Another Political Massacre

Years ago, I remember Nixon's Saturday Night Massacre. More recently, but still a while ago, I remember meeting the child of one of those fired that night. The daughter recalls her life being disrupted, from being happy in school, to suddenly moving across the country in ignominy. Her parents were able to rebuild, and her father did again serve in government. However, the daughter felt that the experience had influenced her politics and choice of career. Less than a year a year later, Nixon resigned. (My experiences at the time of Nixon's resignation are discussed in another post--All Politics is Personal.)

Recently, the United States has gone through another Impeachment, this time with a brief trial with preordained acquittal. And, shortly after the Senate returned the vote, the last few witnesses were forced out of their positions in apparent retribution for their testimony. The brother of LTC Alexander Vindman, LTC Yevgeny Vindman was also forced to leave the White House, though both continue to serve in other capacities (https://www.npr.org/2020/02/07/803904417/lt-col-alexander-vindman-escorted-out-of-the-white-house-his-lawyer-says).

Then four Justice Department lawyers resigned rather than agree to reduced sentencing recommendations for sentencing of Roger Stone (https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/justice-dept-to-reduce-sentencing-recommendation-for-trump-associate-roger-stone-official-says-after-president-calls-it-unfair/2020/02/11/ad81fd36-4cf0-11ea-bf44-f5043eb3918a_story.html).

This time, it seems that the "lesson" learned was not what Senator Susan Collins says she hoped had been learned because of the Impeachment. It is useful to compare Clinton's contriteness on acquittal to Trump's celebration (https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/following-impeachment-acquittal-trump-celebrates-no-regrets-n1132146). Perhaps other Senators thought there would be a moderation of behavior, like Senator Collins. Instead, it seems they have granted Carte Blanche to a more imperious President.

I don't know what the future holds, but my reading of the past concerns me.

Becoming a Satellite

As I listen to the impeachment hearings, the "fictional narrative" described by Dr. Fiona Hill as a Russian disinformation campaign makes me wonder if we are living through a period like the expansion of the Soviet sphere of influence after WWII.
We have a political party that seems to regard loyalty to party as more important than loyalty to country. This party is much like that described by George Orwell in 1984, "The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command."
I wonder and worry what this new frontier will hold if the president can do whatever he wants, and his followers support him. 

Career service

Fiona Hill was the Russian director at the National Security Council. Excepts of the transcript of her testimony were reported by Rachel Maddow on November 8, 2019. For her willingness to testify before Congress, she has been subject to threats, as she reported Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch was, who was even threatened during her public testimony (https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/11/why-trump-attacked-marie-yovanovitch/602134/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=edit-promo&utm_term=2019-11-16T14%3A40%3A15&utm_campaign=the-atlantic&fbclid=IwAR1xQ_sdZxgYdqtOj5kcEKEJs5G-j7EGW05SKbx_mU6ZNJ41ZbP_EDGhi68). Similarly, Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, the Ukraine expert at the NSC has been publicly attacked for his Ukrainian Jewish background. All of these professionals are career public servants. Civil servants, like the military, are usually underpaid for their skills and expertise (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/14/opinion/taylor-kent-impeachment-hearings.html?fbclid=IwAR1boEXJKEvDfDI43yGEzI4OyQcyyFd2WYY_mYzU_vNnl8Q4_Rg3Q30DjFk). They work for the good of society and their country.

While I don't recall meeting Marie Yovanovitch in Kyrgyzstan, I may well have. She was ambassador there from November, 2004 to February, 2008 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Yovanovitch). I made two trips to Kyrgyzstan in 2006 and 2007. I recall a fund-raising reception for Kyrgyz orphans sponsored jointly by the American and German embassies. Since I was there while in the process of two of these orphans, it made sense to attend the reception and donate to the cause. I recall that all the embassy staff I met both at the reception and the embassy there were very professional. They made the adoption process flow smoothly. This professionalism has been true at all the embassies I have visited over the years.

