Death Row Inmates: Andrew Chan & Myuran Sukumaran

Death Row Inmates:

Andrew Chan

&

Myuran Sukumaran

The inspiration for this blog was the airing of last night Four Corners program about Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, two Australian young men who had been convicted with 7 others of trying to smuggle a total of some 8 kilograms of heroin from Bali Indonesia to Australia some ten years ago.  Whilst the four others received hefty sentences that will see them spend the prime years of their lives behind bars, the purported leaders of the group, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, each received the death penalty by firing squad.  All avenues of legal appeal under Indonesia's legal system having being exhausted. An appeal to Indonesia's newly elected President, Joko Widodo, to spare the lives of these two contrite and reformed young men had been flatly refused.  Several rushed applications for judicial review of various legal procedures and decisions had been refused by the Attorney General thus paving the way for a black hood to be placed on the head Andrew Chan and on the head of Myuran Sukumaran and for them to be marched, possibly with others to a field where the firing squad would take aim and shoot them in cold blooded execution.  

According to official Indonesian report both Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran will be executed with the next patch of executions that will take place before the end of February.  

In other words both of these young men have less than 18 days left to live.

Chan & Sukumaran today

Last legal Plea

What is clear to me from last night Four Corners program is the fact that the legal defence team of both Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran may have overlooked one crucial, and to me, primary critical fact. This fact relates to the role of Australian Federal Police in the arrest.  

It appears that on the evidence Indonesian police were tipped by Australian Federal Police.  In other words there is in existence either a Formal Treaty, or a Memorandum of Understanding, or a Co-operation Agreement between Australian Law Enforcement Agencies and their Indonesian Counterpart.  

Whatever that document might be it surely must spell out either directly or indirectly in ‘diplomatic niceties’ a diplomatic solution to that currently faced in the case of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran.

Even if the diplomatic documentation does not spell out or provide avenue for a diplomatic solution, that solution arises from the implication that unlike Indonesia, Australia does not have the death penalty on its criminal law code either Commonwealth or State.  

The clear implication to be drawn from this fact is that by tipping Indonesian Police about these lost  young men, dubbed the Bali 9, Australian Federal Police did not sanction their execution.  This must be so given the fact the drugs they were carrying were destined for the Australian market NOT the Indonesian market.  Whilst I cannot claim any familiarity with the legal argument pursued by the Australian and Indonesian legal team on behalf of Andrew Chan, Myuran Sukumaran, and the others, I will certainly be interested to familiarize myself how such arguments – drugs destined for Australia and no death penalty under Australian Law – are dealt with, and presumably dismissed under Indonesia legal system. 

Is it the case that the Indonesian judiciary explicitly or implicitly conveying the message that the Australian Federal Police gave its Indonesian counterpart the lives of two, and possibly 9 lost Australian young men? I find that hard to fathom!             

Joko Widodo or Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono?

As previously mentioned the arrest, charge and conviction, of the Australian drug mules at Bali took place some ten years ago.  The incumbent Indonesian President was Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono NOT Joko Widodo who was officially inaugurated as President on 20 October 2014.  Whilst we do not know and are not privy as to whether in rejecting a plea to spare the lives of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran President Joko Widodo consulted with his predecessor, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the question arises whether the final decision is that of President Widodo or Yudhoyono.  

On any view it would be of some comfort to know President Widodo's reason for rejecting the plea:  Toughness on drugs, or popularity with the masses are not, in my opinion, justification to reject the plea. This is made more so given the fact that the Indonesian Law Enforcement Agencies and the Indonesian media have in recent days highlighted a poorly conducted Australian radio survey showing that a slight majority of Australian agree with the death sentence to be dished out to Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran.  This poorly conducted and unrepresentative survey should not by any mean or stretch of imagination be any comfort to any Indonesian citizen or government official as some sort of justification to put these two young men to death by the firing squad.  

