Well, it is finished. After writing and researching and researching and writing, I finally finished Ivory, A story of love and murder. It is set in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Jack, an ex-Army Ranger with issues meets a female elaphantologist, Eloise, (all of the greatest champions and researchers of elephants have been women). Jack is trying to outrun  his demons by taking his camera to Africa to photograph wildlife.  They establish  a relationship based on mutual antagonism. But elephant poachers are killing them for their ivory, a vile, murderous practice. Together they seek to put end to the ivory poaching It gets messy

Do They Know It's Christmastime?

Well the holiday season is history. But there is a recurring thing about the holiday that bugs the crap out of me. It's the song by BANDAID titled Do They Know it's Christmastime. A noble effort to raise money for the impoverished around the globe. But there is one line in the song that continues its seasonal wrenching of my soul. It is this: "Thank God it's them instead of you." Really? Is that something you want to thank God about? Wish misfortune on someone else so you can feel better when you open your presents or go to sleep in a warm bed with a tummy full of food? This negates the entire spirit of the song. Later this year when the holidays arrive. Think about this line in the song. You may be repulsed too.

I'm back

It's been a while since I've posted anything on this blog. I don't look anything like I used to. I've grown out my hair out like Jeff Bridges in THE BIG LEBOWSKI and I'm older. Perhaps a bit wiser as well.
I have a new granddaughter who is a delight. Beyond a rift with her parents that lasted nearly a year without communication, her birth seemed to resolve everything as Servpro says: like it never even happened.
I have five books now available as ebooks and in paperback. One is actually a trilogy called BOMBING, the culmination of a life-long dream of telling the story of what it was like to fly bombing missions over Occupied Europe and subsequently about the effort to burn Japan to the ground. The first two chronicle the life of John Hollis, a pilot. The first appropriately titled BOMBING and the second, THE BUSINESS OF KILLING continues his journey. The third is titled WHEN WE WERE YOUNG, the story of Hollis's bombardier after he bails out into France.  The first two have had excellent reviews. While some Facebook critics harp on the fact that there are so many books on bombing in the Second World War already, I've always believed that there can never be enough words written to describe what went on during the war. Very soon those who took part in that cataclysmic event will all be gone and no one will be alive to tell us as eyewitnesses what happened. Someone needs to keep those voices alive. The trilogy was my way of speaking for them.
My book, entitled HOW COULD YOU is the story of  murder and privilege. It is based on true events.
THIRTEEN DAYS is a novella that describes love and loss.
I am currently working on a novel about elephants and poaching. Elephants are so like us, I have found in my research, that killing them is tantamount to murder.  It's appropriately called IVORY. It won't be ready for some time.
There are other projects that will keep me writing till I die.

Islam, the New Black

Islam, the New Black

 

I am confused. Any religion that abides by wonton rape and riot is no ‘religion of peace,’ one of the most incredible, ignorant statements ever made. Rape of infidel women and eradication of homosexuality are codified in the Qur’an. You can look it up.

Holocaust and the Jews? How about Holocaust for the Yazidis or any enclave of Christians in the Middle East?

For a political movement that thinks political discourse is a contact sport and the vagina is the seat of all power and reason, the Left shows rigid, almost visceral intolerance for any opinion but its own.

Which makes their tacit acceptance of Muslim women in subservient roles, child abuse manifested as teenage marriage, lopping heads off as a new outdoor sport and pitching homosexuals off rooftops so mystifying; especially so in the recent era of mandated equality for each small group of aggrieved citizens, real or imagined.  How can they be true to their faith, Progressivism, and abide by these dictates of religion?  Any religion. Failure to protest is implicit approval. Their silence speaks volumes about who they really are. Democrats, I mean

Were Episcopalians to suddenly and inexplicably embrace female circumcision as a tenant of their religion, the outcry would be deafening. Yet the Left steadfastly embraces abortion as if it is one of the Commandments. Is there a contradiction I am not getting?

