Divemedic

Communal Living

In New York city, rents have become so unaffordable that people are paying to live in communal living spaces- you get a small bedroom to yourself while sharing a bathroom with one other person, then share a living room, a kitchen, and a gym with the rest of the building. You get a shelf in the refrigerator that you share with four other people, and a small locker to keep food in. Amenities include WiFi, breakfast once a month, and a weekly cleaning service. In all, you share this stuff with 23 other tenants for the low price of only $2100 a month.

The building in the story has four stories- six people to a floor. Each floor has a small living room and kitchen, three bathrooms, and six bedrooms. The basement has a laundry room with three washers and three dryers, as well as a small gym with a few workout machines.

When I was broke and young, I had roommates. What gets me here is both the price and the fact that these are people in their middle age years doing this. The guy in the story is 33 years old, and isn’t facing some new temporary situation like a divorce. He is choosing to live like this because he likes “the vibe” of living in New York city.

By Divemedic, ago

Pitbulls

Another Pitbull attack victim as a patient, this one a 10 year old. The dogs involved in the attack were family pets. The kid was in the back yard when the two dogs decided to attack, the mother heard a commotion, and went outside. They drove the kid past the hospital that was 5 minutes from their house, and came to mine, which is located 30 minutes further away.

The child’s mother told me that this isn’t the first time these dogs have bitten a family member. While working on the report to animal control (which we are required to file for all animal bites) no one in the family could remember their address. They all claimed to not know it because they had just moved. Out of the four adults and 7 children who lived in the house, not one of them knew their address.

When we went to administer the nasal Versed to begin the stitches, the kid refused and fought us. The mother told us that the kid has a right to refuse, and told us to do it with just a local. So we started. We did the stitches in one arm, and the kid screamed and thrashed the entire time, with me holding down the arm. It took 12 stitches and a good amount of Lidocaine. There were still bites to the other arm, a leg, the neck, and the fact that a 6 inch wide segment of his scalp had been mostly ripped off to deal with.

It was at that point that I told the Doctor that we needed to do moderate sedation. She agreed, and I told her that it would take me 5 or 10 minutes to get all of the prep work done. There is paperwork, consents, an IV that needs to be obtained, and calling respiratory therapy to get done. While all of that was going on, I called CFS and reported the family. Too many red flags, and I didn’t think it was safe for the kid at home. Nurses are mandatory reporters. CFS told me that the family had a thick file, filled with stories of drug abuse, neglect, and physical abuse. I have no problems making a call to protect kids. Any comment to this that takes me to task for making that call will go into the trash bin.

In all, it took more than 80 stitches and 30 staples to put this kid back together. When the family found out that I had called CFS, they were furious and began making threats.

Pitbulls are vicious, dangerous animals. Every animal bite that I have ever treated where the damage was more than a puncture or two has been a Pitbull. Every one. This is my second patient this month who has been attacked by one of those dogs. I know that there are readers of this blog who tell you “Not my pittie. It’s all in how you raise them, mine is a gentle sweetheart.” They mostly are, until they aren’t. Then you have a mutilated kid. It’s a living thing, it has a mind of its own, and pitbulls are known to be vicious.

The facts are what they are: despite being only 6% of the dog population, Pitbulls are responsible for 69% of fatalities caused by dogs.

  • During the 15-year period of 2005 to 2019, canines killed 521 Americans. Two dog breeds, pit bulls (346) and rottweilers (51), contributed to 76% (397) of these deaths. 35 different dog breeds were involved in the remaining fatal dog maulings.
  • In 2019, pit bulls (33) accounted for 69% of all dog bite-related deaths.
  • Mixed-breeds had the second highest death rate in 2019, involved in 6 deaths; with 50% of these being pit bull mixes.

In a move that makes me feel like I am working on a scholarly paper for an evidence based medicine project at work instead of a blog, there are demands that I provide scholarly sources. I hope no one minds that they are not in APA format:

“Unlike an ordinance which generally prohibits the keeping of a ‘vicious dog,’ enforcement of which involves questions of fact whether the particular dog is vicious or known by its owner to be vicious,” the
breed-specific ordinance in question relies “on the subjective understanding of . . . officers of the appearance of an ill-defined ‘breed,’ leaving dog owners to guess” at the prohibited appearance, breed, or conduct.”

