Politics, our business, and this year's speaker

[macanes]

I posted this reply on the CRNANews newsgroup and wanted to throw it out here to see what other CRNAs thoughts are on the topic.

BTW, I'll be out of the country for a week, so flame away -- I'll respond when I get back. If you want to get personal, please PM me instead wasting time on this forum.

Thanks,

Z

______________________________________________

orig message (not mine):

Date: Thu, 23 Feb 2006

From: "over40victimofphate"

Subject: Bill Clinton

As a practicing CRNA I am disgusted by our association selecting Bill

Clinton as the speaker at our national convention. His past agenda,

impeachment, sexual harassment suit, disbarring, and many other

actions are very much against the beliefs of many CRNAs. A

controversial figure, whether from the left or right should not be on

the podium.

__________________________________________

My reply:

Date: 24 Feb 2006 16:44:08 GMT

From: John Zitzelberger

To: [email protected]

Subject: RE: politics and our business The number one premise in my training and subsequent work (US Army) was "integrity."

I feel the same way. I would rather not know with whom and how the AANA PAC does business in D.C. -- I don't have any illusions about the Beltway business-as-usual process and don't waste my life's seconds thinking about it, except before I enter the voting booth.

However, I DO feel strongly about the public face our association presents. I dumped my ANA membership shortly after nursing school -- early 90s -- for similar reasons (endorsing Hillary's attempts to socialize medicine and refusing the Army Nurse Corps a booth at their convention after the enactment of "don't ask, don't tell," as if the Army had the choice). I think we play --public-- politics at our peril.

How can we deal with the A$A with a straight face if we choose politicians (especially one so controversial as this) as our chosen feature at our annual gathering? What message does this send the party in power about our non-partisan care for patients? What about when the pendulum swings again? What message to the public, with what little they know about anesthesia issues outside of Grey's Anatomy and similar shiznit?

How about next year we pick somebody with good information to impart who doesn't bring this baggage with them?

Just a thought.

John Zitzelberger (Jr.)

CRNA

Columbus/Ft. Benning, GA

-- When in doubt, use hollow points.

[soliant12]

I also believe Clinton and Dole belong to the same lobbying group that the AANA is currently utilizing. I would like to hear about his experiences with his mom, its just you don't know when he is making something up. Personally I do not like Clinton but he did during his final month in office sign an executive order giving CRNAs autonomy with physician supervision as it relates to Medicare and for that alone we should be giving the man a big round of applause.