My explanation is guilt. The Left is driven by an unassuaged guilt. Huey Long guilt. George Wallace guilt. KKK and lynching guilt. Rosa Parks to the back of the bus guilt. For Democrats, it is the byproduct of civil rights self-awareness and the post-Lyndon Johnson America which rendered millions of people subordinate. Today their guilt is a scream only they can hear. Still, with all the sordid history of Democrats and race, such hypocritical acceptance should not be surprising. So, I believe their behavior is either explained by a crushing subliminal guilt or a bizarre mutation in their collective DNA

 

Define Trump

I've heard it recently stated that President Trump is a nationalist. Some, in contrast, say he is a patriot. They say nationalist like it's a dirty word. Nationalist-Socialist. Does it ring a bell? But are they mutually exclusive? Or in subtle ways, do they go hand in hand? Is this some sort of name-calling?

 

After years of being old America is the prime-mover for what is wrong with the world,  many citizens find this new attitude refreshing. Trump's critics have had a withering assault on the man since before he took office. It is hard to imagine what might have happened if Obama had gotten the same treatment in his first month is office.

 

Just sayin'

The NFL's Deflated Balls

 

 

 

 

 

Today is the Super Bowl. Ho hum. Does anybody outside of New England and Georgia really care? Do we really think Lady Gaga will pass up the opportunity to make a political statement on the nation's biggest stage? I now where my money is. Viewership is down and if you look at the stands there seem to be a lot of empty seats. So why the decline? Politics. The NFL has lost control of their game and may never get it back. Why? No balls.

Colin Kaepernick decides he is going to take a knee during the anthem. Soon dozens of others are following suit. Instead of saying 'show respect during the anthem or you are benched,' They turn a blind eye and end up giving it tacit approval. Five Dallas police officers are gunned down and the Cowboys were forbidden to honor these fallen men by putting their names on the backs of their helmets by the NFL. Every October teams wear pink for breast cancer. Laudable, I guess but how about purple for pancreatic cancer or brown for colon cancer?  Their audience is simply tired of it.

I wonder if football's best days are behind them. This season I watched nary a game start to finish.

Don't get me started on concussion protocols or ignoring decades of fan loyalty by moving teams to bigger markets that can afford newer stadiums or all the damned commercials. Even the Romans eventually grew bored of the gladiators. Nice run, NFL. If you had any balls you'd fix this.

Pitchers and catchers report any day now. Go Cubs.

Immigrants

Immigrants

I've heard it said that admitting the immigrants/refugees from the chaos in the Middle East is analogous to taking in the Jews escaping Nazi Germany.  This is specious. No serious person can deny the horror both faced. The Jews were being rounded up by oppressors in an organized, systematic effort to exterminate them. The muslims in the Syria and elsewhere are being killed by other muslims. Not because of any prejudice but simply because they are in the way.  The true analog is the Christians being persecuted by the radical Islamists. My heart goes out to all of these victims. Should we let them in? Sure. As long as they promise not to kill us. 

What has happened to us? Has all civil discourse been lost? Can't we have an honest exchange of ideas without spitting on each other or using 'fuck' in every sentence? I think people are so pissed off they can't even think straight. If you want to gauge how the right feels about this, imagine how the left would have felt if, on January 21, 2009, a half million men showed up in Washington in black face...

Life in Pieces

 For anyone who is a student of life and the spectrum of emotions, I suggest the CBS show "Life in Pieces." It is a marvelously crafted set of four short stories (pieces in the musical sense) that describe the triumphs and tragedies of life in the modern age. It never ceases to amaze me how much of life's hubris they can pack into less than thirty minutes (commercial time excluded.) If you haven't given out a shot, try it. You will be generously rewarded.

The Spirit of Christmas

The Spirit of Christmas

This was a terrific Christmas. I was surrounded by my family and friends. Made out well in the gift department. Drank some wine, a little bourbon. I made a big fuss as I always do trying to achieve perfection for my family. That's the way I remembered Christmas growing up. Mom and Dad always made a fuss. Spent more than they could afford for their three boys. 

But every time the gifts were opened and the excitement had settled, my dad would invariably get maudlin. I never understood why. Then one Christmas, when he figured I was old enough to understand he tell me his Christmas story. It was the winter of 1944-45. They would later refer to it as the Battle of the Bulge. He was an infantryman in the 26th Infantry.  It was a desperate battle to relieve Bastogne.

