Neurology is such a tough object it drives people crazy. I was reading
the confession of a schizophrenic. It seemed so similar to what I do on
the usenet -- keeping myself entertained with grandioze thoughts and
delusions. It is imperative that neurologists find the regions of the
brain that are responsible for mental illnesses. They can't pass the
buck to the psychologists who only experiment with new drugs without
opening a new line of treatment. Neurologists are supposed to find a
permanent cure to the people's mental illnesses and of course physical
disabilities. But they invariably fail and end up diagnosing tumors and
such that are visible in x-rays, CAT scan, MRI, etc. The challenge to a
neurologist is how to diagnose a person at the mere act of presentation
with symptoms. Psychologists can assume a person is depressed or have
bipolar or worse schizophrenia. But neurologists are physicians who
must trace the problem to its origin in the brain or spinal cord.  Even
today there is no cure to Parkinson's or Alzheimer's whereas the world
keeps yelling about AIDS which is not a neurological problem. Or could
it be? How can a neurologist ignore anything from indigestion to
Parkinson's when so much of the nervous system -- autonomous, motor,
efferent, afferent, etc. -- is responsible for the physiological
problem? Imagine going to an ER staffed only by neurologists who in
turn delegate the responsibility for finding cure to other specialists.
What will be their first line of treatment? Open the brain? Don't we
live in a society that stigmatizes people who were operated on the
brain. My mother was operated on the brain and I know what it is like
to be a son of her. To this day I avoid discussing about my mother in
public. My brother and I have psychological illnesses and we can't
console one another. If you leave three of us in the room, we just
don't know what to do other than exchange glances. Imagine my father's
reaction to all this. So we hope neurologists do the right thing before
they cut open the brains and try alternative approaches. Most of the
neurology services are so expensive. Psychologists come in with cheaper
alternatives. But they also resort to delegating the actual task of
treating the patient to the psycho analysts who pretty much do an ink
blot test or give a crayon to paint a caricature. Even adults are
treated like kids by the psychoanalysts. It is a waste of time being
prodded to think for oneself when the thought processes are
continuously streaming. The goal is to focus the thoughts like a laser
beam and introspect to find the root cause. Some drugs can help here.
But they induce lethargy and subdue reflexes that are so important in
the reality such as when driving after a hard day's work. Admittedly I
have depression and psychosis. Most employers are uncomfortable when I
give my real input. I mask my responses to please the ear of the
colleague or employer. They take it as a hint that I am pretty much
exploitable. This is a real problem. Just today I met a person in
Phoenix Executive Search firm in Princeton , NJ. He listened to my
unemployment vows and suggested that I should pay him to get a
permanent job! What has this world come to? Why does the US govt. give
licenses to these kinds of businessmen? Those are my first reactions.
Flip-flopping between reality and delusions. I know at the end of the
day he is a winner and I am a loser. We live in a time where the brains
have to be updated ever so frequently to sense the reality in a new
way. If I bargained for a job as an assistant to the recruiter, may be
I have progressed a bit. But I disliked the recruiter who wanted money
on a moral basis. May be AG's like Spitzer can put these blood suckers
out of business. But Spitzer is just one person. Why can't the NJ state
AG's take up these cases and show us the justice. I pray that this kind
of preying of the unemployed ends sooner than later. I know not every
job can be advertized in careerbuilder.com, jobcircle.com or
monster.com. The search engines might only show limited number of jobs
that are advertized every day. Some recruiters are able to intercept
the employers before a job got posted in public domain. That is their
niche. Being a loser is so comforting and gives impetus to post on the
usenet looking for justice that won't materialize in an electronic form
and shape. Enough said.