The fact is that Indonesian Law Enforcement Authorities were tipped by the Australian Federal Police to arrest these drug mules.  The fact is that the drugs that they were carrying when they passed through Bali were destined to the Australian market. The fact is that the death penalty is not on Australia’s Criminal Law.  The fact is that these men admitted their guilt and on all evidence had been reformed and are begging for mercy MUST be the overriding factors in any decision.

Finally, one must remember that there are numerous International Conventions and Treaties, to some of which Indonesia is a signatory that deals compassionately with situations in which Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran find themselves.  Finally, the plea of the parents and brothers and sisters of both men must surely carry some weight, if not to spare their lives, at least to afford the opportunity of a final comprehensive case and submission that takes into consideration amongst other things facts mentioned in this blog to be made on their behalf.

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Gender and Writings

Gender and Writings

If pens could speak they would be better judges of skill of the hands that handled them and expressed the power and imagination of the grey matter through the ages.  However, over the last two decades perhaps the pens had given this honour to so-called keyboards to make that decision. Regardless whether it is the pen, or the keyboard expressing opinion on the question: ‘whether women are better writers than men’ the sad reality is that in today’s world the answer could only come, or more precisely is determined, through the ringing of the cash register in bookstores or sales through other means, mainly the electronic media, computers, kindles, iphones etc.  If, for whatever reason, the total dollar value of the sale is not the ultimate factor determining the question, it is sure to be the factor that tipped the scale.  Having said that one should be aware of the modern day fact, that the clever marketing of a book written by either a man or a woman or a hermaphrodite for that matter, especially if backed by good financial head start, could make an unknown of either gender a famous writer overnight.  Needless to say ghost writers still survive.

Attempts to shed light on the question of gender and writing by undertaking surveys asking statistically valid numbers of men and women questions on various topics does not, in my opinion, enhance the discussion or the debate.  If anything, those statistical figures obtained from such surveys creates barriers that may limit the scope and depth of the inquiry.  So the question is; how do we enlighten this inquiry and make it meaningful? 

 It is my considered opinion that a good starting point for this inquiry could commence with brief review of two books that were best sellers not that long ago. One of these books is called: ‘Men are from Mars Women are from Venus’ by John Gray the other is called: ‘You Just Don't Understand’ Women and Men in Conversation by Deborah Tannen, who had written earlier book entitled: ‘That’s Not What I Meant!’   In brief, the gist of Gray’s book is that gender relationship problems could be explained or attributable to acclimatization of each gender to its planet which imprints its own psyche. In other words evolutionary and physiological factors had fixated or played dominant role in fixating both women and men psyche.  The example that Gray’s give is complaint by men that if they offer solution to problems that their women folks brings up in conversation the women, more often than not, are more interested in talking about the problem than solving it.  Whilst in general agreement with Gray’s reasoning, Tannen put more emphasis on the fact that from childhood girls learn different approaches to language and communication which she refers to as “rapport-talk” versus “report-talk” to describe female and male social affiliation and emotional connection.   But the real question is whether either of these two learned authors and best sellers, Gray and Tannen, enlightens the debate and shed some light to the question whether women are better writers than men.  In my opinion both writers do to a limited extent by focusing attention on the way each gender treat emotion and mood and how the differences in that treatment is reflected and expressed in everyday life.  I will highlight this by thinking of a situation in which a brawl takes place in a class room or a lecture theatre.  Police comes in and takes statement from witnesses to the brawl, from class mates or fellow students.  The facts as to who commenced the brawl and who got injured are generally agreed upon but you can bet your bottom dollar statements given to the police by each gender that witnessed the same incident would be markedly different.  I can only say, thank God that in such situations a panel jury of 12 decides the guilt or innocence of the accused.

I would also make this observation to do with discipline of obstetric and gynecology.  Experienced clinicians who teach medical students and interns in this discipline always make a point of emphasis and that point is ‘always listen carefully what expectant mothers had to say, whether in normal birth deliveries and acute situations’. Point? A clear situation where women writing on the subject of pregnancy and childbirth would have distinct advantage than anything a man can write about the subject, even if the man in question is the head of the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in a major hospital or medical school.   