He and two other fellows were placed in a pillbox on a snow-covered hill. Their sergeant told them to hold this position at all costs. Don't let anybody get past here. Cold and scared, it wasn't long before three Germans, cloaked in snow-capes, appeared out of the fog and ran up the hill. The three Americans opened up and quickly killed the enemy soldiers.  The three infantryman ran down the hill and rifled through the bodies looking for personal items as souvenirs. They took wallets, identity tags, Lugers. They were young kids. They returned to their pillbox. 

Dad looked at me, tears in his eyes and said, "And some German mother never knew what happened to her son." He never had a happy Christmas. I never spend a Christmas without thinking of that mother.

Book? What book?

The Weak and The Strong

I have completed a new book, The Weak and the Strong. It is part of my "Bombing" series. It follows the life of Nathan Bedford Forrest Sullivan, 'Sully', as he grows up in Virginia and goes to war. He goes from bombardier to French Resistance operative, saboteur and finally assassin. It is a bit long but fast-paced.  Extremely well-researched. My previous books, Bombing and The Business of Killing, have been independently published on Amazon Kindle and have been very well received.  I have been researching agents and publishing houses. This is a daunting task.  If anybody would like to be a beta reader, let me know. I will email it to you. 

The Pain of Marriage

This past weekend, 7-9-11 to be exact, my daughter, Lindsey Regh Harden joined in matrimony Robert Fabel. It is cliched to say you are not losing a daughter but gaining a son. While this may be true the experience can still be rough on a father. The wedding itself was perfect and my daughter was stunning, only out done by her mother, but deep down inside I feel a loss. My children are drifting further and further from us. This, ulitmately, is good for the species, gene pools grow deeped and more diverse as new combinations are born. Even so, there is still a part of it that hurts. But it is a good kind of pain.

Love Means Never Having to Say You're Sorry

OK, let's move on, folks. Chris, it was a poor judgement in the use of your words. Making such a gaffe doesn't mean you have to apologize. What has it come to? Say something insulting then make it all better by apologizing sincerely? Michelle shows her cahones by not making it all better by saying all is forgiven. I would have liked her even better if she had smiled and said, "Consider the source."

A Memory of My Dad

My favorite war story was one my dad told me. He was with the 26th Infantry Division in Patton's Third Army. My dad's best friend was John Benson who went into the army serving in the Combat Engineers with the First Army. (He claims to have been at the wheel of the first 2 1/2 ton truck onto Omaha Beach but who knows?) They were very close growing up and, living next to each other, were inseperable. They were both a trial and a joy for my dad's mom. She worried terribly about how Benny was making out in the war. To keep her from worrying, my dad told her in every letter he wrote home that he had seen Benny and he was doing fine. He allayed her fears and they both survived the war. In truth, they ran into each other only once, for a few moments in a blown out building near Metz. Their meeting was purely by chance. They did not see each other for the duration. My dad's mom went to her grave never knowing the truth.

I honestly think that my grandmother thought they were in Europe on a camping trip. She died before I got to know her but they told me she was one of the sweetest persons who ever lived. As he recalled the incident, dad said he was told there was a combat engineer unit nearby and started looking around. He found Benny sitting on the second floor staring across the room at a GI eating limberger cheese. They both talked about the smell of that cheese until the day they died.

One of the most hallowed places you could ever visit is the Colleville US Cemetary on the bluff above Omaha Beach. Unknown soldier. How can we ever thank them? It goes to show you what one group of people is willing to do for another. God Bless and keep them in His heart. On this Day of Dayskeep them in your hearts too.

Rough Men

We sleep soundly in our beds at night because rough men stand ready to do violence on our behalf. Churchill

This is on the wall of the Memorial at Coville, France. A few yards from Omaha Beach. Yet another reminded of what one group of people were willing to do for another. Rest in Peace and never be forgotten.

As a surgeon with gray hair, I can say without reservation, as Medicare implodes in 20 years (not next year or the year after) there are really only five steps that can be taken to halt the decline of American health care as we know it.
1. Evidence based, compassionate rationing. Should a bed bound 85 year old patient be given a pacemaker just because we can?
2. Tort reform. I always base things I do and order on the circumstance of trying to explain on the witness stand why I did or didn't do somehting to a jury not of my peers. So far, it's worked. I have not been sued.
3. Get rid of all this paperwork. One chart I just peer-reviewed for a complicated 2 week stay in the hospital was 500 pages long. Standardize all of this so a hospital in Brooklyn is the same as one in Walla Walla.
4. Focus the research so that the next expensive test or therapy is affordable and practical.
5. Incentivize the practice of medicine so it once again becomes a noble profession and it's doctor-patient not doctor-client...

