By Marilyn M. Singleton, M.D., J.D. In an effort to cut carbon emissions from burials and cremations, the state of Washington, led by staunch environmentalist Governor Jay Inslee, became the first U.S. state to legalize human composting. To think, people can be criminally prosecuted for disrespecting a human corpse, a symbol of a once-living person. […]
By Marilyn M. Singleton, MD, JD For the next one and a half years we will have to endure the hyperbole, apocalyptic predictions, fake outrage, half-truths, and frank lies of politicians. Some kind soul should take pity on us and pass out beans to put in our ears. Of course, we should expose ourselves to […]
By Marilyn M. Singleton, MD, JD June has been a month of reflection on life, death, our values, and the greater good. We commemorated the 75th anniversary of the 1944 Normandy invasion (D-Day), which began the liberation of France from German occupation and turned the tide of World War II. In what must have been […]
By Marilyn M. Singleton, MD, JD The short answer is No. And thinking that, we would be in good company. A new survey finds that Americans trust Amazon more than the federal government.[1] The most trusted entities were our military, Amazon, Google, local police, and universities. Congress came in as the least trusted, edging out political […]
by Rosemary Gibson and Janardan Prasad Singh, ISBN 9781633883819, Prometheus Books, 2018. “Without firing a missile or hacking the electric grid, China can take America down by disrupting access to essential drugs,” write the authors of this important book. This book is a fine piece of investigative journalism that educates the reader about the genesis […]
By Marilyn M. Singleton, MD, JD Listening to the campaign promises spewed out by the bevy of folks running for president brings the old but enduring story of Faust to mind. Despite being successful, Faust wanted more knowledge and possessions. To that end, he made a deal with Mephistopheles (aka the Devil) who promised to […]
by Marilyn M. Singleton, MD, JD Now that it is the political season where divisiveness rules the day, the bevy of President wannabes’ interest in maternal health is suspect. After all, none of them have joined the many maternal health advocates who praised the President for signing into law the Preventing Maternal Deaths Act which gives grants to the […]
By Marilyn M. Singleton, MD, JD May is Mental Health Month and it should inspire us to think about family, community relationships, and our growing disconnectedness. It is not an invitation for Congress and other troublemakers lose their collective minds. While folks of all colors and lifestyles are quietly living and working together and building […]
By Marilyn M. Singleton, MD, JD Hoaxes and scams have been dominating the news lately. We have a marginally known actor faking a hate crime supposedly to raise his Hollywood profile. His attempt to claw his way to the middle could have resulted in race riots, injury, and death. His punishment? All charges dropped. The […]
By Marilyn M. Singleton, MD, JD A couple of years ago, computer programs, algorithms, and glorified Google searches were touted as the replacements for a physician’s analysis of a patient’s medical condition. Compressed medical research is quite useful for clinicians who are presented with novel situations and have no readily available colleagues with whom to […]