It would be factually a fair comment to note that perhaps up until the middle of the twentieth century, as writers, women would have faced significantly greater obstacles than men.  The simple reason is that freedom from restraint and control as a social convention, and emancipation had not taken firm hold and acceptance.   At the same time it is noteworthy to mention writers like Emily Bronte’ novels: Wuthering Heights & Jane Eyre; and Jane Austen novels: Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Northanger Abbey, and Persuasion.  Perhaps it is more noteworthy to highlight recent news item that the author who wrote the blockbuster ‘To Kill a Mocking Bird’, Harper Lee, in fact put aside a book that she wrote earlier entitled: ‘Go Set a Watchman’ in order to complete writing ‘To Kill a Mocking Bird’ and that book is now to be published and likely to be made into a film some 50 plus years after the classic film To Kill a Mocking Bird.

In summary, it is my opinion that both genders have the potential of churning out blockbusters on wide variety of subjects and life matters.  Thus far the scale is slightly tipped in favour of the male gender but the overwhelming consensus with which I agree is that the scale will soon be tipped in favour of the female gender and may stay there for long time to come.

Neural Atrophy & Synaptic Disconnect Part II

Neural atrophy

&

Synaptic disconnect

Part II

Careful Samuel L Jackson!

Whilst this series of blogs is about the forthcoming human aphasia tsunami in order to understand how the iphone will cause that tsunami it is important to understand the normal physiology of speech, and about the current state of knowledge presumably known by medical professional about non iphone related cause or causes of aphasia.

In brief sound is produced by the larynx and that sound is refined or modified by the lips, teeth, tongue, and palate.  The first process is commonly referred to as phonation the modification is referred to as articulation.  It is important to note that the larynx separates the upper respiratory tract from the lower respiratory tract and accordingly in normal non iphone related atrophy can be affected by disease from above or from below.  Diseases can include inflammation, tumour, paralysis, singer’s nodules, and vocal cord polyp.  I am not suggesting that the forthcoming iphone dysphonia tsunami is going to be caused by the common and traditional causes that are known and are included in courses thought in medical schools and the ENT (Ear, Nose & Throat) specialty. 

Aphasia - the future concern for neurologists

What I am suggesting is that the cause or causes of  iphone hoarseness resulting from misuse of the voice that prevents the two sides of the vocal cord meeting through their entire length will initially be much harder to diagnose.  Both the GP and the ENT specialist are going to shake their heads in disbelief.  Why?  After expensive investigation with the latest technology on offer all traditional causes of dysphonia are ruled out.  The iphoned patient will most likely be admitted to hospital to be assessed by seasoned neurologist who presumably can look outside the traditional ‘diagnostic square’.  If that seasoned neurologist did look outside the diagnostic square what I am suggesting he or she will be surprised to find is that the dysphonia is in fact a form of  dystrophy caused by or due to lack of use of neuronal pathways gradually engulfing the area of the brain that enable the patient, that is now referred to Mr, or Miss/Mrs iphonophile, to discern speech signals and thus speak.  The seasoned now fully alert neurologist will start asking iphonophile patient questions which the iphonophile patient cannot answer other than through messages or emails which are sent through the iphone!  A bizarre situation in which cause of the dysphonia now controls the means of communication between iphonophile patient and the seasoned neurologist!

Asphasia

This is a situation that is not dissimilar to a robot replacing human.   Regardless of the élan, fineness, and refinement with which that seasoned neurologist is held in the hospital, amongst his peers, and profession the chances are he or she will start using unkempt language with the iphonophile patient.     
 If he or she are visionaries the chances are he or she will realize that destiny had made them pioneers in discovering new modern day cause of dysphonia that is about to become a tsunami.  The dysphonic patient is now labeled ‘dysphonic iphonophilic’ admitted and totally dispossessed of his iphone and laptop.

Dysphonic Iphonphilic sufferers of the future

His first treatment must start with learning elementary books that are thought in kindergarten including those that teach phonation of all letters of the alphabet!  By necessity speech therapy will be destined to become well paid popular course on offer in tertiary institutions that will include universities and colleges. 

