Curmudgeonocracy 2—Socialism

The Basics; Social Welfare in Europe and Scandinavia

“Hey, Curmudge, cramming a topic this big into a brief blog posting requires us to be frugal with examples and also to assume that the reader possesses some knowledge of the subject.”

“Right, Julie, and we’ll also assume that the reader will Google any issue for which he finds our hyperlinks to be insufficient.  And further, we’ll defer health care under socialism until later because we discussed Health Care Elsewhere two years ago.”

“I know the basics, Old Guy.  In a socialist economy, there are no private corporations.  All factories and companies belong to the state, and all workers are state employees.  This system so restricts personal freedom that a true socialist country will tend to have a totalitarian government.”

“The effect on one’s freedom under capitalism vs. socialism has been described by Milton Friedman (1).  ‘In a capitalist society, one can openly advocate and work for socialism.  However in a socialist society, one can’t advocate capitalism because all jobs are under the direct control of political authorities.’   In that situation, one’s job would be in jeopardy.  Here is a surprising story from Friedman’s book: ‘Prior to the outbreak of World War II, Winston Churchill was not permitted to talk over the radio to the British people to warn them of the menace of Nazi Germany.  The British Broadcasting Company (BBC) was a government monopoly and his position was too controversial.’ “

“Wow, Curmudge.  Even a little bit of socialism can be damaging.  In our search for curmudgeonocracy, let’s start with extreme examples.  The former Soviet Union had a communist government (socialism controlled by a single party).  One reason for its failure was its vast size and diversity, i. e., it was a complex system.  As we discussed two years ago, such a system cannot have a single point of control, e.g., Moscow, which is required by socialism.”

“China is another example that we don’t want to emulate.  It calls itself communist, but it does have some private enterprise.  Some individuals have become extremely rich, because crony capitalism is rampant.  That plus limited political freedom would keep me on this side of the Pacific.”

“Then let’s look in the other direction, Old Guy, toward Europe.  Although most European countries have tinkered with socialism, they now have significant private ownership of manufacturing plus a government-run cradle-to-grave social welfare system.  In France and southern Europe (Spain, Italy, Greece), industry is highly regulated (almost impossible to fire a worker; 35-hour work week in France), and the countries spend money they don’t have on welfare programs.  Efforts to balance an economy are met with strikes and riots.  These can be interesting places to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there.”

“Right as usual, Julie.  Here’s a sad quote about France, dated January 7, 2014: ‘France’s economic sickness is primarily due to its overbearing state, horrendously high tax levels, insane regulations, absurd levels of inefficient public spending and generalized hatred of commerce, capitalism, success and hard work.’ “

“But what about Scandinavia?  I’ve heard that those countries—especially Sweden—are hotbeds of successful socialism.”

“Well, the beds aren’t as hot as believed, and their success—as well as their socialism—aren’t total according to the Swedish think tank, Captus.  The government owns only about a quarter of the country’s productivity.  Sweden’s well-known industries, such as Volvo and Ikea, were founded before socialism took over.  More recently, at the end of the 1990’s, ‘the median household income in Sweden was the equivalent of $26,800, compared with $39,400 for U.S. households.’  And that was before taxes, which in Sweden are among the highest in the world.  The most onerous is their value-added tax (VAT), which is as high as 22.5% on most foods.”

“There’s more, Curmudge.  In Sweden workers can earn up to 570 paid days off per year (not a typo), and unemployment benefits are so generous that ‘productive Swedes often join the ranks of the unemployed as a form of early retirement.’  Historically, Sweden’s success was based on its homogeneous population and strong work ethic.  Now, ‘by college, many of the young people have been programmed to join the unemployed and collect benefits.’  No wonder the government is having trouble making ends meet.”

“Before we leave Sweden, Julie, let’s share the somewhat different view of Paul Krugman, a left-leaning economist who writes for the New York Times.  He points out that in Denmark and Sweden taxing and spending are handled locally and efficiently and with the consent of the local populace.  ‘The Nordic social democracies just happen to be places which do everything in entirely the opposite manner to which most American liberals argue things should be done.’ “

“Our last stop in Scandinavia is Norway.  ‘Most production in Norway is done by privately owned businesses.  These businesses are effectively regulated and taxed at much higher levels (than in the U.S.) to pay for a vast array of cradle-to-grave social services.’  As you learned, Curmudge, when you visited Norway a few years ago, everything that isn’t free is very expensive.”

