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Magical thinking
Oct. 14th, 2006 01:53 pmI have mentioned before that I used to be a counselor. At one time during my career, I entertained the notion of obtaining a higher degree. The opportunities for advancement and increased responsibility were quite limited for someone who lacked at least a Master's degree. I had met many people with Master's degrees. They did not seem to know much more than I did, in fact, many of them knew less. I had a talk one day with one of my mentors, a man with a Ph.D in Psych. I asked him why it seemed that people with Master's degrees seemed more prone, rather than less, to fall for the line of BS our clients were dishing out (alcoholics and addicts are not always truthful when reporting their use). He said that sometimes higher education had the effect of driving out common sense, and told me to be very careful when pursuing it to hang on to my common sense because there are always lots of pretty theories that seem better.
My GPA was, sadly, 0.04 below the threshold for admittance to the graduate program. I was asked to take the GREs and assured that if I did well, I would be allowed to enter.
I did exceptionally well on both the math and English tests. I was then told I needed to have an interview with the Dept. Chairman. In the course of the interview, he asked why I was pursuing the degree. I replied that I had been working in the counseling field and had found that I was unable to advance without a higher degree.
His response was contemptuous. "Ms. ___, do you think you can come here and buy a degree? Why don't you just go and look on the cover of a matchbook and get what you want?" I was nonplussed. I did not think that was what I had said. To say the least, the rest of the interview went downhill.
They recommended that I take 9 hours of postbacc credits that would not apply to my degree. If I maintained a 3 pt. or higher, they would let me into the program. I said, "No, thanks." I decided that the department head had traded his common sense for pretty theories long ago.
Today I read this story about a concerned father who has decided to homeschool his daughter because the school wants to give her a TB test.
Dr. Horowitz claims that said TB test (not immunization, test) violates his Judeo-Christian beliefs. Hawai'i tests all students because it has a very high rate (8.8 cases per 100,000 population) of tuberculosis, jumping from 13th among states in 2004 to 2nd in 2005, and most of the new cases are among immigrants.
Dr.. Horowitz is a Doctor of Medical Dentistry, and has a couple of Mater's Degrees as well. He does not believe in using drugs of any sort, but promotes natural healing. If you read his website, his religious beliefs are not the only reason he is against the TB test. He thinks it is harmful.
At first blush, it is tempting to dismiss Dr. Horowitz as a wacko. His beliefs are not within societal norms. He has the audacity to stand up and voice them in mixed company.
But he has a point. Hawai'ian state law bars the state from immunizing children if their parents object. The TB test does introduce a small amount of protein derivative from dead TB bacilli. It causes the body to react, and carries with it a small risk of adverse reactions. While it is not an immunization, it is a medical procedure, and it seems as though parents should be able to opt out.
Dr. Horowitz has had his daughter examined by a doctor in Idaho for tuberculosis and she was found to be free of TB.
But the Hawai'ian Health Department has taken a stand, a zero-tolerance policy. The girl has been examined by a doctor. She doesn't have TB. The purpose of the test is to determine if she has TB. Why make her go through it? Let them object on religious grounds and accept the doctor's report. This is yet another reason that I hate zero tolerance policies. They trade common sense for pretty policies tied up with nice bows.
Another wonderful feature of the PPD (TB) test is that once you have had TB, it will always be positive. It can't distinguish between the active disease and inactive. I am a case in point. I have to have chest x-rays rather than PPDs because I had TB (they caught it before it became communicable and treated it).
As it turns out, the PPD or Mantoux test may soon be a thing of the past. A new blood test is now favored by the FDA as having fewer false positives. It actually tests for the active disease. Hoorah!
My GPA was, sadly, 0.04 below the threshold for admittance to the graduate program. I was asked to take the GREs and assured that if I did well, I would be allowed to enter.
I did exceptionally well on both the math and English tests. I was then told I needed to have an interview with the Dept. Chairman. In the course of the interview, he asked why I was pursuing the degree. I replied that I had been working in the counseling field and had found that I was unable to advance without a higher degree.
His response was contemptuous. "Ms. ___, do you think you can come here and buy a degree? Why don't you just go and look on the cover of a matchbook and get what you want?" I was nonplussed. I did not think that was what I had said. To say the least, the rest of the interview went downhill.
They recommended that I take 9 hours of postbacc credits that would not apply to my degree. If I maintained a 3 pt. or higher, they would let me into the program. I said, "No, thanks." I decided that the department head had traded his common sense for pretty theories long ago.
Today I read this story about a concerned father who has decided to homeschool his daughter because the school wants to give her a TB test.
Dr. Horowitz claims that said TB test (not immunization, test) violates his Judeo-Christian beliefs. Hawai'i tests all students because it has a very high rate (8.8 cases per 100,000 population) of tuberculosis, jumping from 13th among states in 2004 to 2nd in 2005, and most of the new cases are among immigrants.
Dr.. Horowitz is a Doctor of Medical Dentistry, and has a couple of Mater's Degrees as well. He does not believe in using drugs of any sort, but promotes natural healing. If you read his website, his religious beliefs are not the only reason he is against the TB test. He thinks it is harmful.
At first blush, it is tempting to dismiss Dr. Horowitz as a wacko. His beliefs are not within societal norms. He has the audacity to stand up and voice them in mixed company.
But he has a point. Hawai'ian state law bars the state from immunizing children if their parents object. The TB test does introduce a small amount of protein derivative from dead TB bacilli. It causes the body to react, and carries with it a small risk of adverse reactions. While it is not an immunization, it is a medical procedure, and it seems as though parents should be able to opt out.
Dr. Horowitz has had his daughter examined by a doctor in Idaho for tuberculosis and she was found to be free of TB.
But the Hawai'ian Health Department has taken a stand, a zero-tolerance policy. The girl has been examined by a doctor. She doesn't have TB. The purpose of the test is to determine if she has TB. Why make her go through it? Let them object on religious grounds and accept the doctor's report. This is yet another reason that I hate zero tolerance policies. They trade common sense for pretty policies tied up with nice bows.
Another wonderful feature of the PPD (TB) test is that once you have had TB, it will always be positive. It can't distinguish between the active disease and inactive. I am a case in point. I have to have chest x-rays rather than PPDs because I had TB (they caught it before it became communicable and treated it).
As it turns out, the PPD or Mantoux test may soon be a thing of the past. A new blood test is now favored by the FDA as having fewer false positives. It actually tests for the active disease. Hoorah!
