In the news

Paris Marathon Training: Week 7 of 18
Today’s target run: 48 minutes
Today’s completed run: 48 minutes

And we complain about the state of US health care....well, take a gander at one of today’s news articles in the English version Germany online news, Deutsche Wells.

Title: German doctors begin week-long strike

Subject: Doctors in the German states of Baden-Wuerttemberg and Saxony have begun a week-long nationwide strike in protest at poor pay. The MEDI union, which called the strike, said they expected several thousand practices to close. The strike is expected to reach its peak on Wednesday, when unions are expecting about half of all medical practices across Germany to close for the day. The doctors are protesting against what they say are low salaries and complicated bureaucracy.

First, let me say I live in Nord Rhein Westphalia, not Baden-Wuerttemberg or Saxony. Whew! Secondly, I am currently in good health and not anticipating the need for medical assistance (that I know of). Thirdly, you know you are living in a different country when you read about “unionized doctors”.

Do I even want to ponder what will be happening in the ERs across the country this week?