Godwin's Law Invoked in the UK

[Dustdevil]

Now this is my kind of story!

http://www.ems1.com/grants/articles/818354-UK-ambulance-service-defends-Hitler-survey/

May 12, 2010

UK ambulance service defends 'Hitler' survey

Campaign groups are appalled that two paramedics won a grant from NHS West Midlands health authority for study

By Alison Dayani

The Birmingham Mail

BIRMINGHAM, England — West Midlands NHS chiefs have forked out pounds 10,000 of taxpayer's cash on a project that rates how "cool" Hitler was.

Campaign groups are appalled that two paramedics at West Midlands Ambulance Service won a bursary from NHS West Midlands health authority for the 'Making Leadership Cool' year-long study. A survey asking 3,300 staff to rate how cool Hitler was and other figures including Gordon Brown, pictured, and Fabio Cappello appeared in an Ambulance Service newsletter as part of the project to see what makes a good boss.

The ratings ranging from a not cool 'One' to cool 'Five' are set to be used by NHS chiefs to help develop a leadership development programme.

Fiona McEvoy, from the Taxpayers' Alliance, said: "This is an utterly ridiculous waste of taxpayers' money. It's pretty obvious what people are going to think of Hitler and has nothing to do with the ambulance service at all.

"The whole survey is absurd."

Murray Macgregor, spokesman for West Midlands Ambulance Service, said: "A survey which is one small part of the project, sought to include an analysis of the dictatorial style. With hindsight, it would have been better to have used a different example to illustrate this.

"The project is important in identifying the key characteristics of good leadership, to allow the organisation and the wider NHS to be more efficient."

[DwayneEMTP]

Actually, without further information, and playing the devils' advocate that says I take these guys' side from the start...I kind of like this.

Are we really going to pretend that Hitler was unpopular? That we have nothing to learn about leadership by investigating peoples' feeling of him, then, and now? Well, yeah, I guess many are going to pretend so...but not me, nor many of the intelligent people here.

And was the study worth the money? Who can say with the information provided?

I once went out of my mind when I was a youngster and heard on the radio that some researchers had been awarded a million dollars or some such amount to study bears. I knew many poor and damaged people that could benefit from that money...I wanted to choke someone to death!

Then I saw another a show, perhaps 20 years later or so (Yeah, I watched it because I was still pissed) that explained that bears hibernate months at a time. During that time they eat nothing, producing no stool or urine. If scientists could discover how they were able to do such things that it could have life altering effects for dialysis patients. Not just for their quality of life, but for the national fiscal bottom line. All of a sudden a million bucks didn't seem like such a large amount of money.

Once again, the press wants to use our prejudice to breath life in a story that sounds as if it has none..I for one, am refusing to play..

Once again a great story, from a person that loves to inspire great debate.

Dwayne