Three bits of news
Apr. 29th, 2004 08:23 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
elfsAll of these come from the New York Times or the Washington Post. Registration required.
The first bit of news is the most horrific. While many people have made much of the lack of body armor on field soldiers is Iraq, the fact is most of the front-line troops are wearing some and have Kevlar helmets as well. But the roadside bombs take advantage of this fact by throwing shrapnel up from ground level, into the face and helmet.
The difference between this war and previous ones is that we can now save more people than we once could. The press focuses on the dead, but the injured are something else-- because of the body armor and changes in insurgency tactics, a frightening number of the men coming home are permanently brain damaged. "We're saving more people than should be saved, probably" said one neurosurgeon.
An average of one soldier a day is sent home with brain damage-- half of whom may live for years as vegetables, the other half of whom will be "functional," but will suffer paralysis, memory dysfunction, and personality disorders for the rest of their lives.
The Lasting Wounds of War
Answer, but no cure, for a social disorder that isolates many
When Internet shopping became a big deal, the idea of a "perfect market" was really interesting to economists. But, as it turns out, it's not the price that makes a really big deal to most people, it's the selection. By having the ability to choose from the most obscure shops around, one can find the best products and those really rare items that one could not normally find. Alternatively, one has the power to locate the prices on a given product and determine if shipping and handling is worth the expense. Almost half of all Amazon sales are of books outside the "top 100,000."
Virginia Postrel tells us What's so great about Internet commerce?
The first bit of news is the most horrific. While many people have made much of the lack of body armor on field soldiers is Iraq, the fact is most of the front-line troops are wearing some and have Kevlar helmets as well. But the roadside bombs take advantage of this fact by throwing shrapnel up from ground level, into the face and helmet.
The difference between this war and previous ones is that we can now save more people than we once could. The press focuses on the dead, but the injured are something else-- because of the body armor and changes in insurgency tactics, a frightening number of the men coming home are permanently brain damaged. "We're saving more people than should be saved, probably" said one neurosurgeon.
An average of one soldier a day is sent home with brain damage-- half of whom may live for years as vegetables, the other half of whom will be "functional," but will suffer paralysis, memory dysfunction, and personality disorders for the rest of their lives.
The Lasting Wounds of War
Often the new diagnoses involve people who for years have been deemed rude, clueless or just plain weird because of their blunt comments or all-too-personal disclosures. They typically have a penchant for accuracy and a hard-wired dislike for the disruption of routine.
Answer, but no cure, for a social disorder that isolates many
When Internet shopping became a big deal, the idea of a "perfect market" was really interesting to economists. But, as it turns out, it's not the price that makes a really big deal to most people, it's the selection. By having the ability to choose from the most obscure shops around, one can find the best products and those really rare items that one could not normally find. Alternatively, one has the power to locate the prices on a given product and determine if shipping and handling is worth the expense. Almost half of all Amazon sales are of books outside the "top 100,000."
Virginia Postrel tells us What's so great about Internet commerce?