  • It is this confusion that allows Pitbull enthusiasts to cloud the issue.
  • In American Dog Owners Ass’n v. Dade County, the court settled on breed standards being descriptions of the ideal phenotype or physical appearance of a dog and that the American Kennel Club (AKC) breed “standards at issue describe the pit bull dog” (or rather the American Staffordshire Terrier or Staffordshire Bull Terrier) “as well as words can do.”
  • For the above reasons, the legal definition can be vague: Pit bull means a Pit Bull Terrier, a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, an American Staffordshire Terrier, and American Pit Bull Terrier or a member of a class of dogs that have an appearance and physical characteristics that are substantially similar to dogs referred to in this definition.
  • However, we all know what a Pitbull is.
  • Dog fatality statistics were obtained from the CDC Wonder Database.
  • Breed Specific information was obtained here
  • There is also a Forbes article
  • Incidence of Dog Bite Injuries Treated in Emergency Departments, From JAMA 1998
  • There are also my anecdotal observations that EVERY dog bite in the ED that I have seen over the past 30+ years that resulted in serious injury has involved a Pitbull
By Divemedic, ago

Not 2 million

Harris claims that she is going to use executive orders to institute an import ban on “assault weapons” and have a mandatory “buyback” of the 2 million “assault weapons” that are in the US. Here she is in 2019, outlining her plan:

She is a lying stupid wannabe dictator. First off, there are about 50 million AR15s in this country. She also says that she is going to do it without Congress.

These people in Washington, DC have failed to have the courage. How many of you guys as college students had to have a drill during high school, or middle school, or elementary school, or even in college, where you learned that you had to hide in a closet…When elected, of Congress fails to act- I’ll give them 100 days to put a bill on my desk for signature- and of they do not do it, I will put in place by executive action a comprehensive background check requirement, and a ban on assault weapons, on the importation of assault weapons into our country. I’m done. [applause]

No. How about go fuck yourself. Soon, it will be time to stop talking. There will be no point in having a discussion with people who do not respect the Constitution, the rule of law, or the limits on the power of the executive. Soon, it will be time to shut down the blog.

Four years ago, I predicted that Trump would never again see the inside of the Whitehouse. Many people said that I was wrong. I also declared that we were seeing a communist takeover of our nation. I was laughed at and told that I was ridiculous. (The blogger who said that is still blogging, but that blog now reads like a lonely cat lady blog.) That last bit of information made me remember this clip.

Still, it’s going to get uglier that we can possibly imagine.

By Divemedic, ago

Who Is Paying for This?

In the wake of yesterday’s post about Harris renting crowds of adoring fans for the appearance of a groundswell of public support, I also noted that social media is awash is posts of lefty supporters. My social media feeds are swamped with what appear to be paid shills. The photoshopping of giant crowds into photos where no one was really there.

All of this costs money, but one has to wonder where it’s coming from. Did you know that Harris’ campaign raised $40 million in only 3 days last week? Not only that, but she raised $540 in the 34 days between Joe dropping out on July 21 and August 25.

The windfall brings the total amount of money raised for Harris’ election efforts to $540 million since President Joe Biden dropped out of the race on July 21 and endorsed the vice president, according to the campaign.

They claim that her campaign collected $41 million on July 22 alone. That is an incredible amount of fundraising. The Democrats claim that these amounts of fundraising are coming in small amounts from new donors. Let’s put this in perspective. Here is what the Presidential candidates have spent in every election since 1984:

Sourced from Statista

First, look at what Biden spent in 2020. He didn’t really run a campaign, yet spent 3 times as much as any previous campaign (Obama in 2008), and four times what Trump spent- a total of $3.155 billion, or more than $40 for every vote that was tallied in his favor. One wonders where it all went.

I can believe that Obama had over a billion dollars in small donations. There was obviously a lot of interest in his campaign, and it did appear to be organic, grassroots interest. Remember the school kids singing songs praising his name?

Since HOTUS inherited Biden’s $91 million war chest, she now has around $650 million in funds. I wonder where all of that money is coming from. I don’t think that it is all small donor money. The Democrats have already shown that they are falsifying donor records in order to circumvent campaign finance laws.

There are big money donors that are very interested in faking popular support for the Democrats, that much is obvious. I can’t imagine that it is any individual, or even small group of individuals that are doing this. My guess is that the only people with this kind of money to toss around aren’t people, but a nation-state.

By Divemedic, ago

Astroturf

The huge groundswell of public love for HOTUS? It’s fake. Check it out- people who were in a restaurant in Moon Township, PA were kicked out at 4 pm. A crowd was then bussed in to refill the place

About two hours after the new “patrons” were in place, Kamala and Walz showed up to be greeted by the crowd, with the crowd fawning all over them.

