[Oe List ...] OE Digest, Vol 65, Issue 70

[David Walters]

Jack 

Thank you for your thoughtful words. 

I do not know Don on a personal level as I do most of the folks on this list. However, I have followed his comments for some time and recall the same kind "republican talking points", none of which point towards any kind of comprehensive model for the  future.

I am also reminded that he sits on the Boards of ICA and EI and that he participated in the firing of the first executive director and later of all of the program staff. All of them were, except for Betsy, were all long time colleagues of ours. The mass firing came as recommendation of an outside consultant who had no previous experience with either organization and whose sole background was with child welfare organization. I clearly recall his defense on the listserve of their decisions. The great failure of Don and the other board members was to not use the methodologies that we all had in developing and training so many others to use. 

The consultant also strongly advised them to lock the doors and go out of business. This woman demonstrated a clear lack of capacity in understanding what was going on. She looked at our balance sheet and proclaimed that we were in such a financial disarray that we would never recover. I read the balance sheets for both organizations and found that the deficit was caused by an allowance for depreciation which had nothing to do with our fiscal health. I later obtained financial statements for that year and found that the picture was a lot different than had been claimed. The end of year balances for cash on hand belied all the blather of financial calamity.

The firing of all except  for the book keeper and the custodial staff meant that everyone whose work generated income were gone. This most irresponsible decision in the our corporate history. Yet Don insisted that board had no other choice. What happened to our capacity to be revolutionaries. What happened to there is always time to make a new decision.  Don and the board acted like the board of one failed companies on Wall St. in the way in which they fired our colleagues. 

I guess the main reason I ran off at the mouth as I did is that I have gotten so tired of folks who are fighting healthcare reform is that none of them, including Don, offer any alternative model for the future. I live in Alabama where none of the senators or congressmen that represent me are willing to support reform of any kind.

David Walters 
  David

  I think you need to think twice before writing personal attacks on a person you don't obviously know well and I would hope you would consider an apology to Don.  Those of us who have had the honor of knowing Don well know him to be both a compassionate and generous human being who has donated his money, time and most important, his doctoring skills all over the world.  So for you to paint him as lacking compassion because of his expressed views is terribly wrong.  Don needs no defense but he has some valid concerns.


  Don is not advocating denial of wheelchairs to those who need it.  He does object, as we all should, to the scam that gets these things paid for at 2, 3 or 4 times what the supplier paid for it and often for people who don't need them.   Secondly, I have often heard people cite your 2% statistic on tort cost, but there is a documented trend of young doctors avoiding GP and other fields due to what they have to pay each year for malpractice insurance.  I think the 2% doesn't include all the extra tests done to cover possible suits.  We live in an ever increasing litigious society so some fair adjustment needs to be made so that doctors can practice and new doctors can be attracted to needed fields of practice and people who are wronged are fairly compensated.  There is room for different points of view and solutions without loosing any degree of compassion.


  Peace,


  Jack Gilles
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