Cavalry was never that important in the military experiences of Americans since its founding a mere 250 years ago, whereas lots of folks served in the infantry — Civil War through WWII. The US, moreover, is essentially a 20th Century country; infantry, tanks, air forces, etc. is 20th Century warfare; and American football echoes those 20th Century technologies.

The romantic ideal and practical effectiveness of cavalry over many centuries, ending in the 20th Century/WWI, made it much more deeply ingrained in the European (Old World) psyche. Soccer is cavalry, thus Europe and past colonies gravitated towards it.

A few decades ago, sales training made the distinction between transactional connections and relational, suggesting a relational connection between you and your clients was far superior and more powerful than a mere transactional one. I’d imagine that would be even more true if you are considering a (lifelong) marriage with your “client” and perhaps children in the offing.

Gave up on the video halfway when the notion of an actual emotional, much less spiritual, relationship didn’t pop up once. AI slop? I’d downvote if I could…

The key for older homeowners is finding your querencia, the place of your heart. If where you live is your querencia, then countless options open up for you. Simply living in your home and community becomes a joy. Your community becomes an extension of your home and your heart and you become a vital part of that community. In your golden years, that community provides deep meaning and grounding when your work life quickly fades. Building that connection takes time and energy…plopping yourself somewhere else in your 60s, you may not find it. Building it now and in your 50s guarantees it’s there when you want it.

By letting go, it all gets done; The world is won by those who let it go! But when you try and try, The world is then beyond the winning.

為學日益，為道日損。損之又損，以至於無為。無為而無不為。取天下常以無事，及其有事，不足以取天下。

道德經, Tao Tê Ching, 章 “poem” 48, (tr.) R B Blakney From The Teachings of the Mystics, Walter T Stace, 1960

老子, Lao Tzu…2500 year old 21st Century foreign spy.

Look at Richie Rich paying $200 plus prorated membership for his subsidence calories (in white rice, no less, which is a premium starch in some Asian countries)…

Thesis: every student accepted into medical school must complete 9 months as a medical scribe (financially compensated at some reasonable level) assigned to various medical team(s) prior to their actual entrance into med school.

They are formally trained on the latest and greatest scribing tech (which clinicians probably deprioritize).

They get exposure to what it means to work as part of a medical team. A heads-up before they pursue a medical career.

They get exposed to operational ethics, formality of ops, etc. in a role where they probably aren’t going to kill anyone.

They learn useful operational jargon and the lore of clinical practice to motivate the unending hours they will spend memorizing metabolic pathways and general trivia in med school.

They provide a friendlier, more humane “UI” for clinicians who loathe automated scribing systems, but love the fact they get to actually go home at a reasonable hour instead of charting til the wee hours. They should be actually, visibly and directly making the clinician’s job easier and more pleasant, so will be more likely to be treated with respect, perhaps even be coveted, and ultimately view the experience as a life-affirming one.

They make some decent money, less than a permanent professional scribe but more than flipping burgers, enough to secure decent med school student housing, maybe even pay for their books.

The program fits nicely into the concept of interning already part of medical training, being a sort of “data intern” with no access to the more physically impactful elements of medical practice.

Let me vu that déjà for you. Prior recent experience makes potential impacts easier to forecast, understand and manage.

This is a rebranding of the humanities, but a good one. When people continue to talk of a “crisis in the humanities” for several decades with no resolution, this is a logical next step. “Humanities” as a term is broader than critical thinking, but narrowing its focus to just critical thinking would be a wonderful thing for students and professors alike.