I don't know that any of you know this, but I'm obsessed with film. I just watched a movie that should have been up for Best Picture last year, and I'm not talking about Wall-E. That should have been too. This is like a contemporary competitive film about growing up an outcast around the event of a kid going to state for his debate team while over-coming a crippling stutter. All the while he is trying to prove himself to other people and overcome being shit on by a girl in the begining, but of course, as cliche as can be, he proves himself to himself.
Rocket Science is a fantastic film.
Plaintiff Witnesses
Testimony started yesterday late in the afternoon. First up was a medical/legal expert who described the injured woman’s disability. As with most experts he was questioned about his relationship with the law firm that hired him for his testimony. Routinely experts are asked how much they make per year testifying in Court and which side they usually work for.
Today the first witness was the nurse who initially noticed the excessive blood on the sheets when the patient first returned to her room from the post op area. He described her becoming increasingly agitated as her airway became constricted. The last witness for today (we only go a half a day on Thursday) is a Doctor who is describing the woman’s current condition and what her needs in the future are likely to be.
The incoherent juror who got selected is an interesting character. Yesterday, during the trial, he was chewing and chewing on what looked like his cud. This morning before we started he just came walking into the Courtroom having had forgotten where he was supposed to go. That sounds innocent enough but if the attorneys had been talking about something they didn’t want jurors to hear we would have lost another juror. Right now he is just sitting there slack jawed. He doesn’t take notes and it is hard to tell if he is even paying attention.
Despite the presence of a note taking reporter the trial did not make into the newspaper...
Today the first witness was the nurse who initially noticed the excessive blood on the sheets when the patient first returned to her room from the post op area. He described her becoming increasingly agitated as her airway became constricted. The last witness for today (we only go a half a day on Thursday) is a Doctor who is describing the woman’s current condition and what her needs in the future are likely to be.
The incoherent juror who got selected is an interesting character. Yesterday, during the trial, he was chewing and chewing on what looked like his cud. This morning before we started he just came walking into the Courtroom having had forgotten where he was supposed to go. That sounds innocent enough but if the attorneys had been talking about something they didn’t want jurors to hear we would have lost another juror. Right now he is just sitting there slack jawed. He doesn’t take notes and it is hard to tell if he is even paying attention.
Despite the presence of a note taking reporter the trial did not make into the newspaper...
The Flu Solution
This post is not to knock Heath Canada. I wish we had their system. As with anything they are not perfect but this story jolted me out of my dozing this AM when I heard it on the radio..…
“Aboriginal leaders said they were outraged and confused when dozens of body bags were delivered to remote Manitoba reserves after native communities demanded federal resources to fight a second wave of the H1N1 flu outbreak.”
How long will it take for the death panel crazies to get a hold of this one. Or they may not care since it is only Native Americans….
“Aboriginal leaders said they were outraged and confused when dozens of body bags were delivered to remote Manitoba reserves after native communities demanded federal resources to fight a second wave of the H1N1 flu outbreak.”
How long will it take for the death panel crazies to get a hold of this one. Or they may not care since it is only Native Americans….
Inside the Canine Mind
Here's an interesting article from Time.com online. It examines the canine mind and the bond between humans and their canine companions.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1921614,00.html
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1921614,00.html
Talk Me Down.
As I was discussing in the comment section of another post, I had just watched the new documentary called something like, The Future of Food. It was very good and presented minimal bias while providing a bunch of information I didn't know about... Again, I'd like to credit Netflix for this. I feel like I won the lottery and I get to watch every documentary ever day-in and day-out. I'm sure you may have been frustrated in the past by how elusive they are at video stores.
Anyhow, in the end of the series (3-part documentary), they discussed aquaponics. Here is the definition: The integration of hydroponics (growing plants without soil) and aquaculture (the cultivation of the natural produce of water such as fish or shellfish). So in the documentary they were discussing adding livestock to the mix.
So this is how I took the whole thing. We should set up perfect micro-ecosystems where we grow our food. Micro? Can't we look at the whole planet as one giant aquaponic+animals ecosystem? Like, I was holding my hand on my forehead thru-out the whole thing. I get this would help certain people grow food with better results, but I feel like the entire documentary just missed the larger point. The way they presented the argument is that when you introduce fish to plants they provide nitrates, white yields better crops, which could support healthier animals..... No shit. The next thing you are going to tell me is that you are going to seal it all up and the plants will clean the air and convert the animal expiration back into clean oxygen and there will be no pollution. By all means we should do this where we grow out food, period. What a novel idea. If there were anyway we could use this study to help the planet at large.
One great thing about this documentary that I had never seen before is how we are exporting water with our produce. How much water was taken from the environment that grew your corn, apple, or whatever else. If you look at produce as packaged water it makes sense that our farms are drying up all over the world, especially in the Punjab. Their water table is dropping like a meter a year for over decades. I like the argument they brought up that said we should only eat food grown in our community. They even featured a town in Britain somewhere that is growing vegetables and fruit on city grounds, like downtown, roadside, at schools, in parks and they are aiming at becoming self sufficient in less than 10 years. It was quite inspiring.
