the ladybug and the lion

The Butcher of Bega.

A story ran widely in New Zealand and Australian papers today about an obstetrician, Graeme Reeves, who had a habit of cutting off extra body parts when performing surgery, not to mention sexually harassing his patients.  The article in the New Zealand Herald is probably the creepiest new story I have every read.  In it part of Carolyn Dewaegeneire's story is detailed:

    "As she was slipping under a general anaesthetic for an operation to remove a lesion from her labia, she said Reeves whispered in her ear.

    'As he put the mask over my face, to send me into unconsciousness, he leaned right over me - and I'll never forget this to my dying day - and said `I'm going to take your clitoris too'.'

    All her external genitalia were removed in the operation."

And as a story in the Daily Mail put it: "After the mutilation he had stitched her up like a zipped purse."

It gives me the chills. 

I know I'm going to be doing some research on my next lady parts doctor.  Apparently, Reeves had been ordered to stop practicing as an obstetrician in Australia after he was accused of sexual assault, but then ran away to Bega, New South Wales where they were too desperate for doctors to do a full background check.  Which makes me think that this sort of information about doctors (like if they were banned from practicing) should be public, and easy to find.  Maybe they are public, I don't actually know.  But a quick search of both the New South Wales and the West and South Australian Medical Boards websites revealed nothing.

Although, I'd almost bet someone money that in five years time there will be a movie released titled: Graeme Reeves, The Butcher of Bega.  Someone has got to profit on people who engage in activities too terrible to even imagine.

Organizing Organization.

I met my first professional organizer today.  She was tall, pretty, and knew everything you needed to know about hanging folders and file systems.  It was impressive, actually.  What with how your field of vision should be clear so you can focus on the task at hand, and how to handle seven years of filed business related documents.  It was genuinely good advice.  It's just, well, I guess even advice comes at a price.

I'm new to the working world, so the idea that people get paid for tasks like organizing still makes me scratch my head and wonder what else out there I could possibly get paid to do.  I mean, seriously, organizing?  Just the thought of paying someone else to organize my stuff makes me more vigilant about taking care of it myself.  Cleaning I can definitely see leaving up to someone else, but the title Organizer has a much more authoritative ring to it than Cleaner.  And from what I can tell (I didn't hire this organizer, only met her) organizing pays a lot more.  Although thankfully, I'm organized enough to get by on my own.

Flamenco Performance

My flamenco teacher, Celina Zambon, is putting on a show (that's her in the picture).  It should be a great performance featuring singer Jesus Montoya, who I haven't seen perform but have heard is amazing, and dancer Richard Chavez.  It's a bit on the pricey side, but this is not something Celina is expecting to make money from.  The purpose of it is to showcase her, Chavez's, and Montoya's favorite material that they wouldn't otherwise be able to perform (hence why it's going to be an awesome performance).  But they do have to rent out the space and pay the musicians.  I'm not sure what specific types of dances they'll be performing, but I'm definitely going to do my best to go.

As Biased As They Come.

I'm starting to feel like this primary is turning into a war between two of our nation's biggest newspapers, and I don't like it.  A few months ago I felt like I could get adequate news by reading either the New York Times or the LA Times, but now I definitely feel a need to read both in order to get the entire picture.  The LA Times has had a pro-Barack, anti-Clinton feel to it that peaked with their endorsement, but hasn't abated.  On the other side, the New York Times just called Obama supporters a "cult of personality".  I happen to agree with some of their thoughts on the matter, but cult is a little harsh, especially considering some people don't even use that word with regard to Scientology. 

I think I might be becoming a Post reader.  It's just that old habits are so hard to overcome.

One Last Thought.

If the senator that wins the Democratic nomination gets more delegates, but not the popular vote, I'm going to be extremely annoyed.  And that honestly goes for whoever wins it. 

Time To Laugh.

Something Awful endorsed Hillary today (or Obama, the web address leaves me unsure, but I don't really care either way).  Obviously, their endorsement means nothing, especially since it's mainly tongue in cheek, but their reasoning (or rather playful fun) does bring up a good point: that emotions run wild when it comes to politics and sometimes it's a good idea to take a step back and laugh.  Over the course of this campaign I've watched myself and others become hugely invested in their chosen candidate.  And as I researched the candidates, and came up with specific reasons why who I think should win should win, it became hard to understand why people didn't see things the same way.  Sure, it's great to have political dialog, but some of the conversations I participated in took on a hostile tone.  Probably because it's hard to be really listen when you think you know the right way to fix something.  But, sometimes it's easy to forget that this country will survive whoever gets the nomination, and that it's important to respect who the "people" choose.  (Unfortunately the people aren't always allowed to choose, but that's a separate issue.)  The outcome of elections can have a very tangible effect, making it even easier to get caught up in certain issues.  But when, in an effort to make others see things a certain way, people start demonizing the other side, the dialog just becomes bitter and unconstructive.  We've already gotten annoyed at the candidates for bashing each other, but that standard is just as applicable to the average person.  And probably most pertinent to those that truly believe in change.

A Definition Of Change.

An article in the New York Times today details Obama's work on nuclear legislation.  In short, he introduced some legislation in the Illinois senate that was meant to force companies to report any radioactive leaks that occurred, but when he was met with resistance from the companies and republicans he changed the legislation to simply strongly encourage they report the leaks.  I guess that's bipartisanship, but is it change?  One of the companies, Exelon, has now become one of the biggest contributers to his campaign.  To me, that just sounds like more of the same.  So it goes.

Did You Hear The One About The Dead Baby?

My friend, and fellow UCLA grad, just debuted Dead Baby Songs on myspace.  Considering all the crap out there, whether on myspace or national radio, these are definitely worth a listen.  Although, think twice if you're easily offended or have a queasy stomach.  But the lyrics are hilarious, the music well written, and the entire package well produced.  Here's a teaser: "With my pitchfork, I'm gonna load dead babies in my pick up truck, pick up truck, pick up truck." 

And it's even better in context.