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Human Longevity And The Health Budget

Human Longevity

And

The Health Budget

Joe Hockey

A recent comment was made by the Federal Treasurer of Australia, the Honourable Joe Hockey, to the effect that a child born in 2015 may well live to the ripe old age of 150 years.  Although the primary motive of the Treasurer in making this comment was to highlight the plight of the spiraling health costs and his difficulties thus far convincing the Australian populous that unpalatable change must be made to Medicare, the comment is not as farfetched as it may sound and here is why:

Child born in 2015 will reach the age of 150 years old in 2165 or a century and half from now.  If one were to look at the progress of medical science over the last 150 years and how that progress improved the average lifespan from 35 years for male 40 years for female in the late 19th century to now - 82 years for male 86 for females.  Substantial part of that improvement was due to hygiene thanks to Louis Pasteur, antiseptics and washing of hands.

The next quantum leap in improving longevity came in the early part of the 20th century when microbes that cause swathe of infectious diseases such as diphtheria and whooping cough came under the focus of microscopes and researchers such as Florey and Fleming the pioneers principally responsible for the discovery of penicillin that led to the discovery of other antibiotics and vaccination:Discoveries that made significant reduction in the death toll of injured combatants in World War II.  

By the mid 20th century the average lifespan was 60 for male 65 for female. However, the most significant quantum leap, more like a revolution than a leap, came in the early 1950’s when Watson and Cricks were able to decode the genetic material in cell nuclei, the so called “double helix” the DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid) and RNA (Ribonucleic Acid).  

DNA has opened the doors for research once unfathomable

Let us stop here and think for a moment.  What the Watson & Crick discovery means, at least in theory, is that sample from diseased organ or abnormal growth can be genetically understood when compared with normal healthy cell. In other words the specific site in the double helix abnormal cell can now be identified and at least in theory, modified to make it normal.  The technology that enables that modification to take place is well within the realm of reality and herein is the reason for the fear and worry of Treasurer Hockey and his attempt to making the Federal Health Budget sustainable.

Within matter of 30 odd years after Watson and Crick decoded the double helix, DNA, RNA, and chromosomes thanks to ground breaking research by molecular biologist, the molecule of life revolution came into full swing and the hard disc of life became a reality.  We now know that 50 trillion cells make up the human body and that for as little as $1,500 one can obtain his or her full genetic hard disc!  

The potential for longevity provided by this genetic hard disc are beyond comprehension, a dream world   fantasy, but in reality it could well mean kissing death goodbye! We now understand that the much feared words cancer and metastasis are uncontrolled cell growth of cells that invade healthy vital organs leading to death.  But molecular research now tells us there are molecular causes for cancer in which a gene retrovirus hijacked normal health genes.  This behaviour could be replicated in laboratory mice, rats and guinea pigs.  This replication in laboratory mice, rats, and guinea pigs led to the discovery of new type of medications that enabled oncologists to successfully treat such conditions as chronic myeloid leukemia.  In recent years newer drugs became available to treat number of other cancers.  The costs of those drugs are currently prohibitive and one can fully understand treasurer Hockey fears about the explosive cost to the health budget.  It is likely in a matter of few years researchers will be able to crack the genetic genomes of currently untreatable cancers such as pancreatic cancer and cancers of the brain such as glycoma.   Once that genetic genome is cracked pharmaceutical conglomerates will come up with designer drug.

With this brief outline it is my opinion that Treasurer Hockey’s comment that a child born in January 2015 could well live 150 years dying in the year 2165 is by no means farfetched.

  Will this process will take 150 years?

 

Surreal as it may sound, it is my opinion that cracking the genetic code, understanding division of cells, mutation, and genomes had opened the possibility of genetic modulation of number of yet untreatable cancers.  If foresighted biotechnology companies focus attention on developing designer drugs human longevity becomes analogous to a string that in theory can be extended for as long as the eye could see.