I can vouch for this, not only from the articles, but also growing up the child of two civil servants. Many other relatives also served, either in civil service or the military. They tend not to be partisan, and cannot express publicly their political opinions. These individuals often can make more outside of government, as was certainly the case for my parents. Yet, they chose public service, and impressed that ideal on me (though I have mostly worked in county hospitals). 

The individuals who are being called to testify are demonstrating their love of country and loyalty despite the threats they must face for doing so. They have sworn loyalty to the Constitution and to defend the nation "against all enemies, foreign and domestic." They are continuing to do so.

Watergate Redux

A few years ago, I wrote the blog, "All Politics is Personal," about Watergate and Nixon's resignation on August 8, 1974. As I listen to the news, I am reminded about the Watergate investigation.

The information being presented begins with a phone call with a quid pro quo offer to a foreign country, namely Ukraine. There is a suggestion that there was an earlier deal with Ukraine in 2017 (https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/trump-may-have-worked-a-previous-ukraine-quid-pro-quo-wapo-72641605878?cid=sm_npd_ms_fb_ma&fbclid=IwAR0wpqbJeea3-H0yFJ75kXh0Ij4AXYTACqFxJOMwprp_EbAy5IRsOh2lDyc). The deafening silence about the earlier deal may have led some to think that this was "business as usual." No wonder these individuals are now puzzled by the attention this time.

Another concerning development is the defense of blaming the investigators, again seeking help from abroad (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-impeachment-inquiry-latest-russia-mueller-ukraine-zelensky-a9181641.html). Another defense is the switching of targets, "whataboutism." This was associated with Soviet/Russian propaganda (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism). Yet, while I am no lawyer, I doubt that the defense of someone else committing a crime would be adequate. This seems more a technique of distraction, assuming the public will not notice what the magician is actually doing.

Meanwhile, Time describes "abuse of power" in the behavior of the President (https://time.com/5714064/trump-abuse-of-power-women/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=editorial&utm_term=ideas_&linkId=76320528&fbclid=IwAR1S9iJJ7Qe3jI8PwaLb2W03pQ03Gr9Y2i9B0n-eOdDIidRzcgHVOfn5hgg). They use the example of the pattern of abuse beginning in relationships with women, but then extending to others.

As I watch this unfolding, I am reminded of Nixon and Watergate. Nixon was a lawyer, and so had some knowledge of, and presumably respect for the Constitution. Perhaps that is why he chose to resign once it was clear that he would otherwise be impeached. This time, I am not sure how things will unfold. I hope that we are able to hold the country together.

“Who knows only his own generation remains always a child”

The Warsaw Uprising ended October 2, 1944, after starting on August 1 that year. Despite being undersupplied, Poles fought to end the Nazi occupation which had existed for 5 years. The Red Army was approaching and the Poles wanted to evict the Germans from their capital (https://www.britannica.com/event/Warsaw-Uprising).

The Germans began evacuating the city, expecting to lose it to the Poles and Soviets. The Poles expected support from the Soviets, who were in the alliance against the Nazis. But, the Soviets stopped across the Vistula River and waited (https://www.britannica.com/event/Warsaw-Uprising). The Polish troops in the Soviet army wanted to help their compatriots, but Stalin refused, even recalling the general in charge of the Polish troops under Soviet command, Zygmunt Berling. As the Germans realized that the Soviets would not aid the Poles, they decided to squash the Uprising.

Overall, the Germans killed 16,000 members of the Polish resistance and 150-200,000 civilians during the Uprising. Ten thousand civilians were killed on August 5 alone.

The Poles had the largest underground in occupied Europe, plus troops fighting under British and Soviet command, many of whom had been imprisoned by the Soviets at the start of the war under the terms of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. In all, Poles were the fourth largest “nation” fighting against the Axis in Europe. I have nation in quotes here since Poland ceased to exist after the invasions by Germany and the Soviet Union in 1939.

This October, we are seeing another “nation” being slaughtered. This time, again, they are being sacrificed by an ally. They have fought with this ally for many years, and soldiers on came to trust each other. Turkey invaded northern Syria where many Kurds live, an outcome expected by most after the US withdrawal (https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/unswayed-by-top-advisers-trump-doubles-down-on-decision-to-withdraw-troops/2019/10/13/3305b884-edfc-11e9-b2da-606ba1ef30e3_story.html).

