Picture for October 22, 2006.

Picture for October 22, 2006., originally uploaded by nazarian.

Here's a screenshot of an 'article' from www.theonion.com. For those who don't know, The Onion is a satirical magazine published in the US.




This article makes fun of two truly American phenomena. First, the Americans are obsessed with heroes. The heroes are everywhere in America. Somebody picked up a piece of trash on the street - a hero. A soldier signed up for service - a hero. Somebody has 20 cats - a hero. A dog barks and alerts the owner of a danger - a hero. The national and local TV news are filled with unsung heroes.




The second phenomenon is the large amount of paperwork that one has to fill out during a hospital or doctor's visit. The funny thing is that all this information is in your medical history and can be viewed easily by whoever needs that information. But no, you still have to fill out the paperwork. Fortunately, the American efficiency has made these forms quite easy to fill - obviously, they have done their market research to satisfy the lowest common denominator IQ level.




Here's the text of the article. Enjoy.




Hero Dog Fills Out Hospital Paperwork


October 20, 2006 Issue 42•43




BRACKNEY, PA—Ginger, a four-year-old golden retriever, saved the life of her owner Megan Walsh, 37, Monday by quickly and efficiently filling out Walsh’s copious emergency-room paperwork. “Without Ginger’s knowledge of my sister’s medical history, which includes multiple food allergies and penicillin intolerance, who knows what could have happened in there,” said Walsh’s brother Derek, who arrived late at the hospital but was relieved to learn that Ginger had “taken care of everything.” “She filled out the forms, and apparently was the only one who could locate Megan’s insurance card.” Ginger could not be reached for comment, as she was reportedly on hold with a Blue Cross-Blue Shield phone representative for 50 minutes.




Hero Dog Fills Out Hospital Paperwork