James Kim: Blame the victim

Warning: This is an irk alert...

The people on the west coast of the United States probably have been following this story closer than I have. And, I wasn't going to mention anything about the tragic story of James Kim and his family. But, I read a story this morning that really put me over the edge.

For those who may not know, James Kim and his family (wife and two young daughters) were stranded in the mountains of Oregon for approximately a week. I believe on day five or six of their ordeal, which included hearing helicopters but unable to get their attention, Mr. Kim decided to venture out to try to rescue his family. His family was eventually rescued, but he was not.

The first set of media stories portrayed him as a hero - which is what he was. Initial stories called him "Superhuman." As I did more research, I found out he was a senior editor for Cnet.Com. And, I remember seeing this guy doing reviews for computer and electronic stuff. Great guy. He mentioned his daughter a lot when he did his video reviews for cnet.

Now, the media stories are shifting. The story that really got me going this morning had this to say about the Kim family...

When we finally reached the spot where the Kims' car stopped after a long, winding journey, our traveling companions -- Sgt. Joel Heller, Josephine County Sheriff's office, and John James, owner of the Black Bar Lodge -- both had the same exact thought: Why did the Kims continue down such a desolate path when they so clearly did not know where they were going?

This just fires me up! I mean, this family was lost. It was obvious that they have never been there before. It was snowing. The signs were not clearly marked. Even with all these facts, they are blaming this poor family? I don't get it.

For the rest of the article, I was waiting for the passage saying, "We're raising these questions because we do not want this tragedy to happen again to another family." The tone of the article remained on the Kim family.

I know I shouldn't let the media bother me like this, but I think of the two little girls that are left behind. When they read about their brave father in 10-20-30 years, what will their reaction be when they come across stories like this essentially blaming their father for getting the family lost and leaving them behind? In my view, media stories like this are irresponsible. That's my 2 cents worth.

Nominate Me!

I have no shame. And, when you read this post, you'll see why. HA!

Yesterday, Medgadget announced the opening up of nominations for their 2006 Medical Weblog Awards. This is their third annual event. And, according to their website, "These awards are designed to honor the very best in the medical blogosphere, and to highlight the diverse world of medical blogs."

There are seven categories, but the one I'm most interested in is Best New Medical Weblog (established in 2006). To be honest, I don't think this blog really fits into any of the other categories. Oh BTW, there's a new category this year for Best Patient's Blog. So, for you DA readers who have patient blogs, you can play, too.

Anyway, this is where I'm asking you, the Doctor Anonymous reader, to help. If someone, anyone, would nominate me for Best New Medical Weblog - I'd really appreciate it! I'd nominate myself, but that seems kind of lame to me. Plus, the judges may not take to kindly to self-nominations.

Speaking of the judges, some of them look familiar to me. I think I may have put them in the bottom section of my Grand Rounds 3.09 posting last month. So, they may not like me too much. Oh well. We'll have to see what happens. If nominated, then I'll be shamlessly be seeking your vote from January 3-14, 2007.

What's interesting is that you can only vote once - period. Not once an hour - not once a day - just once - period. I wonder how they'll monitor that. But, hey, they're Medgadget. They can figure it out. But, first thing is first - the nomination. Thanks for your consideration....

Update: To help generate some controversy, the grand Empress Bee herself has obtained some totally illegal pictures of me (LOL) in her post called "They Are Coming Out." Your curiousity piqued yet?

Another Christmas Meme

It looks like Cathy gave me by Christmas present early in the form of a meme. The interesting part is that I did not recieve the dreaded "You've Been Tagged" e-mail message. That's a new strategy (thanks Ipanema - HA!). Here we go!

1. Hot Chocolate or Egg Nog? Absolutely hot chocolate.
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Neither - The elves wrap the presents and Santa's personal assistants put them under the tree.
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? Colored lights on tree. Too lazy to put lights on house.
4. Do you hang mistletoe? Nope. Bums me out too much.
5. When do you put your decorations up? When I finish my Christmas cards. Usually in mid-December. Just put some decorations up last weekend.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish? All Christmas desserts. My patients usually bring in bunches and bunches of stuff for me and my staff this time of year.
7. Favorite Holiday memory? Midnight mass with my family. One of the few times all year we're able to get together as a family.
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? In high school, Santa at the mall was arrested for DUI. Many kids around here bummed by that....
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? When I was growing up, ABSOLUTELY NOT! Mom would have none of that. She would allow us to open one present after midnite mass, but the rest was for Christmas morning.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? When I was a kid, it was a fun family activity that we did in one afternoon - probably just after Thanksgiving. Now, it takes me a couple of weeks to decorate the tree.
11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? I love to watch it snow, but hate to drive in snow.
12. Can you ice skate? Once - never again. Nothing tragic happened, just embarrassing.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? I admit I was a spoiled brat growing up (some people would say that has never changed). My love for electronic stuff started when I was a kid.
14. What's the most important thing? The reason for the season - The birth of the Savior.
15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Like the rest of the year - anything with chocolate is my favorite.
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? My parent's years of piano lessons comes out once a year when I dig out the Christmas music and play some carols. Granted, it's still the same grade school music, but it's always fun to get the family gathered together.
17. What tops your tree? Sponge Bob Square Pants. Just kidding, it's an angel that lights up.
18. Which do you prefer giving or Receiving? I have to be honest. The whole gift thing really stresses me out. But, there's always one or two gifts that I find for a friend/family that I really look forward to giving. And, I look forward to that moment.
19. What is your favorite Christmas Song? See my Christmas Song Meme.
20. Candy canes, Yuck or Yum? Gotta love the candy canes!