American military officers and special forces troops report being saddened by the decision to abandon Kurdish allies, with whom they had fought for years against ISIS. In another example of the brutality of this invasion, Kurds are being executed by Turkish troops after being abandoned by the US, while Turkish troops film themselves (https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/turkish-led-forces-film-themselves-executing-a-kurdish-captive-in-syria/2019/10/13/22e11198-ed9c-11e9-89eb-ec56cd414732_story.html). This behavior is reminiscent of the executions filmed by ISIS, whom the American-Kurdish alliance had previously fought. The Turks seem to be trying to push Americans further from the border, so there will be fewer witnesses to their actions against the Kurds (https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2019/10/12/us-forces-say-turkey-was-deliberately-bracketing-american-forces-with-artillery-fire-syria/?fbclid=IwAR28p0rpfRbz0ZYnuC0XhHvdLhV6EFr3dfkCZgt9VsXDpJy7vCIoqn6QQMQ).

As an American, I am ashamed of this abandonment of the Kurds, just as my parents were ashamed of the abandonment of the Poles during and after WWII. Such abandonment can turn people against us, as others have in the past. Actions such as this abandonment will result in blow-back, maybe from the Kurds, more likely from the rebuilding of ISIS from those who escaped from the Kurds. T he idea of the “Ugly American” is not without cause.

The Norlin Library at the University of Colorado is named for Dr. George Norlin (https://www.colorado.edu/libraries/about/history/george-norlin). He gave speeches rebuffing the Scopes “monkey” trial and refused to fire Catholic and Jewish faculty on the request of the governor of Colorado. After spending time in Berlin in 1933, he wrote and spoke about the dangers of Nazism and anti-Semitism. An inscription for over the west entrance of the library reads “Who knows only his own generation remains always a child.”

1619

1619 was a momentous year in the Jamestown colony. It marks both the first labor strike in English North America and the introduction of African slaves to the colony.

Polish craftsmen first came to Jamestown in 1608, brought by John Smith who had earlier become aware of their skills. In 1619, the colony held its first election, but denied suffrage to the Poles because they were not Englishmen, even though they were hired workers (Pula). The Poles refused to work and called a strike unless they were given the right to vote, and the decision was reversed, and the Polish workers were considered free and enfranchised (Pula). The date of the strike is uncertain, but the representative assembly convened on June 30, 1619 (Crews), so the election was likely in the Spring.

On August 20, 1619, a Dutch ship, the White Lion, arrived in Jamestown carrying "20 and odd" Africans (NYT). While it is not clear what the initial status of the Africans was, unlike European indentured servants, logs did not list an end date for their indenture (Encyclopedia.com).  By 1640, an African was ordered to "serve his said master...for the time of his natural life" (Encyclopedia.com) for running away, while 2 white servants who ran away with him had their indenture extended by one year (NYT). Race based slavery then became the norm across the American colonies by the mid-17th century (Wood).

While the connection between the strike and the start of race based slavery is unclear, it seems likely that the first labor strike might have caused landowners to look for options so they wouldn't be at risk of future work stoppages from indentured servants or even hired workers such as the Poles of Jamestown. The court decision of 1640 served to separate workers' status on the basis of race, hence making it unlikely that Black and white workers would work together to improve their status after that point, even though the escape involved workers of both races who might have seen their fates as similar before that point.

We must learn from the past. Workers have more in common with each other than with the wealthy, or as we now call them the 1%. The wealthy want to control the rest of us. Yet, working together, we can be powerful, and improve our lives.


References

Crews, Ed, "Voting in Early America." CW JOURNAL SPRING 2007. https://www.history.org/foundation/journal/spring07/elections.cfmenclyclopedia.com, "AFRICANS ARRIVE IN VIRGINIA, 1619." https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/africans-arrive-virginia-1619

NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE, "THE 1619 PROJECT." NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE, 2019. https://timesevents.nytimes.com/1619NYC

PULA, JAMES S. "FACT VS. FICTION: WHAT DO WE REALLY KNOW ABOUT THE POLISH PRESENCE IN EARLY JAMESTOWN?" The Polish Review 53, no. 4 (2008): 477-93. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25779776.

