(E/m)^-2 =

eBay does it again; whimsically dismissing their customers as "noise."

With a stroke of a pen, eBay launched a devastating policy attack against small businesses already struggling for survival -many operated by those supplementing a fixed-income including; women, seniors, the disabled, and disadvantaged citizens from across the third-world. eBay's digital download program allowed vendors to sell digital content such as graphic design services and information products without requiring products to be delivered on physical media. As many seller's have commented; the requirement to physically ship items such as CDs and DVDs destroys their business model. The policy change is designed to thwart "feedback manipulation" wherein unscrupulous members trade items for as little as $.01, at less than break-even, in order to earn higher feedback ratings -a measure of an eBay member's reliability and standing in the online community. eBay's solution offered to affected sellers would see their transaction fees raise 2,000% -from less than $.50 per listing up to a staggering $10 in eBay's classified ads format. The move would force all transactions to occur "off-eBay", and outside the protection of the community feedback system. Simply banning sales of items sold at a loss, intended only to buy feedback, would seem to have been a solution to the problem. Instead, the corporation seized the opportunity to justify a huge money grab. eBay's recent series of hammers to fall on the monopoly's customers is sure to spawn new opportunities for competitors in the online marketing and auction house arena. Taken aback by suddenly being put out of business with virtually no warning or notification; many eBay store owners are ready to close down their shops in anticipation of the policy, effective April 1, 2008.

UPDATE: Please read this important post: eBay Class Action Lawsuit

Stay tuned for alternative workarounds! Sources: http://forums.ebay.com/db2/thread.jspa?messageID=2009858122&#2009858122 -Wayne Doucette

If you are eligible under one of Canada's visa classes, immigrating to Canada is not difficult. Although, a significant amount of paperwork, and a strong command of written English or French is required. Generally speaking, working with Citizenship and Immigration Canada is not difficult. If you have access to the Internet and preferably a printer, there's absolutely nothing stopping you from accomplishing your own application. Filing your own application will save you thousands of dollars. Having an agent is a simple matter of convenience -having an agent does not increase your chances of being approved. In fact, having an agent can cause the agency to scrutinize your application more thoroughly. Immigration Canada, under the law, must remain impartial to all applicants. Immigration Canada does not try to deny your application, their job is to ensure you meet the requirements of immigration. If your application qualifies, it will qualify whether or not you complete the application or have an a third party agent do it for you. As long as your application is truthful and you meet the requirements of immigration, you will be approved. In the worse case scenario, your application will be denied and you would have wasted up to two years or more plus the application fees. This is true weather or not you file the application or have an agent do it for you, but at least filing on your own saves a lot of money. If you have family or friends already residing in Canada, they can significantly assist you in the process. In particular, if you have a Canadian Citizens available to assist you, the process can be made even easier. For instance, Canadian Citizens are given top priority when communicating with a consulate, visa office or Embassy of Canada. These agencies can offer you generic advice about the rules and processes involving Immigration Canada. When visiting a Consulate or embassy there are generally two lines: One for Canadian citizens, and on for non-Canadians. This means that Canadian Citizens are generally served first. When communicating by email to a Canadian Consulate or Embassy abroad, some questions pertaining to certain Immigration programs will NOT be answered -such as Canada's live in care giver program. Typically, any questions from a Canadian Citizen that pertain to an eligible immigration program, are answered immediately.

With a serious mental illness striking 1 in 5 Canadians, this neglect demonstrates a shameful disregard for the health and welfare of citizens.

Untreated mental illnesses not only devastate the health and social welfare of individuals, with time, the circle of victims expand to include family, friends, coworkers, employers and the community at large. The costs are high as children loose their parents, brothers loose their sisters and the taxpayer picks up the tab.

Mental illness is recognized by those on the front-lines of community outreach as a leading cause of substance-abuse and homelessness. The BC Partners for Mental Health and Addictions Information, a project funded by the BC Provincial Health Services Authority, admits to the dire situation facing B.C.'s victims of mental health disorders: "People with concurrent disorders—the combination of a mental illness and substance use disorder (sometimes called ‘dual diagnosis')—often fall through the cracks in the province's health care system.”

A national survey in the US reveals that “between 50-75% of people with a substance use disorder are affected by a mental illness and between 20-50% of people with mental illness also have a substance use disorder.”

The strongest argument supporting why such "dual-diagnoses" exist is that individuals with untreated mental illness will begin to self-medicate with drugs or alcohol. Such that an otherwise contributing member of society can eventually fall victim to substance-abuse while seeking relief of the early symptoms of the disease through progressive substance-use. This starts a vicious cycle as the substance-use oftentimes acts as a trigger to the underlying mental illness, which causes the victim to seek further relief through self-medication. Research concludes that in a case of a dual-diagnosis, the underlying mental illnesses exists up to ten years prior to the surfacing of substance abuse -persons with an untreated mental illness are very likely to self-medicate, eventually becoming substance abusers.