Grand Rounds

Grand Rounds 3.12 is now up and running over at Anxiety, Addiction and Depression Treatments. GR is up early this week. Thanks to the bloggers over there for including my submission this week. I really appreciate it.

A recent AAP report on advertising and children drew our ire. It also drew the ire of Doctor Anonymous, and he discussed his reactions in a great post that led to some healthy comment discussion.

On a quick glance, I counted 36 links (unless you count My Three Shrinks as three separate posts instead of one). Well done. However, I couldn't leave a kudos comment over there because the verification characters wouldn't come up on my firefox. Oh well, Kudos to AAaDT for their work this week.

Look out! Next week, GR journeys to Nurse Ratched's Place. But meanwhile, enjoy the best the medical blogosphere has to offer - It's Grand Rounds!

Pro-ana and Pro-mia sites

Someone sent me a link to an article from Newsweek entitled "Mixed Messages." It talks about websites taking us into the world of anorexia (called pro-ana sites) and bulimia (called pro-mia sites). Here's a sample of what they say:

Drink ice-cold water ("your body has to burn calories to keep your temperature up") and hot water with bullion cubes ("only 5 calories a cube, and they taste wonderful"). When a food craving strikes, give yourself a manicure ("applying extra layers of slow-drying polish. It will keep your hands occupied").

The article goes on to outline the debate that is occurring on whether these sites are good or bad. Those in favor of the websites state that the internet is a huge support group for these (in general) troubled teens who visit it. Others say that these sites promote and glamorize this type of lifestyle.

It's a pretty balanced article and I encourage you to check it out. The question comes back to this: Can a website CAUSE a change in behavior, especially in younger people? Here is one point of view from the article:

The pro-eating-disorder sites feed into anorexics' competitive nature, says eating-disorder specialist Dr. David S. Rosen, a professor of pediatrics and internal medicine at the University of Michigan. "They're constantly trying to be the sickest, the thinnest, the most unhealthy. If you go to a Web site where people are describing their eating habits, their vomiting practices, if you're in the throes of a serious eating disorder, no matter how that information was intended when it was put out there, it may be a challenge to eat less, to take more diet pills, to weight less. That's where the harm is."

Here is another point of view:

Could the sites somehow lure a completely healthy girl into becoming an anorexic? "You've still got to have some sort of predisposition," says John Levitt, director of the eating-disorders program at Alexian Brothers Behavioral Health Hospital in Hoffman Estates, Ill. "It's a little bit difficult to believe they went there and were pure." Most patients "don't need the advice," he says. By the time he sees them, they already know the tips and tricks. But, he says, "if you have a predisposition for something, you get reinforcement for it."

I have never been of the opinion that media (whether it be violent movies, certain video games, certain types of music, etc.) has a causal relationship with a person's behavior. People should be accountable for their choices and actions. For parents, they should be accountable for supervision of their children and teens.

But, this article does make some compelling arguments to make me think. I haven't changed my position. But, as I alluded to in Direct to Kid Advertising, it seems like it's getting more and more challenging for parents to de-program their kids from the media message saturation.

Countdown

I'm not talking about the first nighttime shuttle launch in four years. This was great to see on television. I would love to see this live and in person.

But, I digress. I'm talking about the countdown to my six month blogiversary. I can't believe that it's coming up next week. To be honest, I didn't think I would make it this long.

Thanks so much to all of you for continuing to stop by and occasionally leave comments. Forgive me over the next week as I may look back a little bit, to reminisce, and to reflect. It's that holiday spirit, I guess.

Finally, thanks to those of you who sent notes when I was feeling ill. I really appreciate it. I guess all the handwashing in the world can't totally prevent getting a cold this time of year around here. I'm feeling better - Just in time for me to be on call for the Christmas holiday. Oh well...