Link to the official website. Edit: I just watched the trailer at the website and found out this is a different documentary than the one I watched. This one looks to be about GMO's and legal questions. The one I watched was about environmental science not genetics.
Opening Statments
A jury was selected late in the morning consisting of 6 women and 9 men. Three alternates were chosen due to the length of this trial. The juror who was incoherent yesterday made it on the jury. He did make more sense today.
Finally opening statements! The patient, a 40 something woman, hurt her neck in a serious motorcycle accident and was plagued by pain and numbness. She was referred to a doctor, one of the defendants in this trial, who has done over one thousand spinal surgeries. An MRI showed she had protruding discs in her neck and it was agreed surgery was needed. After surgery when she arrived in her hospital room from the recovery room it was noticed there was blood on her sheets and blankets and her neck was swelling. She was taken back to the operating area where, while waiting for doctors, her breathing became labored and the swelling worsened. The poor woman was conscious as her airway was becoming restricted and appeared frightened. She was turning purple and her tongue was protruding.
After she lost consciousness the anesthesiologist (who is also being sued), there to prepare her for surgery, could not find her airway due to severe swelling and a blood clot. He tries several different methods. Finally the doctor arrives. They try to push air into the lungs with no success. Sutures to surgical site are removed to allow intubation but the trachea still can’t be found. At last the doctor was surgically able to access the airway and patient was put on a ventilator. By that time it was too late. Brain damage, due to lack of oxygen, was done. A cross section image of her brain shows none of the texture of a regular brain.
The argument is going to be that the doctor should have been there sooner. That some of the nurses did not recognize the seriousness of the situation at first and had some miscommunication. That the anesthesiologist should have called for assistance. The plaintiffs are going to be asking for 3.5 to 5 million dollars.
One of the selected jurors realized during the lunch break she knew the patient in question and her family. We are quickly down to 14 jurors, 9 men and 5 women.
The power point (if it’s even called that anymore) presentations during openings have been impressive. I love watching attorneys bring in all their technology and try to get it set up in a Courtroom that hasn’t changed much since probably the 50’s.
A reporter, who looks about 18 years old, from the local news rag is here. One of his stories about a recent trial was so wrong I will be interested in seeing how he reports this.
Finally opening statements! The patient, a 40 something woman, hurt her neck in a serious motorcycle accident and was plagued by pain and numbness. She was referred to a doctor, one of the defendants in this trial, who has done over one thousand spinal surgeries. An MRI showed she had protruding discs in her neck and it was agreed surgery was needed. After surgery when she arrived in her hospital room from the recovery room it was noticed there was blood on her sheets and blankets and her neck was swelling. She was taken back to the operating area where, while waiting for doctors, her breathing became labored and the swelling worsened. The poor woman was conscious as her airway was becoming restricted and appeared frightened. She was turning purple and her tongue was protruding.
After she lost consciousness the anesthesiologist (who is also being sued), there to prepare her for surgery, could not find her airway due to severe swelling and a blood clot. He tries several different methods. Finally the doctor arrives. They try to push air into the lungs with no success. Sutures to surgical site are removed to allow intubation but the trachea still can’t be found. At last the doctor was surgically able to access the airway and patient was put on a ventilator. By that time it was too late. Brain damage, due to lack of oxygen, was done. A cross section image of her brain shows none of the texture of a regular brain.
The argument is going to be that the doctor should have been there sooner. That some of the nurses did not recognize the seriousness of the situation at first and had some miscommunication. That the anesthesiologist should have called for assistance. The plaintiffs are going to be asking for 3.5 to 5 million dollars.
One of the selected jurors realized during the lunch break she knew the patient in question and her family. We are quickly down to 14 jurors, 9 men and 5 women.
The power point (if it’s even called that anymore) presentations during openings have been impressive. I love watching attorneys bring in all their technology and try to get it set up in a Courtroom that hasn’t changed much since probably the 50’s.
A reporter, who looks about 18 years old, from the local news rag is here. One of his stories about a recent trial was so wrong I will be interested in seeing how he reports this.
National Scandal
This is what our culture has been reduced to - Kanye v. Obama. I'm fucking sick of it already. If I were in the administration the producer of this interview would be blacklisted. As a consumer of news, I say fuck you. If you are going to try to expose something from behind the scenes let it be fucking news. Record him when he thinks cameras are off and ask him off the record what happened to single-payer, why we haven't regulated the banks, or how he feels about fighting a war with fucking flying robots.
This country really makes me ill sometimes.
Father-Daughter Moment, Baseball
Video of cute father-daughter moment at a baseball game:
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/ModernTube-Young-Phillies-fan-rejects-dad-s-fou?urn=mlb,189941
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/ModernTube-Young-Phillies-fan-rejects-dad-s-fou?urn=mlb,189941
Global Warming? Solved.
A few scientists have come up with incredibly simple (relatively) way to reverse global warming. I wonder if it will actually come under discussion or not. Click here to read more.
Jury Selection
A large group of jurors were excused right away for hardship or vacation plans. Tip to get out of jury service: Get plane tickets.