“That’s for sure, Julie.  When I looked at a small bottle of the local aquavit (distilled spirits), the sticker shock drove me back to the beer counter (and beer was also expensive).  Overall, Norway looked like a pretty nice place to live, assuming that one could live without sunlight from November to January (60 days without sun in Tromsø).”

“But there’s a catch, isn’t there, Old Man?  The other countries with cradle-to-grave welfare can’t afford what they are promising to their people.  Norway is different because…”

“…Because Norway has a continuous influx of cash from their oil wells in the North Sea.  Instead of demonstrating the value of social welfare, Norway demonstrates the value of geography.  And speaking of the North Sea, in our next posting we’ll cross it and talk about socialism in Great Britain.  Then hopefully we’ll wrap up our consideration of socialism.”

Kaizen Curmudgeon

(1) Friedman, Milton Capitalism and Freedom  p.16-19 (1962, The University of Chicago Press)

Link to posting from blog archives: Docs on a Treadmill –7/15/10

http://kaizencurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2010/07/docs-on-treadmill.html

Curmudgeonocracy 1—History

historyAncient Democracies and Laws, U.S. Constitution, American Exceptionalism

“It appears, Curmudge, that our next topic will be Curmudgeonocracy, whatever that is.  I presume that it has something to do with democracy and that we are going to build it, brick by brick, as we read and write.”

“Correct as usual, Julie.  I have been reading about the history of democracies and the documents they adopted to govern interactions between people and between the people and their leaders.  Ancient Greece, especially Athens, had one of the first democracies around 500 B.C.  It was a direct democracy in which all citizens voted on laws.  That contrasts with a representative democracy in which citizens elect representatives, who make the laws.”

“Speaking of old things, Old Guy, there were the Code of Hammurabi in 1772 B.C. for the Babylonians and the Ten Commandments given to Moses in the 1600 – 1300 B.C. ballpark to govern the behavior of the Israelites.  And for the most part, they are still pertinent.”

“And often ignored, chère étudiante.  Commandments such as ‘Thou shalt not bear false witness’ (lying and propaganda) and ‘Thou shalt not covet’ (redistribution of wealth).  Systems of law have continued to evolve, including Roman Law, Sharia (Shari’ah) Law, common law, and civil law.  The thing I‘ve noticed about most of these laws is that they govern legal issues between the people but don’t seem to place limitations on their leaders.”

“Maybe that’s because, except for ancient Greece, these older civilizations weren’t democracies.  Leaders commanded strong armies (Alexander the Great 356-323 B.C., Genghis Khan 1162-1227 A.D.), or had tribal or religious authority (Moses), or royal parents (various monarchies), or a commanding presence, a line of propaganda, and powerful supporters (various dictatorships and oligarchies).  Hey, Curmudge, the dictatorships and oligarchies bring us right up to the present time.”

“Before we talk about current issues, Julie, let’s mention instances in the past when limitations were imposed on the powers of leaders.  The classical example is the Magna Carta, signed in 1215.  Here is a summary: ‘Abuses by King John caused a revolt by nobles who compelled him to execute this recognition of rights for both noblemen and ordinary Englishmen. It established the principle that no one, including the king or a lawmaker, is above the law.’ “

“That’s good stuff, Old Guy.  Do you suppose that we might get all the despots and wannabes in the world to sign a similar document?”

“Not even in this country, Julie.  But I appreciate your dream.  The closest thing we have in the U.S. is the oath of office taken by the President on down to military recruits promising to ‘preserve, protect, and defend the

Constitution of the United States.’ ”

“So now, Professor, are we ready to discuss the U.S. Constitution?”

“That’s too big a topic for a blog posting.  However we should mention the concept of separation of powers into the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial branches of government.  For the serious student, there is Constitution 101, a free online course offered by Hillsdale College.  It includes the U.S. Constitution Reader, a reading list of over 100 primary source documents.  Among the documents are those read by and written by the Founding Fathers prior to their writing the Constitution.”

“I perceive, Curmudge, that you are a fan of the Constitution and most of its amendments as written.”

“True, but if I had been alive at the time, I would have been troubled by the 18^th Amendment (prohibition).  Glad it was repealed.  A few years ago I met a couple who introduced themselves as, ‘Hi.  We’re John and Mary Jones.  We’re dry.’  I first thought they were thirsty, but I learned later that they were expressing their feelings about alcohol consumption.  Glad that I didn’t offer them a beer.”