Treatment Roadblocks

Why then does mental illness go untreated?

“Mental health services may refuse treatment to a person with an active drug or alcohol addiction, while addiction professionals may believe that a person cannot recover from problem substance use until the mental disorder is treated. As a result, people with concurrent disorders are sometimes bounced back and forth between both mental health and addiction services or they may be refused treatment by each of them."

"Although Greater Vancouver has a small concurrent disorders program, it is not equipped to serve the growing number of people with these illnesses in Vancouver, let alone in the rest of the province. Concurrent disorders are much more widespread than many people realize. For example, it is generally estimated that around half of people with an addiction or mental illness will also have the other."

According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, "The stigma attached to mental illnesses presents a serious barrier not only to diagnosis and treatment but also to acceptance in the community."

"The serious stigma and discrimination attached to mental illnesses are among the most tragic realities facing people with mental illness in Canada. Arising from superstition, lack of knowledge and empathy, old belief systems, and a tendency to fear and exclude people who are perceived as different, stigma and discrimination have existed throughout history. They result in stereotyping, fear, embarrassment, anger and avoidance behaviours. They force people to remain quiet about their mental illnesses, often causing them to delay seeking health care, avoid following through with recommended treatment, and avoid sharing their concerns with family, friends, co-workers, employers, health service providers and others in the community."

The Missing Link

Since part of the disorder oftentimes entails lack of recognition that a problem exists, it follows logically that if suffers were thinking clearly, they would not need help. This leaves many alone to fend for themselves while the illness, neglect, self-medication and destruction continues.

Whatever the reason, what we are doing now is simply not effective as addiction continues to devastate lives all around us --been downtown lately?

The shortcomings of traditional 12-step programs have been offset thanks to modern work conducted in the treatment of a dual-diagnosis. Therapeutic techniques such as the transtheoretical model of change recognize that change occurs in stages. The therapy delivered must be appropriately match to the present phase of the patient's recovery.

The missing link between the individual and the care they deserve is intervention. We seem to be waiting for incompetent citizens to all of a sudden start exercise their civil liberties and sound judgments to make independent decisions for their own welfare. Again, if these citizens were thinking clearly then they wouldn't need help.

Reforms

British Columbia's Mental Health and Addictions Reform initiative provides the vision for a comprehensive, evidence-based continuum of mental health and addictions services in the province. As part of this reform in BC, the Ministry of Health formed best practices working groups that would build upon the vision and foundation provided by the Review of Best Practices Mental Health Reform (1997), prepared by the Health Systems Research Unit of the Clarke Institute of Psychiatry under the auspices of the Canadian Federal/Provincial/Territorial Advisory Network on Mental Health.

Seven reports titled BC's Mental Health Reform Best Practices were developed and published in February 2002. The reports reflect the efforts of 44 industry representatives who participated in the best practices working groups. Following literature reviews and consultation, they compiled services and strategies that produce positive health outcomes for individuals.

The following reports are available:

• Crisis Response/Emergency Services (PDF 4.5MB)

• Consumer Involvement and Initiatives (PDF 1.8MB)

• Housing (PDF 4.1MB)

• Inpatient/Outpatient Services (PDF 2.7MB)

• Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery (PDF 2.6MB)

• Family Support and Involvement (PDF 1.5MB)

• Assertive Community Treatment (PDF 1.4MB)

http://www.healthservices.gov.bc.ca/mhd/bpelementsbc.html

Page 2 of each report has this disclaimer:

"

Important note

The principles of psychosocial rehabilitation form the philosophical
foundation for all best practices in mental health care. These principles
emphasize both consumer involvement in developing and realizing
personal care and life goals, and treatment and supports that help
consumers manage their symptoms and build on their strengths."

Sounds fair enough, but the choice of word consumer was conspicuous to me --Suddenly, we are no longer patients or even clients, we are consumers. If that's the case, I think a lot of people deserve a refund.

Harm Reduction

One good example that the road to hell truly is paved with good intentions is that of the safe-injection site --Any first year psychology student knows the difference between harm reduction and enabling. A harm reduction program that does not reduce harm is not a harm reduction program, it is a harm enabling program, a crutch for addicts to continue down the road to self-destruction. AIDS is now treatable, most addicts will not live long enough to worry about the long-term complications of AIDS.

The "Insite" program, brought to you by the good people of the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority is located at 139 E. Hastings. Hours are 10AM to 4AM 7-days per week open to the drug abusing public. If you're 17 years or older, check it out.. Free parking in rear, be sure to bring your own drugs though because they haven't figured out a way to tax heroine yet. But that's OK, because you can buy outside anyway.

