Calgon, Take me Away; Hashtag, #Life Sucks!

As a Baby Boomer I have been very challenged these days in dealing with the whining and griping of thousands of groups with some central theme to complain about.  This post is just my way of getting things off my chest.  In the good ol' days it was drawing a warm bath and allowing Calgon to "take you away" - kids ask your parents what that means.  It was a clean way of escaping and is not a slang term for pot or whatever the hell used today to escape your woes.  But if I were to jump in the tub with every thing I hear or read these days my skin would look like a prune.

Although I am in no way politically savvy, some of the comments I do have are directed at minimum wage and healthcare.  And God knows I am not a saint, but some of my comments will be directed at pray and Christmas.  And though I have never smoked pot, I do consider myself quite educated on the topic of drugs and alcohol and plan to address that as well.

Now to have the guts to address my concerns on paper, you would think I would need a "backbone" to be prepared for the onslaught of dissenters.  Not really.  I learned from my parents, a Dad who fought in WW II and a Mom who taught me to dream big, that America was built and defended by those who believed that, if I worked hard, and if I kept the Faith, there was no limit as to what I could accomplish. They were right.  So, as an American, I am proud to keep company with dissenters.  We are entitled to our opinions and we have the right to practice our beliefs.  But in doing so, I have always maintained the belief that it was fine to hold to your convictions as long as no one else was harmed.

Well, well, well.  Today is the Super Bowl and there will be those opposing prayer before the game.  What goes on in the locker room is #none of your business.  And what about "God Bless America"?  Well it's usually sung during the 7th inning at baseball games, but Gee, I don't know.  Despite the phonebook listing Christian churches 200:1 over other places of worship per Andy Rooney, the voice of those offended by our practice of prayer are rising louder and louder.  I just don't get it.  If you are of another faith do you honestly think that we are saying this to offend you?  You know, you have every opportunity, since this is America, a melting pot, the "Home of the Free" to insert whatever you like.  And if you are an atheist, then #turn up your headphones.  You see, there are alternatives for everyone. It's not forced down your throat and your lawyers should be advising you of that and not taking your money.  And it's called a #Christmas tree, people.

Speaking of money,  I am miffed about all of this talk regarding minimum wage.  I should just sum it  up in one sentence by stating that those soldiers putting themselves on the line for my safety and freedom are earning less money  than those throwing a burger on a bun for my appetite.  But I have to say more.

I started out working for 50 cents an hour as a library page in my hometown of Tarentum, Pa.  When I received my first paycheck for the month of $32.00, I tripped several times walking home as I kept glancing at that big check.  My parents made me put it in a savings account.  I was in 9th grade.  By the time I graduated, I was able to buy my own typewriter for Thiel College.

It wasn't about the money.  It was about grooming myself to learn the basics in interacting with others.  Working enabled me to take small paychecks and plan for my future.  It was the principles of which everyone around me abided by and it worked.  How can entry jobs with greater minimum wage contribute to the betterment of society?  I know that if I were making more money, the cost of returning an overdue book would have been past on to the book borrower to a point where they could buy the book cheaper.  What would have happened?  No one would have returned the book. #empty shelves.  I would imagine something similar happening to fast food prices.  #I pay what for French Fries?

As a doctor, I am concerned that I have lost some of my favorite patients.  When I returned to the community to work in a Mental Health Center some of my clients chose to follow me.  They had private insurance and not Medicaid or Medicare.  However, changes occurred in their coverage and they could no longer afford to see me.  They could pay out of pocket but that would have been more disastrous.  Thus, they were forced to see a new Psychiatrist elsewhere.  And this is happening to so many of my colleagues.  One had to leave Aetna because of the new demands.  I am now termed a provided, not a doctor.  Reinbursement by Medicaid and Medicare is dwindling.  I love my profession. It was so much better when I did not have government and companies dictating to me what is best for me, the provider, and my now neglected patient.  #Where did you go to Med School?

Finally, I am sick and tired of all the talk about drug and alcohol abuse.  It's all talk.  I see no action and here is why.   When my son died of a heroin overdose I was willing to expose my family and our secrets to enable the Plain Dealer to do a series of 7 articles on "Andy's Last Secret".  It was to emphasize that heroin is in the suburbs as much or more than the inner city.   My husband and children opened ourselves to the community to speak to the known schools were the drug dealer was actively selling, 11 in all, 4 of which were private.  We were invited by one of the private schools and included in a forum at one of the public schools.  The rest ignored our requests.  I even went to Columbus to implore the Governor to consider passing a felony murder law that would hold drug dealers accountable for murder if in the act of selling illegal drug, a death resulted.  Other states have this law in place.  I got nowhere.

Am I angry?  #You bet I am.  There was a City Forum this past week that addressed the same topic that Joanna Connors of the Plain Dealer did in 2005.  Ohio ranks 11th in the nation of heroin deaths per year.  My CEO was kind enough to invite me.  I was disappointed not to have been informed of this by the moderator.  As a grieving mother for 10 years, as an expert on the topic, as a person who publicly speaks to parents and teens about red flags, as a Psychiatrist, as a person who has attempted to change the law in Ohio so that 10 years later we would not be ranked 11th, I would like to think that my opinion counts.  Thank you, Cleveland City Forum for making us all aware of an existing problem that county prosecutors and government have chosen to ignore.  #Now What?  I suggest #Campbell for Ohio Congress.  I want the law passed so that drug dealers will think twice before killing another teen.  Hell, if I did that as a doctor I would be behind bars. #What's wrong with this picture?

Calgon does't take it away anymore.  And I don't have to look like a prune to voice my opinion.  Mom and Dad taught me that its my 1st Amendment right.  And I guess if others can do it, so can I.