web analytics

Hate Comments #001

on August 21st, 2010 | Filed under Optoblog

I’m instituting a new feature: Hate Comments. You know, the comments that don’t get published because they fail my unapologetically arbitrary moderation process.

It turns out there could be gems of literary wisdom for the ages in some of these unpublished comments. Let’s read the nuggets and gems just pouring out of this deleted comment:

Author : Johnny (IP: 66.142.***.*** , adsl-66-142-***-***.dsl.crchtx.swbell.net)
E-mail : forgetyou19@hotmail.com
URL :
Comment:
first of all, David Langford is a sore loser in optometric field…..”happily rents a place in Wal-Mart” ????……after 8 years of school (maybe more for you, who knows), and works “happily” in the cubicle of Wal-Mart ??!!!…you’re embrassing !!!!……having opticians watching your every move and determining your working hour ??!!!….take title OD off of your last name Langford….biggest loser like you don’t deserve it…..if you can’t encourage people into OD career, then don’t lead them to your sorry ending ways.

Wow. First, I didn’t lose in the optometric field. It was private practice. And if a bright, nice guy like me can fail in opening cold, you young pups coming out of optometry school could also. It should give you pause because while I don’t think I’m any better than you, why would you assume you are better than me? Your O.D. degree doesn’t guarantee anything. And that loss was just a single battle in my life. I’m winning everywhere else (family, church, hobbies, current job, etc), so I don’t think you can fairly call me a loser.

Second, Johnny, look in your local phone book and see how many commercial vs. private practice optometrists there are. Your comments are disparaging almost 1/3 of the optometrists in the nation. Your use of cubicle is interesting because almost 99% of all optometrists work in a room about 11’x13′ (and in the dark half the time). You don’t even know that I set my own hours. What’s embarrassing is your spelling of the word embarrassing.

Let me address who I think Johnny is. His IP address from Southwestern Bell indicates he’s probably in the states of Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, or Texas. So, it’s possible that he could be an optometry student in Houston, Tahlequah, or St. Louis. Judging by the maturity and knowledge revealed by his writings, I would guess that it’s more likely he’s an undergrad, possibly high school student, planning on becoming a private practice optometrist.

Johnny, I would say that you should go for it. Go big or go home. I’m sure you can do it, Johnny, because I have faith in your ability to communicate and win friends and influence people.

To the rest of you undergrads that are asking yourself, “Should I be an optometrist?” Let me ask you some questions:

  1. Do you like sitting in the dark half the day?
  2. Do you like explaining the same thing over and over and over again to everyone you meet?
  3. Do you like to wear slacks and collared shirts all day, everyday?
  4. Do you like to work Saturdays? (More and more private practices are now in addition to commercial.)
  5. Do you want to pay more in school loans than it’s worth to be in said profession?
  6. Do you have a favorite town you want to settle in? Because I’ll bet it’s already saturated with eye doctors.
  7. Do you like having shortened lunch time because the last patient went long?
  8. Do you like getting scowled at whenever you run a few minutes behind?
  9. Do you like knowing you could be sued and maybe your career over if you mess up even once? (Not that you will, but it’s possible.)
  10. Do you like to whine at ODwire.org? (But seriously, check out this link for more considerations in choosing optometry as a career.)
Tags: , , , ,

3 Comments

3 Responses to “Hate Comments #001”

  1. admin says:

    Johnny 5 commenter struck again, but he left his comment regarding this post in another post. I deleted it to spare us all his bigoted diatribe against commercial optometry. Working commercial vs. private shouldn’t be a divisive issue which spawns hate mail. Johnny, you are obviously a leftist who thinks everyone should do everything your way. I am mostly a libertarian that believes you can do whatever you want as long as it doesn’t break my bones or steals my property.

