Tuesday, 15 April 2008: 10 Nissan 5768

Cliffhanger--stay tuned!

Bodies 2 comes to Balboa Park in America's Finest City:
http://www.balboapark.org/calendar/detail.php?EventID=1449

Who in the County will authenticate the bodies in order to comply with the pending legislation, sponsored by State Assemblywoman Fiona Ma?
As of 15 April, the marketing representative at the San Diego Natural History Museuem did not know that a permit might be required.

http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/templates/ademmain.aspx?articleid=623&zoneid=2
AB 1519 requires exhibitors of human remains to provide a paper trail of informed consent and obtain a permit from local government to ensure bodies were donated, not exploited. Violators will face a civil penalty of $10,000.

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Table of Contents, FORM LETTERs

For residents of University City, San Diego, CA 92122: Free security devices; Free ads
Clergy Views in North America
Response so far from the City of San Diego

Ask the city and state to work together on this!

Take a stand with a form letter. (Even though there is no formal review process for a tenant improvement permit, City Planning's Public Affairs office will respond to inquiries. Still trying to figure out which City Council Member will reply with more than a thank-you note....Please let me know if you have better luch than I did with my council member.)
Fair Use excerpts from San Diego media
Resources for learning Anatomy and Physiology
Press releases, advertisements
Group rates
Legal precedent
   Uniform Anatomical Gift Act
Viewpoints
      Educators and schools in San Diego
      Clergy Views
      My view
Government Intervention
     in California
     in San Diego, CA
     in New York
     in North Carolina
     in San Francisco
     in Washington State
     against the display of Indian remains
Asking questions
Actions
Express your viewpoint.
      Let City Hall and Sacramento hear your voice.
Author    Email me
     Why bother
      Links to add: List of US and CA plastination labs; Why use a lab in China?; http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=premier+exhibitions+atlanta+site%3Aprxi.com : cost of adherence to governmental regs is not known or budgeted yet; where to write to exhibit owner; brain parts for sale in .edu link; Allyson Smith's article in the CalCatholic, San Diego's lay catholic daily, (but she's waiting for attribution for her by-line); legislative and networking page; response from Dr. Wilma Wooten, San Diego's Health enforcement specialist, on the anatomical gift act
Asking questions Ask your representative why the City Attorney, the Medical Examiner, Customs, and the District Attorney have no death certificates! Why is City Planning the only office providing oversight?
If the exhibit owner is exempt by Health and Safety Code 7155.5.c from liability does that mean the City of San Diego or Westfield UTC is responsible?
Have you seen the brother of Chinese expatriate Wanqing Huang? He couldn't bring himself to visit the New York City display to search for his brother. He thinks his brother disappeared from a Shanghai prison.
Isn't it against the law to sell body parts? Does the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act need to eliminate a possible loophole for exchange of money for body parts?
Where is the lease agreement? Who can subpoena it? According to the May 24th business section of the San Diego Union, the bodies are on loan for $25 million dollars from someone who works at Dalian Medical University.
Where do the bodies come from? According to the 8 Aug 2006 NY Times “We don’t deal with it directly, but we want to do what is morally and legally correct,” Mr. Geller said. “We traced the whole process. None of these would be executed prisoners.” “I don’t know where the bodies came from,” said Meng Xianzhi, a spokesman for the university. "Mr. Geller, the chairman of Premier..."
New York Times video by David Barboza Do you believe everything you read in the papers? Do you even know anyone who has ever traveled to a Dalian factory where bodies get preserved and artfully posed? David Barboza of the NY Times has done just that. A video of his 2006 visit has been seen by 107,000 viewers on youtube. He interviews the owner, Dr. Gunther Von Hagens, who decries the inferior quality of imitators such as those putting on our local show. If you decide to watch the demonstration you can look at the part where a bear is preserved, instead of the part where the person gets preserved. In the video, Von Hagens insists he wants to be the “Mercedes of anatomy.”
More photos of Professor Von Hagens' art work as posted to a Singapore government blog-site.