One little beta male thanked Kamala for “bringing it back” (at the 8 minute mark). This is how they are going to press the “Aw, shucks, we are regular folks like all of you. Despite the fact that we have been in charge for the past 4 years, we are going to fix everything that the previous administration did. Everyone loves us” narrative.

It’s all theater. The supposed crowds are all paid actors. The social media is all paid shills. Keep in mind that the place was closed during a crowded event, with normal patrons being kicked out. That means the entire staff was screwed out of their tips. Far from caring about the little guy, HOTUS screwed all of them over.

The press was there, they filmed it, they reported it as if it were a real event. They are complicit. What you are seeing is theater. What you are seeing is that the press is actively conspiring to destroy this nation.

After leaving the restaurant, Harris stopped at a nearby gas station for some Doritos. The gas station is being sued by the Biden administration for using background checks in their hiring process, which the administration says is discriminatory. I wonder if these places will see their lawsuits dismissed for allowing her to use the place, or if this is just legal arm twisting?

Fake administration. Fake support. Fake events. Fake votes. Real communism. Real tyranny.

By Divemedic, ago

Not Transactional

A couple won $3300 at the Indian casino in the Tampa area. I’ve gambled there a few times myself. They were followed home by a couple of the local Amish population. The robbers shot both of them before robbing them. The left always tells you that these robbers are just looking for money to feed their kids, and all you have to do is give them what they want. This case proves this to be untrue.

Watch the video here in this story, and a couple of things jump out at you:

  • Why is there a screaming chick on every shooting video? What does shrieking do to help anyone?
  • Note that the bad guys just started shooting, without making demands first. How can you give them what they want, if they start shooting before saying a word?

Let’s check out the people who did the shooting:

Tristan Wright

Marcus Jenkins. He has a history of being a criminal loser in Hillsboro- multiple evictions, crimes, and even charges of aggravated battery, which was pled down to misdemeanor simple assault.

A third suspect, who was the getaway driver, is still being sought. The couple who were robbed?

Waving cash around and being ostentatious with gold chains and a large, expensive gold watch is just asking to get robbed. I know that society shouldn’t be that way, but the reality is that you can’t show off wealth, or criminals will be tempted.

So how can you avoid this happening to you?

  • White chick and black boyfriend robbed by black males. If you hang out with the most violent demographic in the nation, you will get caught up in violence. Don’t hang out with black people. They are the most violent, criminal demographic in the nation, making up 13% of the US population, but committing 56% of the homicides. If you hang out with them, you will likely get caught up in their culture of violence and crime.
  • Be armed when you go places. (Even though casinos are off limits in Florida for carry- have it in your car, or find another way)
  • Keep your eyes peeled for people who are following you. The investigators informed the couple that the suspects had been shadowing them for two hours, tracking them back to their home, yet the couple didn’t see the men following them.

By Divemedic, ago

Better Than You

California Senate committee advances a bill that would provide no money down/zero percent interest home purchase loans to illegal immigrants. The amount of the loan is for up to 20% of the home’s value, and is intended to permit the illegal to come up with the down payment for a traditional mortgage. The loan is to be repaid when the home is refinanced, sold, or transferred. If a family decides to hold on to a home, there are no provisions for repayment, potentially allowing the loan to not be paid back. Ever.

No add to this Harris’ proposal to hand out another $25k, and you see what’s going to happen in California. Illegals will be the only ones who can afford homes in California.

By Divemedic, ago

Nostalgic

I took the trouble to look up my patient from the other day. Less than 6 hours after I transferred her to the ICU, she passed away. Although I knew she was dying, I fought a battle for her to the best of my ability to keep her alive while simultaneously preparing her family for the inevitable. Even though her family weren’t yet ready to admit that she was about to die, I understood that I was buying time for them to come to terms with her death. They told me that she was “a fighter” and would pull through. I knew she wouldn’t, but I still did all that I could for her and for them.