    I don’t think Johnny understands what a Walmart optometrist is. I am a full-scope optometric physician who specializes in contact lenses and ocular disease detection. The salt of the earth as well as the well-to-do trust me for their eyecare because they correctly assume that any licensed optometric physician should be able to handle their primary eyecare. I catch and manage ocular disease all the time. Johnny is so high on his private practice horse that he fails to realize that just because one works in private practice, it does not mean that they practice to their fullest scope. I know a private doc who doesn’t even own a BIO! He also fails to understand that full scope optometry is practiced in most Walmart Vision Centers.

    I don’t hate optometry. I am helping students make informed decisions about a career path that, before starting school, they know almost nothing about. I am helping students and doctors understand that starting a private practice is a big risk that won’t turn out well just because they have their O.D. or even a consultant.

    I doubt Johnny has ever set foot in a Walmart Vision Center. I learned from a patient today that in Oklahoma there is no such thing as a Walmart optometrist because state law doesn’t allow a Walmart Vision Center. Interesting that there is state sponsored bigotry in OK.

  2. Alexander says:

    Love your blog, so I decided to give this a try!

    1. Do you like sitting in the dark half the day?
    I don’t think anyone truly likes it, but I wouldn’t mind.

    2. Do you like explaining the same thing over and over and over again to everyone you meet?
    Not really, but how many jobs out there allow variety? “May I take your order,” “What kind of computer are you looking to purchase today,” “Can I help you with anything,” etc…

    3. Do you like to wear slacks and collared shirts all day, everyday?
    Already do. 🙂

    4. Do you like to work Saturdays? (More and more private practices are now in addition to commercial.)
    Ehh.. nope!

    5. Do you want to pay more in school loans than it’s worth to be in said profession?
    Worth is a bit subjective. Pay less to get a 50k job the rest of your life, or pay more to get an 80-100k job the rest of your life? How many other realistic professions cost less and pay more? (no, I don’t want to be a lawyer, and I don’t know how to become a CEO)

    6. Do you have a favorite town you want to settle in? Because I’ll bet it’s already saturated with eye doctors.
    Yes I do, and sadly you are right. Perhaps doing a residency might strengthen my application?

    7. Do you like having shortened lunch time because the last patient went long?
    No, but it happens with most other health professions anyway. And as a wedding photographer, sometimes I don’t have time to eat a meal at the reception, and/or the wedding would last til midnight.

    8. Do you like getting scowled at whenever you run a few minutes behind?
    No, but where would you NOT get scowled at if you’re late? Unless you are your own boss/manager, which most people aren’t. Even as a photographer with my own business, being late for the wedding would spell complete and utter doom.

    9. Do you like knowing you could be sued and maybe your career over if you mess up even once? (Not that you will, but it’s possible.)
    I honestly don’t know how often an Optometrists loses his/her license (or how often they get sued for that matter), but knowing that malpractice is minimal compared to practically every other health profession out there breathes a sigh of relief. Also, carpenters, other lawyers, athletes, actors, business owners, etc, all can get sued just as easily, if not, more…. yes, even photographers get sued if you lose your photos! (but I still love to shoot)

    10. Do you like to whine at ODwire.org? (But seriously, check out this link for more considerations in choosing optometry as a career.)
    No, I don’t like to whine. People have whined to me in undergrad about this and that and this person and that person and this ambiguous homework and that ambiguous project, but I make the best of my situation and focus on the task at hand.

    So, after all this, would you say I would enjoy a career in Optometry? (Serious Q, as I am doing a Masters in Biomedical Science right now and debating which health field to get into). Thanks!

  3. pullingmyhairout says:

    Don’t forget to add that after you spend your life savings opening a practice, only to have it fail because the largest employer in your town switched to EyeMed, which pays $35/exam (this is the future of optometry) you will not be able to get a Government job, because your credit is toast. Also, if you look at Federal pay scales for optometrist, they are paid the same as nurses. They are paid far, far less than dentists, Nurse Practitioners or Nurse Anesthetists.