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Forgotten Souls of the Titanic

Forgotten Souls of the Titanic

Third class passengers

It is common, indeed instinctive, and normal reaction for us to envisage scenes from the 1997 movie ‘The Titanic’ starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet and credible cast of other supporting actors whenever we hear the word ‘Titanic’.  Spectacular as this epic movie attempted to re-create the catastrophic disaster of the maiden voyage of the Titanic when it struck iceberg on 12 April 1912 and sunk with massive loss of life. In my opinion the movie fails (in my opinion) to portrays the human element, the lives and expectations of the second and third class passengers who made up the bulk of the human cargo that is (if human were recorded as cargo not as passengers).

According to official record on board when the Titanic officially commenced its maiden journey through the Atlantic it had 337 first-class passengers with an estimated combined net worth of $500 million. The richest of all was John Jacob Astor aged 47.  His father (Jack) owned very significant portion of New York and did not have to shout about it.  In fact Jack was the forefather developer that started the forest and jungle of skyscrapers of today’s New York – Titanic of sort on dirt – with similar class differentiation to the Titanic on 12 April 1912. The average price for shared first-class cabin ticket is said to be in the region of 55 pound sterling.

There were only 271 second-class passengers representing forty percent of the Titanic second-class capacity which is an indication of the prevailing competition from German and Italian shipping lines. One of the second class passengers, and perhaps the only passenger on the Titanic was a black man by the name of Joseph Laroche born in Haiti in 1886.  Laroche with his French wife and two children was on his way back to Haiti after experiencing intolerable racial prejudice working or studying engineering. It is noteworthy to remember that in 1912 men were the bread winners and their wives were seen and treated as human appendage.  Despite their second-class passenger status on the   Titanic women status did not change and were not seen or treated anything other than human appendage.  The official price paid for second class ticket was 26 pounds sterling.

There were 712 third-class passengers some seventy percent of capacity.  As this blog is concerned with the forgotten souls of the third-class passengers it is only pertinent to take closer look at the nationalities, embarkation, and official recorded number of those passengers.  Four hundred and ninety seven (497) embarked at South Hampton. One hundred and two (102) embarked at Cherbourg and one hundred and thirteen (113) embarked at Queenstown.  The estimated breakdown of nationalities of the third-class passengers were: 118 British, 113 Irish, 104 Swedes, 79 Lebanese, 55 Finns, 43 Americans, 33 Bulgarians, 25 Norwegians, 22 Belgians, 12 Armenians, 8 Chinese, 7 Danes, 5 Frenchmen, 4 Italians, 4 Greeks, 4 Germans, 4 Swiss, and 3 Portuguese.  There were significant number of others which included sizeable numbers from what was then the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Russia.  The discrepancy between the official number and the number from the various nationalities can be explained by the notoriety of the practice of travel agents, middle men, bribery, and official record keeping. 

This blog is intended as factual background to the human souls of the passengers who were heading in search of new life and opportunities.  The next blog in this series on the Titanic I will focus on the forgotten souls of the officially recorded 79 Lebanese passengers.  Why? Because the true number of Lebanese on the Titanic was significantly greater than that officially recorded and also I will try to answer the question as to why a tiny country like Lebanon, a mere spec on a world map, could have such a number of passengers on the maiden voyage of the unsinkable Titanic across the Atlantic in April 1912.   

  

Meantime, until the next blog it is important to note and remember that in 1943 Nazi Germany made a propaganda movie called ‘The Titanic’ which was intended to depict Britain as a society ruled by greedy wealthy ruling class that sways great control and influence.  It was Hitler’s way of saying he was not against the English populous before starting his bombing campaign of London.  Needless to say unlike the 1997 Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet movie the German movie was not shown in Germany and despite the massive expense involved in making the movie it proved to be financial disaster.  Despite all this credit must be given to men and women who undertake such challenges.

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The Father of Digital Technology

The Father of Digital Technology

Benedict Cumberbatch as Alan Turing in the Imitation Game

(Apple, Microsoft, Samsung, Nokia, Blackberry

Ericsson, Motorola, HTC, etc, etc…)

If one were to take a survey by stopping 100 people at random in any, and for that matter all of the world’ major cities and ask the following question:

“who do you think is the real inventor behind the

technology of the computer and digital phone?”