“But there are parts of the Constitution that seem to be under continuous attack, even currently.”

“Right, Julie.  Among them are Amendment I regarding freedom of speech and Amendment X, ‘The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.’  Occasionally the courts have had to rein in the Executive and Legislative branches to keep them from running roughshod over the Constitution.  I guess that makes being a strict constructionist a part of Curmudgeonocracy.”

“Before we talk about the 20^th century, Curmudge,  we should mention American exceptionalism.  It seems to go hand-in-hand with strict construction.  The term was coined by Alexis de Tocqueville, who came to America in 1831. ‘He was duly impressed by our governmental structure, including the separation of powers, but he was in awe of the public educational system, which rendered its recipients completely literate by the completion of second grade. Early settlers not only mastered reading, writing and arithmetic, but also shared practical skills, all of which enabled them to traverse and tame a rugged and frequently hostile terrain.  As isolated communities sprang up throughout the nation, they were able to thrive through innovation, industry and compassion. The “can-do” attitude involved hard labor, but it also included a sense of responsibility for those who through injury or other hardships could no longer care for themselves.’ “ 

“Americans have continued to prove to be exceptional by their actions. The early settlers who came from Europe were exceptional because they accepted the challenges inherent in forging a new nation out of a wilderness.  Others who chose to remain behind ‘missed the boat,’ but those who came later learned from those who were already here.  This was further demonstrated 70 years ago, on June 6, 1944 (D-Day).  And those who came involuntarily from Africa needed to possess unique strength of body and spirit in order to survive the voyage.”

“In my opinion, Professor, our exceptionalism has endured from generation to generation.  But it’s really unfortunate that some Americans simply won’t accept the concept.  So what’s next in our search for Curmudgeonocracy?”

“Progressivism, socialism, the New Deal, the administrative state, and more.  Don’t go away, Julie.”

Kaizen Curmudgeon

Link to posting from blog archives: AIDET Redux—7/01/10

http://kaizencurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2010/07/aidet-redux.html

Happy Seventh Birthday

“Buon compleanno, Curmudge.”

“Congratulations, Julie, on remembering how to say ‘Happy Birthday’ in Italian.  It’s the seventh birthday of our Kaizen Curmudgeon blog.  The first of about 290 postings was posted on May 23, 2007.”

“So, Old Guy, where do we go from here?”

“As we‘ve said before, we’ll just keep on a-keepin’ on.  Because I now live life in the slow lane, postings may be less frequent than in the past.”

“I can appreciate that, especially when we discuss topics that require a lot of study.  So do you have specific topics in mind?”

“We might briefly revisit previous subjects, like Lean and alternative medicine, or explore new areas like Curmudgeonocracy and Curmudgeonomics.”

“Okay, Mr. Mystery, what are those long Curmudgeonsomething words?”

“I don’t know either.  You’ll have to stick around and we’ll find out together.  Oh, and in addition we might do some postings without hyperlinks.  They would be printed in big print and made available to my neighbors who don’t have a computer.  I’m dismayed at the apparent paucity of computers among the residents of our senior apartment complex.”

“I agree, Curmudge.  They would learn more of personal value from some of our postings than in a whole week’s worth of the local newspaper.  Although we don’t have the obituaries.” 

“I admit, however, that in this posting we have provided zero value to our readers.  I suggest we remedy that by listing subjects and dates of our postings thus far in 2014.”

“Good idea.  Let’s do it:”

Kaizen Curmudgeon Blog Title—Date Posted

Cold…sniff and cough—1/14/14

Cold…brrr—1/22/14

Your Plastic Brain 2—Applications—2/05/14

Your Plastic Brain 3—More Applications—2/19/14

Your Plastic Brain 4—Even More Applications—3/05/14

Sorry, Mrs. Curmudgeon—3/12/14

Your Plastic Brain 5—The Future?—3/19/14

Your Plastic Brain 6—The Dark Side 1—3/26/14

Your Plastic Brain 7—The Dark Side 2—4/04/14

Your Plastic Brain 8—The Dark Side 3—4/11/14

Your Plastic Brain 9—The Dark Side 4—4/20/14

Senior Health 1—Physical Health as Long as Possible—4/30/14

Senior Health 2—Brain Health as Long as Possible—5/07/14

Brain Health for Young and Old—5/16/14

Kaizen Curmudgeon

Link to posting from blog archives: AIDET for Physicians—10/01/09

http://kaizencurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2009/10/aidet-for-physicians.html

Brain Health for Young and Old

Links and Literature

“C’mon, Swifty, you’re never going to catch up with all that’s current in neuroscience and aging.  Let’s just do a brain dump of our recent findings and go on to a new topic.”