Attorneys questioned jurors. Tort reform and large awards were brought up immediately. When asked if a child of theirs had been harmed by a surgical procedure would they seek redress you saw some backpedaling. Asked to share negative medical experiences jurors mention a misdiagnosed heart attack and a misdiagnosed back condition with an almost loss of legs. It never ceases to amaze me how open people are in front of a group of strangers. One man talked of coming home to find his wife had attempted suicide. One juror was so incoherent you just know he is not going to make it to the final 15.
The injured woman was brought into Court for about an hour this morning. She is in a wheel chair and I can’t tell if she knows what is going on. She would make unintelligible sounds from time to time. Mercifully, she was not back for the afternoon.
It has been discovered that several of the jurors have spoken to the husband of the injured woman while Court was recessed. This is a big no no. It is construed as trying to win favor with the jury. The bailiff just told me the husband has been a problem at previous hearings. He makes faces at the doctors and when a ruling went his way he stood up and said to the other side, “Ha ha we won!”. The jurors that talked to the husband are being taken into chambers individually for questioning.
Not much came of it except the Judge warning jurors not to talk to any of the parties or attorneys. The rest of the day will continue to be attorneys questioning the jurors. I’m keeping my fingers crossed a jury will be picked today
Attorneys questioned jurors. Tort reform and large awards were brought up immediately. When asked if a child of theirs had been harmed by a surgical procedure would they seek redress you saw some backpedaling. Asked to share negative medical experiences jurors mention a misdiagnosed heart attack and a misdiagnosed back condition with an almost loss of legs. It never ceases to amaze me how open people are in front of a group of strangers. One man talked of coming home to find his wife had attempted suicide. One juror was so incoherent you just know he is not going to make it to the final 15.
The injured woman was brought into Court for about an hour this morning. She is in a wheel chair and I can’t tell if she knows what is going on. She would make unintelligible sounds from time to time. Mercifully, she was not back for the afternoon.
It has been discovered that several of the jurors have spoken to the husband of the injured woman while Court was recessed. This is a big no no. It is construed as trying to win favor with the jury. The bailiff just told me the husband has been a problem at previous hearings. He makes faces at the doctors and when a ruling went his way he stood up and said to the other side, “Ha ha we won!”. The jurors that talked to the husband are being taken into chambers individually for questioning.
Not much came of it except the Judge warning jurors not to talk to any of the parties or attorneys. The rest of the day will continue to be attorneys questioning the jurors. I’m keeping my fingers crossed a jury will be picked today
A humpback whale has been found dead in the Thames River. The actual picture can be found thru the link. It had most likely died of starvations. I had recently heard about the Portuguese Man of War being found in a bunch of places it shouldn't be as well. I don't know why exactly but I am getting increasingly more and more worried about global warming as every day passes. I just watched that documentary "The Future of Food." Man, that was upsetting too. Maybe I'll post about that too later, but I likely won't. If you have a Netflix account you should add it to your queue. If you don't have a Netflix account you should look into getting one because you can just click on a movie and stream it there on your computer.... unlimited. Weird question, but can anyone else tell by looking at a picture of water what the temperature roughly is? It sounds silly, but I just found out it isn't common knowledge. I swam competitively for over 10 years and you can tell a lot about a pool, lake, or ocean by just looking at the surface of the water. I can tell the picture of the whale I posted is in cold water, not off Hawaii. The easiest way to put it into words is the more active or choppy the water is the colder it is, the more it "rolls" the warmer it is - warm water is a lot more smooth (even with waves).
Trial Blogging
For the next several weeks I am going to be immersed in work. Even the breaks and lunch hour I spent working on posts for this blog and researching stories will be severely limited. My intention is to do a wrap up every afternoon of what happened during my day.
I am a Superior Court Clerk who is just starting to clerk a medical malpractice trial. The clerk isn’t the one with the funny machine. We take minutes, number and keep track of exhibits and all documents filed during the course of the trial.
Yesterday the Judge and all the attorneys, six of them, took care of preliminary matters. Today is picking the jury. Seventy people have been called in to be questioned by the judge and attorneys to see if they are prejudice in any way. Fifteen people will be picked to determine fault and monetary damages.
The plaintiffs, the damaged party, have two attorneys and they are suing the hospital and two of the doctors. From what I understand complications from surgery have left a woman unable to walk or do anything for herself.
We are just about ready for the Judge to come out…..
I am a Superior Court Clerk who is just starting to clerk a medical malpractice trial. The clerk isn’t the one with the funny machine. We take minutes, number and keep track of exhibits and all documents filed during the course of the trial.
Yesterday the Judge and all the attorneys, six of them, took care of preliminary matters. Today is picking the jury. Seventy people have been called in to be questioned by the judge and attorneys to see if they are prejudice in any way. Fifteen people will be picked to determine fault and monetary damages.
The plaintiffs, the damaged party, have two attorneys and they are suing the hospital and two of the doctors. From what I understand complications from surgery have left a woman unable to walk or do anything for herself.
We are just about ready for the Judge to come out…..