BUY ART SMUKLER; YOU’LL LOSE 15 LBS AND FALL IN LOVE, by Art Smukler MD

All through college and part of med-school, I sold battery cables, ignition wire-sets and jumper cables. I loaded up the trunk of my car with hundreds of feet of cables and hawked them to gas stations and small auto accessory stores.

“Buy a dozen battery cables and I’ll throw in two packages of wire-sets. Plus I’ll give you 20% off,” I’d say, standing under a leaking auto chassis with a sweating mechanic.

“Are dees any good?” one brawny station owner asked.

“They’re great,” I answered. My father had a small factory and made them. They were actually quite good.

“Oh yeah?” He took a jumper cable, held one end in his huge fist and the large clip in the other fist. He  grunted, and ripped the large clip off the end of the cable wire.

“What?” I yelled.

“I want 25% off and I’ll buy three dozen cables in all sizes.”

I nodded, ran to the trunk, and made my biggest sale of the week.

Somehow, my life as an author/psychiatrist has gone backwards. Now, instead of selling battery cables, I’m selling Art Smukler and his books. It’s a little weird. Maybe if I were Smuckers Jelly it would be less weird. Maybe not.

On the other hand, Art Smukler is a good product. If you pull hard enough the ends might come off, but they can be re-attached.

Will you lose 15 lbs? Maybe, if you deal with your mother and improve your relationship with your kids. Will you fall in love? Absolutely. Just read Chasing Backwards. If you don’t fall in love with Joe Belmont, you’ll fall in love with Karen Levine.

Plus, I’ll throw in 2 dozen blog posts!

YO CONGRESS, BE LIKE SGT. DAKOTA MEYER. CROSS THE LINE! by Art Smukler MD

Sgt. Dakota Meyer, Medal of Honor winner, saved 3 dozen fellow marines and the remains of 4 fallen comrades. At the time he defied orders, he was a 21-year-old corporal. He was told to Not take action! He defied orders and did what HE knew was right.

How old are our congressmen and how many advanced degrees do they have? How much more rhetoric can we take from the god-is-on-my-side gang versus the god-is-a-falacy gang? Then there’s the voice-of-reason gang who haven’t done much but add more blame and negativity to the mix.

Can’t any of these “bastions of power” do what a 21-year-old corporal did? Why are they so afraid of their leaders? Fear of rejection? Fear they won’t be re-elected? Fear they’ll make a mistake and look bad? I think they are incapable of thinking for themselves.

For a politician to actually question his party’s stand on religion, race relations, gun control, abortion rights or OMG even the need to have taxes, takes a person who’s willing to risk crossing at least partway over to the enemy camp. One year Mitt Romney is for abortion; now he’s against it. Wouldn’t it be courageous for him to say, “Let people make up their own minds. I’m a Republican and I’m neutral.”?

Dakota Meyer deserved the Medal of Honor because he did something unique. He disobeyed a superior officer and risked his life.

Believe nothing, no matter where you read it or who has said it, not even if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.          Buddha

If  just a few republicans and democrats have the courage to risk their political futures and cease being so rigid, they could make a dramatic change. Cross the line! Do what we’re paying you to do. TAKE CARE OF US. I’ll vote for you.  Thanks,  Art Smukler MD