“Good idea, Julie.  But, I may cycle back to aging occasionally.  It’s an area in which I have a personal interest.  I propose that we start with a link to a synopsis of a book with a rather technical title, ‘Love 2.0.’  This is for young and old and definitely not romantic era love poetry.  It’s as straight up as Scotch whisky without rocks.”

“I think it’s a stretch for an old geezer like you to write about love, but maybe you have a good memory.”

“It wasn’t my memory alone; I had help.  Mrs. Curmudgeon’s ghost and I went through the synopsis together.  We read each of Fredrickson’s characteristics of love and agreed, ‘Yep, that was us.’  Here are a few examples: ‘Love is a momentary upwelling of three tightly interwoven events: first a sharing of one or more positive emotions between you and another; second, a synchrony between your and the other person’s biochemistry and behaviors; and third, a reflected motive to invest in each other’s well-being that brings mutual care.’ “

“Evidently, Old Guy, you both had high levels of oxytocin.  But what about this principle?  ‘Your body, sculpted by the forces of natural selection over millennia, was not designed for the abstractions of long-distance love.’ “

“It’s a good thing that I hadn’t read that 25 years ago when our professions required that we live 2,000 miles apart.  We were lucky.  I counted the hours until my next trip to Appleton.”

“So, Curmudge, what’s the bottom line?  What does love contribute to the brain health of the young and old?”

“It should be obvious, Julie.  You’ll live better and longer and like it a lot more.”

“Next lesson, Professor.  I understand that you bought a book, ‘On Purpose’ by Victor Strecher (1).”

“Its cartoon format was a little distracting, but its lessons are valuable.   You recall Maslow’s pyramid, a hierarchy of human needs?  At the top is self-actualization, which requires one to be all that he/she can be.  Then later Maslow thought of an even higher level, the special qualities of people who had a purpose reaching beyond their own needs.  He called these people ‘transcenders.’  Among their qualities are empathy, compassion, truth, openness, community involvement, and being in mutually supportive and caring relationships.”

“Then Strecher shares research results that should be of interest to senior citizens.”

“They are to me, Julie.  Here’s a quotation: ‘People with a (transcendent) purpose appear to be more likely to avoid illnesses.’  They are less likely to get Alzheimer’s disease and are likely to live longer.  Now, chère étudiante, tell me where this reasoning leads us: When the ends of chromosomes become frayed, the deteriorated chromosome means the beginning of disease.  The end of the chromosome is protected by a telomere, which itself is maintained by the enzyme, telomerase.  In 2011, Elizabeth Blackburn found that meditation increases telomerase activity.  That suggests to us that…”

“…One’s lifestyle, hopefully including meditation and having a transcendent purpose in life, should help us to avoid disease.  Hey, Curmudge, that telomerase stuff might be the connection between having a purpose in life and living longer.”

“You just earned an ‘A’, Julie.  Connections between lifestyle and health and longevity are showing up all over.  Here’s a link to a recent article in the Wisconsin State Journal; the title is Alzheimer’s disease could be as much about lifestyle as about aging.  And here’s a quote from Consumer Reports on Health (2): ‘Researchers think that a lifetime of learning and engagement allowed these people (who functioned well despite brains riddled with plaque) to build a “cognitive reserve”—a buffer of extra brain structures and neurological networks that compensated for the areas affected by disease.’ ”

“Speaking of memory, Curmudge, this link should be useful to one who is willing to put a lot of effort into sharpening his/her memory.  It is in Brain Pickings, the same place where we found the synopsis of Love 2.0.  So, Curmudge, we have devoted two typed pages to brain health for young and old.  Do you have a really profound conclusion for our readers?”

“It’s pretty simple.  Living a meaningful life to the end takes a lot of work.  Developing the right mindset is like developing a skill; it’s better if you start when you are young.  However, a person of any age can benefit from these findings.”

Kaizen Curmudgeon        

(1)  On Purpose: Lessons in Life and Health From the Frog, Dung Beetle, and Julia by Victor J. Strecher, Dean Ornish and Kody Chamberlain (2013)  $19.95 from Amazon.