Bombing

Some very favorable reviews for the novel. Thank you for all the kind words. The next one, The Business of Killing, is in the works and should be ready by the fall. Philip Roth said, The idea is to turn flesh and blood into literary charcters and literary characters into flesh and blood. Nobody told me it would be this much fun, though. Wes

Have a healthy day

I just thought you should know:

An Indianapolis doctor's letter to Sen. Bayh about the Bill (Note: Dr. Stephen E. Frazer, MD practices as an anesthesiologist in Indianapolis, IN ) Here is a letter I sent to Senator Bayh.. Feel free to copy it and send it around to all other representatives. -- Stephen Fraser Senator Bayh, As a practicing physician I have major concerns with the health care bill before Congress. I actually have read the bill and am shocked by the brazenness of the government's proposed involvement in the patient-physician relationship. The very idea that the government will dictate and ration patient care is dangerous and certainly not helpful in designing a health care system that works for all. Every physician I work with agrees that we need to fix our health care system, but the proposed bills currently making their way through congress will be a disaster if passed. I ask you respectfully and as a patriotic American to look at the following troubling lines that I have read in the bill. You cannot possibly believe that these proposals are in the best interests of the country and our fellow citizens. Page 22 of the HC Bill: Mandates that the Govt will audit books of all employers that self-insure!!Page 30 Sec 123 of HC bill: THERE WILL BE A GOVT COMMITTEE that decides what treatments/benefits you get.Page 29 lines 4-16 in the HC bill: YOUR HEALTH CARE IS RATIONED!!! Page 42 of HC Bill: The Health Choices Commissioner will choose your HC benefits for you. You have no choice!Page 50 Section 152 in HC bill: HC will be provided to ALL non-US citizens, illegal or otherwise. Page 58 HC Bill: Govt will have real-time access to individuals' finances & a 'National ID Health card' will be issued! (Papers please!) Page 59 HC Bill lines 21-24: Govt will have direct access to your bank accounts for elective funds transfer. (Time for more cash and carry) Page 65 Sec 164: Is a payoff subsidized plan for retirees and their families in unions & community organizations: (ACORN).Page 84 Sec 203 HC bill: Govt mandates ALL benefit packages for private HC plans in the 'Exchange.' Page 85 Line 7 HC Bill: Specifications of Benefit Levels for Plans -- The Govt will ration your health care! Page 91 Lines 4-7 HC Bill: Govt mandates linguistic appropriate services. (Translation: illegal aliens.) Page 95 HC Bill Lines 8-18: The Govt will use groups (i.e. ACORN & Americorps to sign up individuals for Govt HC plan.Page 85 Line 7 HC Bill: Specifications of Benefit Levels for Plans. (AARP members - your health care WILL be rationed!) Page 102 Lines 12-18 HC Bill: Medicaid eligible individuals will be automatically enrolled in Medicaid. (No choice.)Page 12 4 lines 24-25 HC: No company can sue GOVT on price fixing. No "judicial review" against Govt monopoly.Page 127 Lines 1-16 HC Bill: Doctors/ American Medical Association - The Govt will tell YOU what salary you can make.Page 145 Line 15-17: An Employer MUST auto-enroll employees into public option plan. (NO choice!)Page 126 Lines 22-25: Employers MUST pay for HC for part-time employees ANDtheir families. (Employees shouldn't get excited about this as employers will be forced to reduce its work force, benefits, and wages/salaries to cover such a huge expense.)Page 149 Lines 16-24: ANY Employer with payroll 401k & above who does not provide public option will pay 8% tax on all payroll! (See the last comment in parenthesis.) Page 150 Lines 9-13: A business with payroll between $251K & $401K who doesn't provide public option will pay 2-6% tax on all payroll. Page 167 Lines 18-23: ANY individual who doesn't have acceptable HC according to Govt will be taxed 2.5% of income.Page 170 Lines 1-3 HC Bill: Any NONRESIDENT