My bet will be less that 1 or 2 percent will answer: Alan Mathison Turing.  Yes I have no doubt that it is the very little known genius Alan Mathison Turing.  Why very little known? In a nutshell Turning was ostracized because he was gay at a time when homosexuality was a crime in the UK in 1952.  Instead of serving prison sentence Turing accepted the alternative option of treatment with female hormones, alternative better known at the time as chemical castration. Thanks to the humiliation of this genius Turing committed suicide by cyanide poisoning before his 42^nd birthday in 1954.  It took the British Government, current Prime Minister Cameron, close to 60 years to pass a motion annulling Turn 1952 homosexual conviction in late 2013.  I wonder how Turning bones, spirit and soul reacted to this news! 

Am sure that when one looks at Turing’s academic accolades and World War II contribution to Britain war effort little, if any doubt, be left in crowning Turing as the father and patriarch of modern day ‘miracles’ of digital technology that permanently  changed mankind’ understanding and quality of life to a scope and destiny yet to be determined.  Before embarking on specific explanation of Turing’s inventions I want to briefly raise the question of copyright.  Can one imagine if Turing were to copyright his inventions and his estate claimed royalties from the likes of current Apple, Samsung,   and their predecessors in the digital technology industry.  There is no doubt that the entity and the beneficiaries of that entity would have been materially the richest known to the current civilization of mankind.

Academic accolades of Alan Mathison Turing

If one were to search for a hereditary root of Turing’ mathematic genius the figure that stands out is his grandfather from his mother side being chief engineer of the Madrass Railway.  His grandfather from his father’s side was a clergyman.  At the age of 13 he was a student at Sherborne School Manchester better known for humanities than mathematics. In a letter to his parents a teacher wrote: ‘I hope he will not fall between two stools.  If he is to be scientific specialist he is wasting his time…’  After Sherborne Turing After Sherborne, Turing studied as an undergraduate from 1931 to 1934 at King’s College Cambridge from where he gained first-class honours in mathematics. In 1935, at the young age of 22, he was elected a fellow at King's on the strength of a dissertation in which he proved the central limit theorem. From King’s College he went to Princeton University where he did PhD on the subject of the Systems of Logic based on ordinals.

I will stop at this stage and leave the more interesting and better known work and contributions of Turing that took place at on 4 September 1939, the day after the Britain  declared war on Germany on which date Turing reported to Bletchley Park, the wartime station  better known as Government Code & Cypher School.

King’s College Cambridge where the computer room is named after Turing, who became a student there in 1931 and a Fellow in 1935

A complete and working replica of a bombe at the National Codes Centre at Bletchley Park Britain wartime station

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Dissertations on Justice - What is Justice ? Part 1

Dissertations on Justice

What is Justice?

Part I 

 If I were to stand at the centre of any busy landmark of a major city anywhere in the world and were to ask a randomly selected sample of 10 people each one individually to define his or her perception of Justice, I am sure I will get 10 different answers that may vary from one extreme to the other.  This is understandable and may indeed be universal.  However, if I were to ask the same question to 10 victims of crime or civil wrong (tort) again I will more likely than not get 10 different answers, but this time these answers will be qualified in accordance with the severity of the impact that civil wrong or crime had on the individual, his or her family, close friends, and his and her world at large especially financial well-being.

Where do we go to get justice?  In criminal law, strange as it may sound that justice is not given to the victim of the crime!  Neither is it given to his or her family.  By definition any crime is a crime against the State, the Country, or the reigning King or Queen (Regina) not the victim or victims of crime.  Notionally that justice is given to the governmental authorities of the State, Province of the Country in which the victim resides or where the crime is committed.  The act or acts committed by the offender constituting the crime (offence/s) are generally legislated by Parliaments and slotted into Consolidated Acts with accompanying Legislation, Schedules, Procedures and Rules which the Minister of Justice in the State, Province, or Country had introduced and after whatever amendments is voted and legislated.  These Acts are part and parcel of law school courses and form the tools of trade of legal practitioner practicing or specializing in criminal law.  
On the other hand if the wrong committed is civil the individual can sue in his or her own capacity as a plaintiff.  The wrong doer (tortfeasor) which could be individual, a company, or governmental entity is named the defendant.  In some rare cases the offence in question could fall into a category of strict liability which means that in order to succeed the plaintiff does not have to prove fault or negligence by the defendant.  More often than not torts falling into this category are legislated and likely to involve governmental or semi governmental institutions.