(2)   How to sharpen your memory now.  Consumer Reports on Health, vol. 26, no. 5, (May 2014).

Link to posting from blog archives: Judgment 6/18/10 http://kaizencurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2010/06/judgment.html

Senior Health 2

Brain Health as Long as Possible

“It’s interesting, Curmudge, that a year ago you didn’t know diddly about brain plasticity, and now you view it as the genesis of talent and the key to solving a host of problems.”

“Julie, as we discussed earlier, Pedro Bach-y-Rita’s overcoming his stroke disabilities was a real eye-opener.  And I know of another example of brain flexibility—much closer to home—that had nothing to do with a disability.  The late Mrs. Curmudgeon was a very talented organist.  She probably started piano lessons at the age of 6 or earlier and then organ a few years later.  She was soloist with the Toledo Orchestra on piano when she was in high school and on the organ when she was in college.”

“One might think that was God-given talent, but you are going to tell me otherwise.”

“Some might have been natural, but we shouldn’t overlook hard work.  In addition to having excellent teachers, let’s assume that she practiced at least an hour a day through grade and high school and two hours a day in college.  That’s 7,300 hours devoted to training the brain to read three lines of music simultaneously and send the right signals to ten fingers on three keyboards and two feet on the pedal board.”

“So, Smart Guy, what convinced you that this was intense training of a plastic brain and not extraordinary God-given eye-to-brain-to-finger coordination?”

“She couldn’t catch a ball that was thrown to her.  She had the natural hand-eye coordination of a three-year-old.  What was extraordinary was her devotion to excellence in her chosen profession.  That is typical of so-called ‘talented’ performers.  By the way, Julie, although Mrs. Curmudgeon’s practice hours tapered off later in life, she was able to maintain her proficiency.  She gave one of the best recitals of her life at the age of 73—six months before her death.”

“But what about prodigies like Mozart, who at the age of three was picking out thirds on the clavier and was composing at the age of five?  I say that talent and the capacity for hard work are variable, and most people require lots of both to achieve excellence.”

“You’ve got me there, Julie.  I must admit that I couldn’t have learned to play the piano if I had studied it for 100 years.”      

“It seems that we have identified common elements in a brain’s healing itself and a brain’s developing excellence.  Both require time, dedication, and a lot of hard work.  So what do you suggest for a person with early-stage Parkinson’s or a bit of dementia?”

“We’ve said before, Julie, that recommendations are above our job classification.  But I would propose that one Google his situation and become his own expert-in-residence.  To start, go to the links in the Literature Cited section at the end of this post.  And if you have a firm diagnosis, look into proven therapies like LSVT LOUD or BIG for Parkinson’s.”

“And what about people like you, Old Guy, who are simply getting old and falling apart piece by piece?”

“DO NOT sit around waiting to die.  If that is your plan, it will certainly succeed.  Find a way to lead a purposeful life as a volunteer or active member of an organization.  Keep that brain revved up and running and facing a tougher challenge each day.  Learning a foreign language is good because it is increasingly difficult to learn something new today while not forgetting what was learned yesterday.“

“Language study should be your cup of tea, Curmudge.  You like it, but without Mrs. Curmudgeon’s scheduling trips to Europe you may never get to use it.  And speaking of trips, I’m sure that being a widow or widower is simply inconvenient.  One can’t turn to his/her deceased spouse and say, ‘let’s go to the recital at Lawrence this evening.  It starts in an hour.’  Yet an active social life is an asset to longevity.  Unfortunately, social engagements among senior citizens involve more planning and a different mindset than the hormone-powered dating of 60 years ago.”

“I know of what you speak, Dear Colleague, from my studies as well as personal experience.  I also know that there’s more to be shared about the health of the senior brain than we can accommodate in this post.  So let’s put it on the agenda for our next discussion.”

“Hoo-ah, Chief.  I’ll be here.”

