What does daddy do at the office?

With the continuing series on Panama’s Shame as A, or THE world capital of porn distribution, my in-box is beginning to fill with comments ranging from anger, through shock to so what. Anger that the government allows porn distributors to set up shop here, dismay that the world’s Internet porn czars can hold their conferences in Panama.

The local distributors of course provide employment (a worthy cause) and the porn seminars are good for tourism.

The “so what crowd” who think that everything goes in Panama, obviously have not read the studies linking online porn with predators, and anyone who brushes off kiddie porn distribution needs a trip to a shrink.

One operator who has numerous companies registered in Panama, was quick to dissociate himself from child pornography, saying his children’s reputation would be ruined if such an allegation was published.

Checking into some of the sites where the “models” and live “performers” look as if they have barely reached their early teens and where the lascivious language and four letter expletives abound, it would seem that he and his wife would have some serious side stepping to do when explaining what daddy does at the office.

President-elect Ricardo Martinelli is out of town on vacation. Hopefully, when he takes office, he will want to remove Panama from the pinnacle of porn.

CONTACT OR CONTRACT. Anyone who has ever played party word games will not be surprised at how the removal of one letter from a word can dramatically change its meaning, and its effect.

One year ago, a small group of doctors and dentists who have worked on CONTRACT in the public health service for up to 15 years were finally made “permanent”, courtesy of the efforts of the reigning Minister of Health, Dr Rosario Turner.

Now during those long years of signing a contract every six months (at one period the contracts became three monthly) the health professionals were paid at the same rate as when they first signed on. With the continual rise in the cost of living, their income was effectively devalued by around 30 percent.

Meanwhile they were often working alongside those with CONTACTS, who had been parachuted in, and were receiving double the money earned by their longer serving and more experienced colleagues.

Permanent status meant they would at last get equal pay for equal work. But no. The stabilizing of their salary was moved to January of this year. When January came, the rumor mill kicked in. The raise would come in March, April, June.. and would be back dated until January.

June has arrived, and with only two pay periods left before the present government exits, doctors are deeply concerned.

It was a waste of time trying to get answers from legislators who have been crouching around the trough in a last attempt to fill their pockets from the public purse.

Administrative staff who have recently been made permanent, and who are being attacked as “moles” put in place by the failed exiting government are little help. They have their own problems. So what’s a doctor to do?

Time to reach for the valium.