The burden of proof in criminal and civil wrongs varies considerably.  In civil wrongs that burden is said to be:  on the balance of probability.  Imagine for a minute the blindfolded Goddess Themes carrying the evenly balanced Scale of Justice in her right hand.  If you or I were to put 100 grams of gold on each side of the scale neither side tips the scale and the scale remains evenly balanced.  If you were a plaintiff you will succeed in your claim but you may not get the full monetary compensation you thought.  Why? The chances are in such situations you as a plaintiff carried significant share of the blame for the tort.  If the tort involved and relied upon is negligence by the defendant you the aggrieved plaintiff have probably not kept proper lookout to avoid that negligence whether it be car accident or slipping on oily surface or banana skin in a supermarket.  If one were to read books about award of compensation or specialized books on damages for torts the general guiding principles are based on the notion of putting the plaintiff back to the position as if that tort had not taken place.  Regardless of nobleness of this thought in this guiding principle and theory more often than not that nobleness fades in practice.  How does one put a monetary value on a loss of limb, sight, or bodily function?  Regardless of the monetary compensation the quality of life can never be the same.  In such cases a component of the monetary award will be to cover costs for provision of special help, be it machine, residential modifications such as for lift or wheelchair access or personal help.  
Regardless of the totality of the monetary award the quality of the aggrieved plaintiff’ life can never be the same.  I guess one aspect of relief that equates to Justice is knowledge of the fact that if that very same tort had happened to anyone in the society in which the plaintiff resides, but for the amount of monetary compensation the relief or justice is the same.  

Ask any aggrieved plaintiff after settling or winning his or her case whether the amount of monetary compensation awarded had put him or her in the same position as if the tort had not taken place significant number will say NO and most likely make other comments not befitting mention in this blog.  Needless to say the chances are that plaintiff had to wait years before he or she had their day in the Court.  Did the process involve revelation of the truth or is the truth the quantum sum of monetary compensated?  I guess what I am asking here, is: whether truth has any place in justice where money compensation is awarded.

How about a plaintiff who had lost his or her case and was ordered to pay the defendant’s legal costs?  What justice did this individual plaintiff received?  A legal stuff up or lack of resources to commence legal proceedings is tantamount to denial of legal justice for wronged or aggrieved plaintiff.  If that plaintiff was a passenger in a train and had strained his or her back muscles, torn ligaments and developed a permanent limb as a result of the train coming to a sudden stop in which he or she fell what does justice mean to this plaintiff who had lost his or her case against the railway and is left with permanent disability?  Facts and words that had been modified and slotted into legal jargons and uttered before listening and sympathetic ears tipped the scale in favour of the defendant.  Is such a case tantamount to denial of justice?  Clearly the railway is insured and clearly the insurance can afford to pay for the cream de le cream of the legal profession to use their élan, golden jargons and art of persuasion. 

What chance does the impecunious plaintiff who cannot afford legal representation has?   Buckley’s at best.  Is justice denied in this situation?  All plaintiffs in like situation will say a loud YES.  The defendant will have you believe that the plaintiff had his or her chance and fairly and squarely lost.  From the defendant’s point of view justice had been done!   Really, does aggrieved plaintiff who had flinched and swore delivered justice to the corporation or the governmental entity he or she had sued?