Kaizen Curmudgeon   

Literature Cited

Alzheimer’s trials

http://www.alz.org/research/clinical_trials/find_clinical_trials_trialmatch.asp

Use of MRI scan to diagnose Alzheimer’s

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/254482.php

Frontotemporal degeneration

http://www.theaftd.org/frontotemporal-degeneration/ftd-overview

Up-to-date website for posts on frontotemporal dementia

http://www.ftdtalk.org/

Detailed overview on frontotemporal dementia

http://www.ftdtalk.org/category/what-is-ftd/

Natural products for Alzheimer’s and neurodegenerative diseases (Bonnie Davis et al.)

http://www.nyas.org/publications/EBriefings/Detail.aspx?cid=14f3e3fc-ae67-48d4-a5d4-5e0793d85476/

ElderThink: Medications for Alzheimer’s

http://elderthink.com/health/illness/chronic-illness/alzheimers/alzheimers-treatments.php

ElderThink: Research breakthroughs

http://elderthink.com/health/illness/chronic-illness/alzheimers/alzheimers-breakthroughs.php

Affinity Health System Safe Driver Program

http://www.affinityhealth.org/Affinity/Services/Rehabilitation-Services/Other-Rehabilitation-Services.htm

Link to posting from blog archives: Twice Blessed—5/13/10

http://kaizencurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2010/05/twice-blessed.html

Senior Health 1

Physical Health as Long as Possible

“So Curmudge, what will be the next big event in your life?”

“My memorial service, Julie.  I do hope you plan to attend.”

“I’ll be there with bells on.  I’ll even sing, ‘I’ll be glad when you’re dead, you rascal, you.’  So when will this shindig occur?   I want to put it on my calendar.”

“It could be next week or maybe not for several years.  Who knows?  In any case, it’s my next big thing.  That’s probably true for a lot of my senior citizen neighbors.  It’s been said that ‘there’s something wrong with each of us,’ but the lethality of our ailments varies widely.  Most of us have lost a spouse, and that emotional earthquake certainly shortens the survivor’s life.  In addition, most of us no longer have a job; we’ve written about the impact of that.”

“Golly, Curmudge, you have lost both.  You already have two strikes against you.”

“Right-o, Julie.  Nothing can demonstrate the intrinsic value of a job more clearly than the feeling one gets when he is fired from a job for which he is receiving no compensation.”

“The hoof beats you hear are not a zebra, Old Guy; they are the grim reaper (actually, one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse).  What’s your plan?”

“For me, I‘d prefer that life would end like a precipitous waterfall rather than a succession of painful grade IV rapids.  In fact, that’s the topic of today’s discussion: how a senior citizen might live life to the fullest while staying ahead of the grim reaper.”

“I presume that this problem needs to be attacked physically as well as mentally.  We’ve discussed most of this in past blog postings, so now we’ll pull the pieces together and focus on senior citizens.”

“That’s the idea, Julie.  We’ve observed that most seniors live life in the slow lane.  Everything I do takes longer.  My senses—sight, hearing, touch, balance—are going to pot.  I tie shoes and button buttons slowly, and I must wait two minutes with my eyes closed after putting in eye drops.  My senses of taste and smell are degrading, which might be a blessing considering my diet.”

“Speaking of diet, Curmudge, we realize that one should eat more fruits, vegetables, and fiber.  And I know that you are trying to improve.”

“Well, I‘ve put away the sugar bowl and the salt shaker, and my carbohydrates are whole grain with lots of oats and rye.  Whenever it’s convenient, I eat in the hospital cafeteria.  Because I am unwilling to spend time on food preparation, I’m testing two powders as my source of greens: ‘Advanced Greens Formula’ (1) and ‘Mega-8 Superfoods’ (2) suggested by Doc Mack.  But I might starve if my microwave goes kaput.”

“I hope you are not like some seniors who neglect—or forget—to take their prescription meds.”

“Not a problem, Julie.  I take only a few prescriptions and some supplements based on my studies of the pertinent literature.  I follow the advice we gave in our alternative medicine postings that started on September 27, 2013.”

“What about exercise, Old Guy?  It’s really important for seniors.  Many years ago you did stretches and weights at 6:30 a.m. and you jogged a mile or two at 10:00 p.m.”

“Regrettably, I now get up at 7:00 and go to bed around 10:00.  So the old schedule doesn’t work.  I now jog a bit in the basement of our apartment building and walk the steps in the building downtown where I used to volunteer.  It’s obvious that more exercise is needed to improve my posture.  At least I’m getting adequate rest, which is important for seniors.”

“Here’s our bottom line for today, at least as I see it, Curmudge.  As a role model for seniors, you are okay qualitatively and quite inadequate quantitatively.  You are doing a lot of the right things, but you need to do them better and with more regularity.  Overall you’re scrawny, which should help longevity, but inside you’re a Twinkie.”

