled, therefore reducing production costs and reducing the drilling into the earths crust for more silicon.

      There you have it..Hope you can make something more productive out of the machine you would otherwise sell off for a few measly bucks!