Common sense?: Or government interference?
Courtesy Mark RyanA district judge in Minnesota has ruled that a Sleepy Eye, MN couple must allow their cancer-stricken son to resume medical treatment despite their objections that it goes against their religious beliefs in using only alternative medicines. There are lots of complications to this case. Doctors claim the success rate for Danny Hauser surviving his cancer is 90 percent if treated with chemotherapy and radiation, that is if it's already not too late. The 13-year-old stopped after only one treatment, and his parents began treating him themselves with alternative remedies his mother Colleen Hauser found on the Internet. Danny's parents think the alternative methods are working, although they wouldn't allow doctors to X-ray his chest to check the tumor's current condition. The parents say the government is interfering with their caring for their child. The judge ruled that Minnesota laws concerning medical neglect were clearly broken. In the end, Judge John Rodenberg ruled that a chest X-ray be given by next Tuesday. If the cancer is determined to still be treatable, chemotherapy would then be resumed.
Personally, I think the judge made the proper ruling. A minor child is involved and sometimes children need to be protected from their parents. Do you agree or do you think the judge was wrong?
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Music medicine man: Jazz guitarist Stanley Jordan is a big proponent of the medicinal effects of music in helping cure people of illnesses.
Courtesy Official Stanley Jordan websiteSeveral years ago I encountered a wonderful situation. I was at the Wabasha Street Caves club here in St. Paul to see a big band featuring many veteran musicians perform for a group of swing dancers made up mostly of college students.
Charles, the leader of the band was well into his 80s and needed a walker to get across the dance floor before the show started. Other band members helped him take his seat smack dab in the middle of the saxophone section, where he played alto sax and also led the band.
Several songs into the set, it was Charles’ time for a solo. Caught up in the spirit of the music, he bounced up from his chair unassisted, wailed on his horn and was groovin’ like the hip cat he’s always been for decades. Needing a walker or assistance was the last thing his body needed at that time.
It was a truly remarkable moment and fueled my suspicions that music holds medicinal properties we don’t fully understand.
My belief was reinforced today after coming across this article about jazz guitarist Stanley Jordan. He thinks the same way I do.
After being sick with the flu, he spent and entire day surrounded by song and recovered nearly instantly, he related. And now he’s studying the theory academically to see how music can intentionally be used to help people get over physical ailments.
"In five to 10 years, music therapy is going to be a household term," Jordan is quoted in the USA Today article. "I say that because it's so holistic and versatile. It addresses every part of the body in some way or another."
In a nutshell, Jordan feels that there are four distinct dimensions to music’s healing power: physical, mental, emotionally and spiritual healing. Want to learn more? Here’s a link to his website where you can learn more about his thoughts on music therapy.
So what do you think? Are there untapped healing powers in music? Have you experienced this effect yourself? What types of music do you find especially rejuvenating? Share your thoughts here with other Buzz readers.
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