Is this a respectful way to treat bodies? Why not stimulate scientific interest with a less invasive approach, such as NIH's on-line library and existing resources? Should the dead be used for the entertainment of the public?
Author This blog is written and maintained by Michelle K. Gross, who resides--alive and un-posed--in University City, CA 92122. For the last 20 years she has worked as a computer scientist for various government research facilities in San Diego and Washington, DC. She currently studies Jewish laws and customs. You can reach her to comment on this page or its contents using the comment button. Please be sure to include whether or not you would like your remarks published. Email Michelle
Why bother?
Rambam on parshat Shoftim The Rambam, in his Guide to the Perplexed (3:40), somewhat surprisingly develops a pragmatic approach to explain the obligation of egla arufa. He claims that this entire affair serves to publicize the murder. The ensuing tumult will often lead to the solving of the mystery and the killer's arrest. The Rambam points to the specific rule forbidding any subsequent agricultural activity in the valley in which the ceremony is performed. This would prompt the land's owner to exert himself to find the criminal so as to avoid the ritual and hence save his property.
Rabbenu Yosef Bekhor Shor explains...that in cases such as these, the victim may have come from a distant city, and his family and community may have never learned of his tragic fate.
PARASHAT SHOFTIM by Rav David Silverberg

Based on Rabbi Zelig Pliskin's (1975) book, passage on Shaming a willful transgressor p. 59 - 60: 1. personal witness; 2. certain that the action was a transgression; 3. no exaggeration; 4. "You must have beneficial intentions, such as preventing others from sinning, or stopping the sinner himself from further wrongdoings. You are forbidden to derive enjoyment from speaking against that person (for example, you want to impress others with your piety)..." 5. "You must show your displeasure of his actions even while he is present," (not just when he's not around).

Rabbi Pliskin's earlier works are carried by Bnay Yakov Publications at 1742 East 7th Street Brooklyn, New York 11223 ; phone: (718) 376-5903, FAX: (718) 376-8064
(I received permission to quote from weekly excerpts on this blog from Mrs. Weissman of Bnay Yakov on 27 July 2007 by phone at 12:05 PM Eastern time.)
From Rabbi Zelig Pliskin's "Love Your Neighbor," Aish HaTorah Publications, 1977; (A collection of thoughts based on the Weekly Torah Portion)
Va’eschanan, based on p 376: Be honest in business, speak pleasantly, and others will say that it's good your father and teacher taught you Torah.
Dvorim / Deuteronomy "We also see from here that timing is a major factor in rebuke. In many instances by waiting for an opportune time to deliver admonition a person will be more successful than he would have been had he admonished earlier." (p. 375)
Last week

"A person must be very careful while engaging in any action that could possibly harm someone. Today this is especially relevant when driving a car....When you are upset or tired, do not drive." (p. 373) "Our Sages have said, 'Whoever is able to protest against the wrongdoings of his household and fails to do so, is held accountable for their behavior. If a person is able to protest against the wrongdoings of the inhabitants of his city and fails to do so, he is held accountable for their behavior...." (see p. 374 for source)
**** past weekly portions **** Rabbi Chayim of Brisk once said about zealousness: "Both the owner of a house and a cat want to destroy mice. The sole difference lies in their attitudes. The owner really wants to be rid of them. But a cat wants to have mice to attack." The same applies to protests against misdeeds. One must sincerely not want the misdeeds. One should not just use the misdeed as an opportunity to engage in protesting. (Bayos Hazman, Rabbi Reuven Grozovksy, 1972, p. 58.) From pp. 361-362
The Midrash (Bamidbar Rabbah 21:2) to this verse [in the Bible] states the following adage: "Just as the facial features of people are different, so too are their faculties of thought." ... Feuds and fights are begun by differences of opinion and a lack of tolerance for the other fellow's views. Rav Mendel Kotzker offered guidance in avoiding this trap.... No one is ever disturbed by the fact that others do not have an exact replica of his facial features. In fact, variety and individuality have a host of benefits. In the same vein, we should accept that no two people will ever agree on all matters. (Emes MaiKotzk Titzmach, Rabbi M. Sheinfeld, 1961, p. 130.) (From p. 365)

The San Diego-Imperial Counties Labor Council’s Safe Homes project in conjunction with Scott Peters' District 1 office offers free security devices and free home repairs for low-income residents: "These free services greatly enhance the homeowner’s safety and security in their neighborhoods..."

America's Finest City

Tuesday, 15 April 2008: 10 Nissan 5768

Cliffhanger--stay tuned!

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