the mellow tigger's musings

I wear my FloMask Pro mask every time I'm around other people. Today, I found a failure mode for this mask. For all I know, it affects every N95 mask type, but who knows for sure. I was outside on another far-below-freezing day in Minneapolis, catching the bus to go to/from physical therapy at the hospital. My exhales caused the mask filter to freeze up, making it difficult to breathe through it. Fine, I thought, since it will thaw when I'm in the bus or building. It did thaw, but the filter never regained permeability.

When I started exercising during therapy and breathing heavily, the filter "blew out", breaking the seal. When I got home, I reseated the filter and locked it in, but the same thing happened again after being outdoors waiting for the micro-route bus to take me to the grocery store. I ended up manually holding the filter in place for inhales, then letting the dislodged edge flap loose for exhales.

Better than nothing, but not great. I'm calling this a potential exposure day. When I got home, I sprayed my nose with an iodine post-exposure spray. From now on, I guess I need to carry a replacement filter with me, so I can put in a working filter when I arrive at my destination when traveling in very cold weather outdoors.

Physical therapy is still mostly going good. The neuropathy is still worse than usual in my left foot/leg, but it's hurting less. I called attention to the one single exercise that still is the hardest for me to do and with little-to-no improvement after 2 weeks. We'll see if he has something new for me to try next week.

I knew as soon as I saw the first report about the killing of the United Healthcare CEO that we were going to be hearing a LOT about it on national news, because it does not serve the status quo to let people think that there are immediate (if violent) solutions to problems plaguing American life. Granted, there is good reason in Minnesota to hear a lot about this crime committed in New York state, because United Health Group is incorporated here in the state of Minnesota, in the Twin Cities suburb of Minnetonka, in my own Hennepin county.

Beyond that initial impression, I shared the common (and unethical) emotional reaction that hoped for the escape of the killer. It was especially easy to think of the killer as a kind of Batman hero figure because we learned several interesting things almost immediately after the killing. Within a day, we learned that 1) Novo Nordisk was cutting insulin prices by over 70%, 2) Anthem reversed its plan to limit coverage of anesthesia in surgery, and 3) health insurers started hiding their faces online. It sure did seem as if a lowly peon had spooked the ravenous beasts of capitalism.

Reporters noted the lack of public sympathy while the internet flooded with memes, artwork (my favorite), and music. The collective response seemed mostly to be: "Sorry, empathy is out of network." That phrase harkened to a common denial excuse for needed healthcare in the USA. People not from the USA may have a hard time understanding the pain and despair that our healthcare system (which is clearly worse than in other developed countries) evokes amongst those of us subjected to it. It's worse than I already described, and United Healthcare was the worst (data source) of the bunch. It is alleged in court that they knowingly used a "faulty" AI algorithm with 90% error rate to automatically deny claims at their institution. Yes, 90% error rate.

I've seen the reports this afternoon that someone was caught as the apparent killer. After 5 days. In another state. With every single piece of evidence still on his person. That coincidence seems... interesting.

I decry capitalism here frequently. And plutocracy. And violence. I'm not exactly a pacifist, but I think a great deal more justification of violence is needed than is usually offered. It's unwise to urge vigilantism, because we absolutely cannot trust any holder of a weapon with the rational discretion to choose a reasonable target. Just look at police killings and, closer to home, the phone threat at a different health insurer here in Minnesota. Individuals cannot be trusted to wield violence reasonably. Neither can mobs. We must make changes collectively in our laws, which are the codification of our ethics. It's long past time that we moved that needle of progress. We should institute laws to reduce these situations that make violence seem like a justifiable solution to a pressing problem.