“Merci, ma chère.  But that’s better than a bratwurst.  So much for the senior body.  In our next posting, let’s tackle brain health for seniors.”

Kaizen Curmudgeon

(1)  www.AdvancedBionutritionals.com

(2)  www.MegaNutritionOrganicSuperfood.com

Link to posting from blog archives: Hey patients, checklists are okay. 4/29/10

http://kaizencurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2010/04/hey-patients-checklists-are-okay.html

Your Plastic Brain 9—The Dark Side 4

Dictators, Despots, and Wannabes

“In our posting on March 19, 2014, Julie, we described the amazing finding by Daniel Reisel that MRI exams of the brains of psychopathic murderers showed deficiencies.  Too bad that the same exams can’t be performed on the brains of people liked Hitler and Stalin.  They might also reveal their lack of empathy and propensity for killing.”

“Just think of the capabilities of MRIs of the future, Curmudge.  They might be able to tell the difference between conservatives (classic liberals) and so-called progressives.”

“The future isn’t here yet, so we’ll just have to guess about the brains of modern-day despots and their disciples and hangers-on.  Presumably they will influence the collective brain of their populace by feeding them a steady stream of propaganda, and the people will swallow it, or try to oppose it, or give up in despair.”

“Shall we start with the dictators, Professor?  The mass-murderers were clearly deranged.  As Stalin said, ‘One death is a tragedy; a thousand deaths is a statistic.’  Most contemporary dictators are a bit more subtle.  People who oppose the regime are convicted of a made-up crime and sent to prison…or they just disappear.  It discourages dissent quite effectively.  Another tactic is to restrict the citizens’ access to information by controlling the press, turning off TV stations, or even killing journalists.  Groups that oppose the regime are harassed by regulatory agencies, and businesses owned by an organization’s supporters are subjected to boycotts.”

“You’re right, Julie, and some of these things occur pretty close to home.  The benefits to the despots and wannabes are pretty obvious—power, riches, and tenure in office.  It’s the riches that attract the supporting oligarchs into their symbiotic relationship with the wannabe.  Crony capitalism keeps the money flowing to the oligarchs, and their money keeps the ‘boss’ in power.”

“And how does the despot keep his legislators and ‘foot soldiers’ in line?”

“It would appear that many legislators share the wannabe’s philosophy.  Those of the so-called ‘political class’ feel that they are better able to make decisions for the people than the people can for themselves.  Of course, many bureaucrats enjoy the power that they would lose with regime change, so they parrot their leader’s bloviations.”   

“Now, Curmudge, let’s move down the scale to wannabes and to those despots who are relatively new to the game or at least recently identified.  What do they do to influence the minds of their citizens, and why do they do it?  And why do you call some of these guys ‘wannabes?’ “

“They want to be absolute rulers, Julie, and in their efforts to gain that power, they do all of the above, hopefully short of murder.  Perhaps their philosophy allows them to justify everything.  Several writers have characterized these blokes as postmodernists.”   

“Okay, Old Guy, I think I know who the modernists are.  They are us and most of the people in this country.  Although we are rugged individualists, we accept and live by the mores of society.  We don’t kill, lie, steal, cheat, or envy our neighbor’s success.  You and your colleagues ask yourselves, ‘Is it the truth?  Is it fair to all concerned?’  And you know what ‘truth’ is and what ‘fair’ means.  But what is this postmodernism stuff?”

“There are probably whole books on postmodernism, but here are a few characteristics: Morality is individualistic; every person’s morality belongs to them alone.  Facts and falsehoods are interchangeable.  One could envision a postmodernist feeling that something (anything) is what he says it is. Postmodernists may very well feel that the end justifies the means.”

“That’s pretty scary, especially when a postmodernist is in control of one’s country.  So, Curmudge, based on our study, what do you conclude about the role of government in influencing the collective brain of the people?”

“Sometimes I’m glad to be as old as I am.  When the government sees itself as ruler—rather than servant—of the people, when innovation and hard work are no longer valued, when crony capitalism is the only route to prosperity, when government actions are based solely on politics, when the Ten Commandments become optional, and when lying is an accepted form of communication, I’ll know it’s time for me to be on the other side of the grass.”

“But Curmudge, we’re almost there now.”

“Julie, some days I feel as if I‘m almost there too.”

Kaizen Curmudgeon

Link to posting from blog archives: A Culture of Elegance 3/25/10

http://kaizencurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2010/03/culture-of-elegance.html