(no subject)

[conuly]

In mapping eclipses, world's first computer maybe also told fortunes

Ancient Irish musical history found in modern India

This isn’t hype: Canadian doctors just reversed severe MS using stem cells

In shocking twist, senators scrutinize cable companies instead of FCC

Doctors' Hand Hygiene Plummets Unless They Know They're Being Watched, Study Finds

United States of Paranoia: They See Gangs of Stalkers

U.S. prison inmate can sue over removal of marbles from penis

New York City tries to end scourge of plastic bags. New York state says, “Nope.”

DEA Wants Inside Your Medical Records to Fight the War on Drugs

It’s not a Fourth Amendment search if a cop swipes your credit card, court finds

Vitamin Deficiencies May Prompt Chronic Migraines

'At the limit,' Mexico buckles under migrant surge to U.S.

This 9-Year-Old Girl Uses Her Stuffed Animal to Learn How to Save People From Heroin Overdoses

How Far Is Europe Swinging to the Right?

Damascus camp residents run deadly gauntlet to fetch aid

Bangladesh detains 1,600 in drive against Islamist radicals

How the effects of climate change in one place can radiate all over the world

Hope lost in Greece, some Syrians pay smugglers to get home

U.N. convoys bring food to besieged Syrian towns of Daraya, Douma

In Montana, neighbors at odds over refugees

Explaining the Broader Role Approved by President Obama for the US Military in Afghanistan

Taliban gains in Afghanistan threaten costly U.S. reconstruction effort

Comments

[alatefeline]

Re: marbles. That person is completely right in suing. In my book, the human right to bodily integrity include the right to body modification and the right to say no (as an adult) to medical procedures and the right not to have people forcibly touch your bits. Plus they actually damaged his body even from their anti-mod perspective on health. Prison systems are problematic as anything anyway, but this is one more egregious example and of course it will probably be spun in a way that completely disrespects or ignores the basic issues.

Re: astronomical calculator. That gizmo is amazing!

Re: MS treatment with stem cells. The odds aren’t wonderful, with only some people getting better with some severe side effects during and after the treatment and one person dying, but the positive effects are certainly interesting. It seems like this is a promising area for further research. But the phrase “standard of care” makes me nervous. The medical establishment is generally terrible at taking the differences between patients, their knowledge of their own condition, and their ability to make decisions *if* they have adequate information and support into account. Some people might not want this treatment. Some people might want it even if it wasn’t recommended in their case. And given the price tag and the risks, it seems likely that there will be tremendous resistance to letting people make their own mindful choices about it.

[conuly]

That person is completely right in suing

Oh, absolutely. Even if they had some compelling reason to operate against his consent - and I can't think of any - apparently the guards have made comments about it? So the other inmates have made comments about it? That is so fucked up and wrong, I don't even know where to start. Medical privacy doesn't go away just because you're locked up.