WOOD, PETER H. "THE BIRTH OF RACE BASED SLAVERY: BY THE 17TH CENTURY, AMERICA'S SLAVE ECONOMY HAD ELIMINATED THE OBSTACLE OF MORALITY." SLATE May 19, 2015. http://www.slate.com/articles/life/the_history_of_american_slavery/2015/05/why_america_adopted_race_based_slavery.html

No Man is an Island

As another hurricane has hit Texas causing flooding and loss of life, I think it is important to look at how we, as a society, treat the less fortunate.  Texas declined the medicaid expansion of the Affordable Care Act, and so its citizens are chronically at risk. This morning I read a review by Danielle Ofri, MD, of the book, "No Apparent Distress," by Rachel Pearson, MD (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/25/books/review/rachel-pearson-no-apparent-distress.html?_r=1).  In it, Dr. Pearson's stories about those who fall through the cracks are described.

I have spent most of my career working in "safety net" hospitals. Yet, even here, there are requirements for copayment. In the case of scheduled surgeries, copayment may be required in advance. Sometimes, this may be more than $2000. Clearly, a fee this high might cause a patient to question if they should wait. And many do. Sometimes, the disease will progress, and be more costly to treat. But, this usually affects primarily the patient and their family. And, often the taxpayer.

Medical diseases like diabetes and hypertension can also be far more costly if treatment is delayed. A common medication for hypertension costs less than $10 per month, yet a hypertensive brain hemorrhage may require a week in ICU at over $2000/day, followed by weeks of rehabilitation, and perhaps never returning to the pre-hemorrhage level of functioning. And, at the time of the hemorrhage, care is mandated by EMTALA (the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act). So, again, we must all bear the increased costs of delaying care. While this is an unfunded mandate, doctors and hospitals must either recoup the costs or decide to go out of business, so they don't need to provide the care. But, closing Emergency Rooms affects anyone who needs one. So, this may affect all of us.

Infectious diseases pose even more of a threat to all of society. When I was a medical student, many of the homeless had been exposed to a non-toxin producing variant of diphtheria. Thus, if the typical toxin producing variant developed in the area, they and those who had received the DPT vaccine (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DPT_vaccine) would be best protected. Since a booster is recommended every 10 years, many healthy adults would be unprotected simply because they didn't keep up with revaccination. But, this is just theoretical.

About 20 year ago, I took care of a toddler who had tuberculous meningitis. He was neurologically devastated by it. His infection was traced to a daycare provider with a chronic cough. This worker couldn't afford to take time off to spend at least half a day at a public clinic to have the cough checked out, so continued to work with children, who are the most likely to be devastated by tuberculosis. And, yet, how many of us pay for childcare? And, do we always check on the workers? Since these workers often are low paid, many are immigrants. 

Cysticercosis is another disease that may spread from the less fortunate. It is a pork tapeworm often encountered in third world countries. But, humans can have both gut and tissue, such as brain or eye, involvement. The gut involvement is caused by eating infected meat. The tissue involvement is caused by eating infected feces. Yet, pay for both agricultural workers and food service workers is low, so many are immigrants. In the field, workers may have no toilet facilities or bathroom breaks. Food service workers may also not have optimal hygiene. Health education is scant for such occupations with low pay and frequent turnover. Testing and treatment is rare. So, such workers may not only have tissue involvement, but, also gut involvement. So, all of us are at risk. In 1992, several Orthodox Jews were reported to have cysticercosis (http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM199209033271004#t=article). 

We do not exist as islands. We interact with other people. We may eat meals prepared by others. Our children may be cared for by others. The most affluent may be able to have their domestic help tested and treated for various infectious diseases. Less affluent people likely can't insist on this. But, most of us, at least occasionally, eat food grown and prepared by others. So, if the least fortunate can't afford care, the more fortunate may also suffer. It is not only ethical for a society to help the less fortunate; it is also beneficial for the more fortunate.