Friday, May 1, 2009

Swine Flu Fear or Racism?

Today I had to have a kidney CT Scan. It was done as an outpatient procedure in Tanner Hospital. No big deal, but I was 33 minutes late, and had to wait for about 90 minutes for them to squeeze me in; I really wanted to re-schedule but I don't know why. Part of it was I didn't want to have to drink the barium sulfate suspension. To say this stuff tastes nasty, doen't begin to do it justice. Imagine taking two sticks of chalk and grinding them into a powder, then add Philips Milk of Magnesia, now just for giggles add a tsp. of vanilla extract. Put this in a 250 ml bottle and tell people to drink it an hour before they come in.

During this time 2 Mexican women, one of whom was very pregnant came in, each with a little boy about 3. Then another Mexican woman came in with a bunch of little ones. I was annoyed because the kids were all so loud and screechy sounding. I wanted to say use your inside voices and stop climbing on the tables. This is not a playground.

Then I noticed the white people had either been called back for their appointments or had moved like 25 feet away, to the other side, of the waiting area, to the left of the entry doors. I suddenly thought, ‘crap! what if one of these people has swine flu.' So I acted like I was looking for something to read then moved to the other side with the white people. Ironically, the side to which I had moved did have a newer, better selection of magazines.

As more people came in I noticed there would be a momentary pause as the person scanned the situation. All the Mexicans stayed to the right and all the whites and blacks went to the left. Then a Mexican woman wearing a yellow surgical mask came in and went to the window. You could here an audible intake of air bordering on a gasp from all the people on my side of the room. That’s when I thought, "You idiot! You could have caught swine flu, sitting there being polite."

On the 11PM news they reported that Tanner Hospital in Carroll County has confirmed a case of Swine Flu. Here's the problem. I was at one of the two Tanner hospitals in Carroll County today!

I know it's silly but part of me still feels I was being a tad bit discriminatory by moving away from the Mexican people. Then again I have had a weak immune system ever since I had an accidental overdose of radiation to treat Grave's Disease back in 1997. Ever since then I get more ear infections than the average 4 year old.

Ya know what, I'm gonna cut myself a break on this one. The truth is ill behaved children annoyed me even as a child and I think it's normal to be leery of a disease that has no known cure and has reached the pandemic level.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Pontiac is Headed for The Junkyard

I've always been a Chevy Girl except for a brief time in the late 70's to early 80's when I lusted over the Pontiac Trans Am. My Pop-Pop was definetely a Pontiac man he used to always get his at Rassas Pontiac & Buick in Red Bank, NJ. I can't say I'm surprised that Pontiac is headed for the chopping block. Like the rest of the Big 3 they stupidly discontinued their more popular sporty and fuel eficient models and came out with more ugly and expensive SUV's which nobody likes, such as the Aztec and Vibe. I'm not a betting woman and it's a good thing too, because I have absolutely no idea what is going to happen next in so far as the economy and the American automotive industry.


Pontiac Headed for Junk Yard
Fabled Muscle-Car Brand Is Being Eliminated Amid GM's Cutbacks


APRIL 25, 2009
General Motors Corp. is readying plans to ditch its fabled Pontiac, an 82-year-old division that last flourished selling sporty, muscle cars, people familiar with the matter said Friday.

During its heyday three decades ago, Pontiac was the launching ground for young auto designers and executives including John DeLorean. But its sales have tumbled 70% since their peak in 1978, and the unit in recent years has been a steady money loser.

GM has more than three months' supply of Pontiacs on dealer lots, according to Edmunds.com. Last month, the average Pontiac sold for 22% off the sticker price, compared with ... the industry average of 16%, Edmunds said.

GM spokesman Jim Hopson said no final decision on Pontiac's future has been made. But he said nothing is guaranteed. "Everything has been put under review," Mr. Hopson said.

The auto maker, facing a June 1 federal deadline to dramatically restructure or go bankrupt, is expected to disclose next week it will eliminate or sell Pontiac, according to several people who have been briefed on the plan. The decision comes as GM must show it can make painful cuts to win continued government financing.

GM had said it intended to keep one or two Pontiac models. But the Obama administration is pressuring GM to accelerate its downsizing. The auto maker is working on plans to sell or liquidate its Saturn, Hummer and Saab divisions. Each has received some interest from outside buyers, but it remains unclear whether any will survive.

GM's last automotive division to be eliminated was Oldsmobile in 2000. That decision cost GM billions of dollars in dealer-buyout costs, led to messy litigation and frayed many relationships with dealers and buyers.

"Disappointment is an understatement," Russ Shelton, owner of Shelton Pontiac Buick GMC in Rochester Hills, Mich., said of word of GM's decision.

Pontiac's first model was a 1926 six-cylinder roadster called the Chief of the Sixes. In following years, the brand became known for offering sporty V8 models that were cheaper than Buicks and used components from low-cost Chevrolets.

In the 1960s, the Pontiac GTO became the founding member of Detroit's horsepower wars. That car was created by Mr. DeLorean and introduced in the fall of 1963. Shortly thereafter, Ford introduced its Mustang and Chrysler its Plymouth Barracuda as responses to GM's hit coupe.

One of Mr. DeLorean's legacies -- the so-called widetrack vehicle design -- still remains a feature of some Pontiac automobiles, and has played a role in its advertising messages.

In the 1970s, Pontiac went into decline as the Arab oil embargo drove up gasoline prices and consumers turned away from gas guzzlers. Pontiac enjoyed a brief resurgence in the 1980s when gas prices fell and GM accompanied its "Pontiac Excitement" marketing campaigns with smaller cars that had bigger engines, such as the Trans Am and Firebird.

In recent years, Pontiac has struggled to carve out an identity of its own. Attempts to revive its nameplates, including the GTO, have fallen flat due to a lack of design flair. Those efforts were also stymied by the bland minivans and sedans that Pontiac produced.

The GMC brand of trucks and sport-utility vehicles could also be in danger. The Obama auto task force, noting that GMC sells models similar to Chevrolet, has pressed GM to make a convincing case the brand should survive.

To avoid bankruptcy, GM is scrambling to complete an offer for a public debt swap that would eliminate $27 billion in unsecured debt. The auto maker has been unable to strike a deal with an ad hoc committee representing bondholders. But federal regulations require that GM must make the offering by Monday to have the swap complete by June 1.