Alien is exempt from individual taxes. (Americans will pay.) (Like always)Page 195 HC Bill: Officers & employees of the GOVT HC Admin.. will have access to ALL Americans' finances and personal records. (I guess so they can 'deduct' their fees) Page 203 Line 14-15 HC: "The tax imposed under this section shall not be treated as tax." (Yes, it really says that!) ( a 'fee' instead) Page 239 Line 14-24 HC Bill: Govt will reduce physician services for Medicaid Seniors. (Low-income and the poor are affected.) Page 241 Line 6-8 HC Bill: Doctors: It doesn't matter what specialty you have trained yourself in -- you will all be paid the same! (Just TRY to tell me that's not Socialism!)Page 253 Line 10-18: The Govt sets the value of a doctor's time, profession, judgment, etc. (Literally-- the value of humans.)Page 265 Sec 1131: The Govt mandates and controls productivity for "private" HC industries. Page 268 Sec 1141: The federal Govt regulates the rental and purchase of power driven wheelchairs. Page 272 SEC. 1145: TREATMENT OF CERTAIN CANCER HOSPITALS - Cancer patients - welcome to rationing! Page 280 Sec 1151: The Govt will penalize hospitals for whatever the Govt deems preventable (i.e...re-admissions).Page 298 Lines 9-11: Doctors: If you treat a patient during initial admission that results in a re-admission -- the Govt will penalize you. Page 317 L 13-20: PROHIBITION on ownership/investment. (The Govt tells doctors what and how much they can own!) Page 317-318 lines 21-25, 1-3: PROHIBITION on expansion. (The Govt is mandating that hospitals cannot expand.) Page 321 2-13: Hospitals have the opportunity to apply for exception BUT community input is required. (Can you say ACORN?) Page 335 L 16-25 Pg 336-339: The Govt mandates establishment of=2 outcome-based measures. (HC the way they want -- rationing.) Page 341 Lines 3-9: The Govt has authority to disqualify Medicare Advance Plans, HMOs, etc. (Forcing people into the Govt plan) Page 354 Sec 1177: The Govt will RESTRICT enrollment of 'special needs people!' Unbelievable! Page 379 Sec 1191: The Govt creates more bureaucracy via a "Tele-Health Advisory Committee." (Can you say HC by phone?) Page 425 Lines 4-12: The Govt mandates "Advance-Care Planning Consult." (Think senior citizens end-of-life patients.) Page 425 Lines 17-19: The Govt will instruct and consult regarding living wills, durable powers of attorney, etc. (And it's mandatory!) Page 425 Lines 22-25, 426 Lines 1-3: The Govt provides an "approved" list of end-of-life resources; guiding you in death. (Also called 'assisted suicide.')(Sounds like Soylent Green to me.) Page 427 Lines 15-24: The Govt mandates a program for orders on "end-of-life." (The Govt has a say in how your life ends!) Page 429 Lines 1-9: An "advanced-care planning consultant" will be used frequently as a patient's health deteriorates. Page 429 Lines 10-12: An "advanced care consultation" may include an ORDER for end-of-life plans.. (AN ORDER TO DIE FROM THE GOVERNMENT?!?) Page 429 Lines 13-25: The GOVT will specify which doctors can write an end-of-life order.. (I wouldn't want to stand before God after getting paid for THAT job!) Page 430 Lines 11-15: The Govt will decide what level of treatment you will have at end-of-life! (Again -- no choice!) Page 469: Community-Based Home Medical Services = Non-Profit Organizations. (Hello? ACORN Medical Services here!?!) Page 489 Sec 1308: The Govt will cover marriage and family therapy. (Which means Govt will insert itself into your marriage even.) Page 494-498: Govt will cover Mental Health Services including defining, creating, and rationing those services. Senator, I guarantee that I personally will do everything possible to inform patients and my fellow physicians about the dangers of the proposed bills you and your colleagues are debating. Furthermore, if you vote for a bill that enforces socialized medicine on the country and destroys the doctor-patient relationship, I will do everything in my power to make sure you lose your job in the next election. Respectfully, Stephen E. Fraser, MD