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Lol
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» elka replied on Fri Oct 28, 2005 @ 3:41pm |
 Coolness: 52425 | the last paragraph is classic, "is it racist to say that?"
October 27, 2005
By Beverley Wang Associated Press CONCORD, N.H. — Supporters of a doctor accused of telling a patient she was so obese she might only be attractive to black men picketed Wednesday outside a medical board meeting on his case. Dr. Terry Bennett didn't attend the procedural meeting to schedule hearing dates. But about a dozen supporters — loyal patients who credit Bennett's unorthodox talk with saving their lives — turned out to protest the New Hampshire Board of Medicine proceedings. "He's told me things that I didn't want to hear sometimes, but it was my own fault, you know," said Karen McMullen while the group took a doughnut break on Wednesday morning. She carried a sign, "Bad Health, No Wealth, Thank God for Dr. Bennett." McMullen recalled Bennett, urged her to lose weight and quit smoking — "It was all better for me. I'm alive today because of him." Michael Mosley, who is black, wore a T-shirt that said Bennett was not prejudiced. Mosley acknowledged some people might interpret a racist message from Bennett's alleged comment, but he is not one of them. "Me personally, and I know most of my black friends ... they admire a woman with (a) curvaceous figure and that's known by everybody. At least I thought it was. People wrote songs about it," he said. Bennett's professional misconduct hearing is scheduled to start on Feb. 1. Penalties range from a written reprimand to suspension or revocation of his medical license. Besides the racial complaint, he faces another from a former patient who claims Bennett, 67, told her to buy a gun and shoot herself to end her suffering from a neurological problem. Bennett, of Rochester, has denied any wrongdoing. He says he gives the same lecture to every obese female patient, and apologized to the patient when he realized he'd offended her. As for the suicide suggestion, Bennett's lawyers say that claim was investigated and dismissed more than three years ago. They also point out the board's own rules prevent them from regulating bedside manner. "You can prosecute a doctor for derelict treatment. You can't prosecute him for an offensive comment," said Benjamin King, Bennett's lawyer. Senior Assistant Attorney General Richard Head said the board's investigation turned up enough evidence to proceed against Bennett. Bennett treated the overweight woman for chest pains in January 2004, telling her to lose weight, according to the board's complaint. "Let's face it, if your husband were to die tomorrow, who would want you?" it quoted Bennett as saying, based on the woman's recollection. "Well, men might want you, but not the types you want to want you. Might even be a black guy." Bennett has denied making the comment, but insists he's read polls supporting that position. "If you look at polling, nobody likes fat women," he told The Associated Press during an interview in August. "Is it right? No. Is it sensible? No. Is it true? Yeah ... Black guys are the only group that don't mind that. Is that racist to say that?" |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» BeAtJuNkIe replied on Fri Oct 28, 2005 @ 4:50pm |
 Coolness: 48450 | the funniest part of this article= Beverly Wang...great name |
Lol
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