I grew up in the late 70s and early 80s. I remember sitting in school and hearing the local church bells ring 53 times each day at noon, in honor of the hostages being held in Iran. I remember watching the rockets leave, carrying astronauts to the moon. My father worked with rockets and missiles, so I get to go to mroe than a few launches, including the launch of the Apollo-Soyuz mission. I grew up on bands that made some of the best music:

  • Journey
  • AC/DC
  • Dokken
  • Rush
  • Styx
  • Pink Floyd
  • Aerosmith
  • Dire Straits
  • Men at Work
  • Guns n’ Roses
  • Motley Crue
  • Van Halen

and though I didn’t realize it at the time, there were many other sounds and bands that I would come to appreciate more in later years, including Duran Duran. (It wasn’t cool to like them in the circle I ran with). I still sit and listen to the songs of the time, remembering my youth and the things that I saw. I had the distinct honor of serving in the military under President Ronald Reagan, and some of those songs take me back to my time in Europe listening to AFRN.

For those reasons, this article at Legal Insurrection really hit home for me. It does occasionally sadden me to have lived through some of the best times and the high water mark of the greatest nation in human history, only to see it destroyed. This nation isn’t perfect, but it has raised more people from poverty and has accomplished more great things than any other in human history. Watching it die is like watching someone that you love slowly die of cancer.

Like cancer, what is killing this nation came from within. I understand why some of the readers of this blog still think that it can be saved. I went through a period of believing that the old lady was a fighter. I know better now, and I am saddened at our loss, but also filled with resolve at doing what needs to be done as we venture out into an unknowable future.

By Divemedic, ago

Two Weeks

It’s been two weeks since the hurricane passed by and screwed up my analysis of the new solar system. Let’s look at the numbers from the past two weeks’ production:

Overview

The house used 621.4 kwh during the period, or an average of 44 kwh per day. The lowest demand day was 36.2 kwh, and the highest was 60.9 kwh. The system generated a total of 663 kwh, which works out to an average of 47 kwh per day. The low was 36.6 kwh, the high was 57.6 kwh.

Overall, it appears as though my system is properly sized as far as generating capacity. How well will we do for the main intended use? That depends on storage capacity. As I said, I have been using the power company as a battery of sorts, in that I send power to the grid during the day, then take power from the grid at night. That begs the question: What if the grid is down? To answer that, we have to dive a bit deeper into the numbers.

A Closer Look

Our highest use days are when we are both home, and when it is hottest outside. This isn’t surprising, since the air conditioning runs more on hot days, especially when we are home. On top of that, the clothes dryer uses a HUGE amount of power, and laundry days are also heavy draw days (the dryer uses more power than both air conditioners combined).

The average solar intensity at my location for any 24 hour period is 200 watts/square meter for an average production of 47 kwh. The best day for production was 60.9 kwh, with an average solar intensity of 232 watts/ square meter. No surprises there- 16% more sun gets you 30% more power.

The good news here is that the hottest days also tend to be the sunniest days, so heavy use days caused by the cooling system are also the highest production days, with the result being the largest daily deficit was only 7.4 kwh. The largest surplus was 13.4 kwh.

What this means is that, should the grid go down, this surplus is likely wasted power. In our case, we would be wasting about 3 kwh per day. Saturday, August 10, and Sunday, August11 were our worst two days:

Saturday, August 10

39.9 kwh produced, 45.9 kwh used, 6.0 kwh deficit

The lowest outdoor temperature that day was 77 degF, with the high being 92 degF. Average solar intensity was 166 watts/square meter.

The air conditioner compressors ran for 6.5 hours

During the day on Saturday, we did 2 loads of laundry.

Sunday, August 11:

44.2 kwh produced, 51.6 kwh used, 7.4 kwh deficit

The lowest outdoor temperature that day was 77 degF, with the high being 93 degF. Average solar intensity was 190 watts/square meter.

The air conditioner compressors ran for 6.6 hours

During the day on Sunday, we did 3 loads of laundry. One of them was bedding, which takes more time and power to dry.

What about the batteries?

The day that saw us import the most from the grid was Sunday, August 18. We imported 25.9 kwh from the grid on that day, with most of that being the hours of 6 pm to 10 pm. This was while we were doing laundry.

My Analysis

We are producing plenty of power for our needs. We are keeping the batteries charged at 85% so that there is plenty of power available for a grid outage, and we are using the grid like an extra battery, storing our excess production during the day in the grid for use at night. If the grid were to go down, we would likely have enough battery power to run the house as normal, but we would likely have to restrict the activities that use the most power (laundry, cooking) for daylight hours. Additionally, there would have to be a restriction on the amount of laundry- no more than one load a day.

Other than that, we appear to have sufficient total capacity, and sufficient battery storage to run the household without interruption.

Interestingly, as a side note: The area near my house has a lot of solar power. Doing the area survey with my drone, I noted that 23% of the homes within a mile of my house have solar systems installed.

By Divemedic, ago