The burden of proof for criminal offences is much higher than that of civil wrongs.  Instead of ‘balance of probabilities’ it is ‘beyond reasonable doubt’.  What does that means and why?  In theory, and in practice, if the accused (defendant) can raise doubt he or she cannot be and should not be convicted. Why?   The well established notion, quotation and belief are: ‘better to have 100 felons walk free than have 1 innocent accused convicted’.  Is that so?  Think of a jury deciding the guilt or the innocence of the accused.   That jury of 12 is picked from a pool of potential jurors selected at random.  Think of that jury as being 6 men and 6 women.  The pool of knowledge and experience of 12 members of society in which the accused defendant lives presumably will level the playing field of prejudices.  But does it really or do we care if it does not?  Remember the victim of the crime is not the family of the person who is killed, maimed and deprived of any enjoyment of life or indeed permanently scared.  It is Regina, yes it is Queen Elizabeth, the richest woman in the world sitting in Buckingham Palace or it is the King or the Country that had suffered.  So the justice for the victim, if he or she is still alive, is the knowledge that the accused is convicted and will be slotted behind bars!

Appointments of Magistrates, Judges, Justices, and Chiefs to the highest Courts in the land are generally done by Parliament in consultation with Bodies having control of the legal profession in that land.   Those Bodies make recommendations that Parliament generally accepts.  The nominated candidate would have had years of experience practicing either for plaintiffs or defendant or if he or she had specialized in criminal law he or she would be either for defendant or prosecutor for Regina, yes Queen Elizabeth II.  The presiding Magistrate, Judge, or Justice is now supposed to be impartial.  He or she supposed to forget all his training and experience and art of persuasion the insurance company that had retained him or her as counsel or his or her fixed views about certain legal principles, precedents, case law, counter arguments etc … Does a jury removes the judges’ prejudice and brings the scale of blindfolded Goddess Themes to equilibrium?  I suggest NO! I will take up that argument in pursuit of justice in the next blog in this series.

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Neural Atrophy & Synaptic Disconnect

Neural atrophy

&

Synaptic disconnect

Am writing this blog in the hope that it will act as a wakeup call, cause a stir, or if not a stir trigger a revolution! Yes a revolution at the instigation of the medical profession, more specifically by the specialty of neurology by that profession.  If the medical profession choose, deliberately, ignorantly, or otherwise to ignore the problem then by major debate, by those capable of undertaking that debate – perhaps select committee by the United Nation.  Left unchecked the modern iphone, the Apple and Samsung versions 5 & 6 and planned advances on those versions are exceedingly advancing the yet to come sudden epidemic of aphasia (atrophy and death of neural connections in areas of the brain responsible for speech).  Hello those who are awake, neurologists and others, take notice of the following facts and observations which are becoming universal worldwide, if not yet worldwide then the so called ‘west’.

Facts & Observations

Each day for the last 6 months whilst waiting at the platform to catch train in the morning and late in the afternoon I made a point of counting the number of commuters who were either exploring their iphones and had earplugs connected to their iphone, those talking, those playing games, and others who appear to be simply fascinated exploring the various applications, facebook and whatever else on offer. On average less than 5% of commuters were either reading newspaper or talking.  This percentage dropped to 3% or less on the return journey late afternoon.  I am talking about average of 100 people in the morning and 300 people late afternoon.   How strange my late father would feel out of place if he were to board a train is Sydney today?  To see in a carriage that seats 70 plus people each person carrying hand held gadget plugged to his or her ears and talking in the air in total ignorance to everybody not the least to the person sitting next to him or her.   A scene and reality that is not only strange, to the likes of my father, but to us mere ten years ago.  The greater worry to humanity and the human race is the attachment and reliance of the young of the iphone.   I do mean the really young the 4 and 5 years old to the delight and encouragement of their parents are quickly becoming competent users of the iphones especially in downloading games.  What effect will that knowledge and reliance on the iphone have on a young developing brain, the interconnecting pathways and the developing synaptic connections upon which the normal health and functioning of the said pathway is dependent?  It cannot be anything but deleterious.

In the next blog I will look at normal neurology of speech, the area in the brain responsible to deciphering the neural message to speech and the atrophy that could result in aphasia that one sees in patients who had suffered moderate to severe stroke.  I will also look at possible solutions that address the medical and legal aspect of the forthcoming aphasia tsunami.  

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