Please be advised that in order to protect the drug use experience of all guests, and in accordance with WCB Regulations, Insite is a NON SMOKING shooting gallery -please refrain from smoking anytime during your trip.

Programs like Insite perpetuate a lifestyle of insanity: Those addicts will never achieve the level of intellectual competency necessary to think past their next hit thanks to the assistance of the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority and your tax dollars.

Prescription Drug Abuse

Prescription Drug Abuse. This one speaks more for the level of incompetence taxpayers endure from our officials than anything.

Not to advocate prohibition, after all, any substance can be abused; Drugs, alcohol and even food. It's just infinitely annoying to witness both common sense and existing laws routinely violated, particularly when done in a professional capacity.

Such is the case with many medical industry professionals that allow prescription drug abusers to renew prescriptions at multiple Doctor's offices and pharmacies. While the evidence on hand is only colloquial hearsay, not being aware of a study that has documented the phenomenon, however, the industry knows it happens every day.

In a technique know as 'Drug Diversion' legitimate drugs are used for illegitimate purposes. Here's how it works:

1) Fake pain.
2) Shop for a Doc
3) Forge or modify a prescription
4) Call in your own prescription

There are a couple of tricks involved. The first is the most difficult to stop, but is also the least significant in magnitude. The first problem is that any given prescription drug user can turn around and sell their medications. The deterrent to the buyer is the expense and the necessity to deal with a dealer which always carries the risk of getting caught. This combination of high cost plus risk and inconvenience works as a deterrent to many.

The second trick with prescription drug abuse is that patients can go Doctor shopping --looking for a Doctor that doesn't care enough to check their medical records to confirm that they have already been prescribed medications by others. If they complain loudly enough, some Doctors will write a prescription simply to get the abuser out of their hair. If the Doctor refuses, they will simply find another one. Oftentimes it comes down to how ethical and diligent the dispensing pharmacist is --the good ones, if they have any doubts about the patients legitimacy, will follow up with a call to the Doctor's office, or if they recognize that the patient as an all too frequent customer, they will simply refuse to dispense. The bad ones are more interested in the dispensing fees they earn and simply fill the prescription. For anonymity, abusers will use every trick in the book --they will go to every pharmacy in the area, hoping not to be recognized, or they will try to get someone they know submit/pick up the prescription on their behalf --unaware at the time, the author has been personally recruited for such a task.

Plugging the holes in the prescription drug industry could be done easily if their was the will to do so among health care providers. This by no means would completely stop prescription abuse, but at least it would make the access to those powerful drugs more difficult.

Take a look for example at the typical prescription that the Doctor hands you --does that look like even remotely like a secure document? No, not really...A $5 cheque with security features, watermarks, microprint and holograms would be scrutinized more by a bank teller then a prescription for ativan.

If standard operating procedures simply dictated the use of just a little due diligence in reviewing the patients prescription history, this problem would be solved and would close the door on another major enabling substance-abuse factor -ease of access.

Summary
Severe mental illnesses are more common than cancer, diabetes, or heart disease. A mental illness can strike anyone at any time. What if one day someone you love needs help?

One concern topping the list for parent's is education -It's in everyone's best interest to ensure children are given the very best chance at success. We want to remove barriers and provide our children with opportunities that we, as children, didn't necessarily have.

While attending a college program, our instructor was giving a lecture on learning styles. During the lecture, he explained that a study discovered IQ tests of Grade 8 students in B.C. were 10% higher compared to their Washington State counterparts -A significant difference. He asked us to speculate on why there would be such a large difference. Was the level of difficulty different? No. Was the age of grade 8 students of the two jurisdictions different? Good guess, but no. Was there significant socio-economic discrepancies. No. Was there something in the air or water in BC that made kids smarter??? No. He explained that researchers discovered the difference was found in the number of days students attended school. Not hours per year, days per year. There is an important rationality that explains the difference.

Learning happens in cycles. People operate on a daily cycle. When students go to school they get exposed to new concepts. Later that evening, effective parents will discuss what the student learned that day. By recalling those new concepts and telling the story, the memories are further reinforced. The next day, an effective teacher will review the previous day's material -again, we see the reinforcement. This daily cycle of reviewing and recall is how long term memory is established.

For argument's sake, adding 10 minutes to each school day is not going to compensate for 4 complete days of learning. Sure, the hours of instruction might tally the same. But do you honestly think anything more is going to be learned in those extra 10 minutes? No -the student will simply be 10 minutes more tired.

Remember this fact the next time the issue of shortening the school year comes as a money saving 'efficiency' measure -most educators are salaried employees and therefore, they have a vested interest in decreasing the number of school days because each day they have off is another paid holiday. If learning outcomes are the measurement with which we are concerned, then 'efficiency' actually decreases by a shortened school year because learning outcomes suffer.