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DeBeers Buys Your Conscience

1/2008 The multinational diamond corporation DeBeers has again run into legal and moral problems many times over the past hundred and twenty-eight years, and has done again: https://diamondsclassaction.com/. Several times throughout the 1900's, countries and individuals have filed lawsuits accusing the company of fixing diamond prices. As the largest diamond producer in the world, certainly if anyone is in a position to do this, it is DeBeers. This in and of itself, of course, is not a legal argument. Items follow: Their sales site is very different than their corporate site http://www.debeersgroup.com/DeBeersWeb/ 2005 - http://www.survival-international.org/news/856 2004 - http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/10/business/worldbusiness/10diamond.html?ex=1247112000&en=20aa08705cd558b8&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland

Taking In "Street Thief"

At first glance, "Street Thief" is an engaging and suspenseful documentary of a Chicago burglar's life of crime. Two filmmakers record the lifestyle, techniques, and jobs of a thief named Kaspar Carr, who steals from supermarkets, clubs, and other cash-rich Chicago-land businesses. The filmmakers tread a fine line between documenting a social phenomenon and being accessories to multiple felonies. Then after one robbery, Carr's life goes unpredictably and mysteriously awry. Or does it? A good burglar prepares his jobs thoroughly, casing targets, following the flow of customers and employees, bugging phones. There is every reason to suspect a movie about a burglar would be handled the same way. The filmmakers document Carr's biggest job ever, knocking over a lucrative movie theater. A couple days later, they drive by Carr's warehouse base of operations and find it swarming with police. Carr's Mercedes is in the driveway, doors open and blood on the driver

South Carolina's Pre-abortion Ultrasounds

The South Carolina legislature is proposing mandatory ultrasounds for women considering pregnancy termination. The proposal, brought by non-physicians, raises multiple medical, financial, and ethical concerns. For many reasons, pre-abortion ultrasounds would create more problems than they would solve. Obvious crucial questions include: Who would perform each ultrasound - an ultrasound technician or a physician? What type of ultrasound would be performed - screening, anatomic, Advanced Life Support in Obstetrics (ALSO)-level, or other? Who would read the ultrasounds? Primary care physicians, radiologists, or perinatologists? Each has different skills. Who would convey results to patients? A physician, an ultrasound technician, or other medical staff? Would results include a written report? Would patients be offered counseling after the ultrasounds? Who would be liable for incorrect information? Politicians have called pre-abortion ultrasounds "accurate" and "non-ju

Case Study 1

Six weeks ago, a 55 year-old white male had surgery for cervical spondylolysis. Since discharge from the hospital, he has started feeling intermittently lightheaded. Who should he see? He describes multiple episodes of lightheadedness since his hospital discharge. These have occurred with standing, and improved with bending forward. Separately, he has had three episodes of chest pain and paliptations. The chest pains have occurred while sitting, lasted about five minutes, and improved slightly with combivent. During hospitalization, the patient experienced several complications. These included, successively, cervical myelopathy, ulcerative esophagitis, and urinary retention. He received, respectively, prednisone, omeprazole, and tamsulosin. During his final week in-hospital, he received mirtazepine for depression. Discharge medications included those mentioned, oxycodone, cyclobenzaprine, iron and stool softeners. He had underlying COPD before admission, and during his hospitalizati