John Paulson: EARNS $4.19 BILLION in ONE YEAR

And he paid NO FEDERAL INCOME TAX, NO SOCIAL SECURITY TAX AND NO MEDICARE TAX
ZERO

This is NOT a Democrat issue, a Republican issue or Mr. Obama's issue so I will not make this a political post.

Why do you and I and the rest of the middle class let John Paulson pay NO TAXES like you and I must do? Oh yes...he does pay 15% Capital Gains tax on his $4.19 BILLION.

Another issue is what did he produce to make his money? NOTHING! Absolutely nothing.
He made 2 bets. He bet that the housing market would crash and secondly that the banks would survive. That is what he did to earn $4.19 BILLION.

Shame on us if the middle class does not stand up for OUR rights. We pay taxes and Mr. Paulson should pay taxes too.

I am sorry for the post but I really thought that everyone who reads my blogs should know that Mr. Paulson doesn't love his country enough to pay his fair share.

4.19 BILLION DOLLARS!!!!!!!

The Bagel Saga

Getting a decent bagel is almost impossible...Not because we don't know HOW to make a great bagel but that we no longer CARE to make a great bagel. If you were to call the CEO of Brueggers Bagels, he would tell you that Brueggers SPECIALIZES in making bagels.

OH REALLY???????????????????????

What Brueggers specializes in is SELLING bagels.

Physicians will tell you that they specialize in a particular area and that some group has 'CERTIFIED' them in that kind of surgery. And then when the surgery fails, 5 other surgeons will easily discover what the surgeon did wrong.

Now some among us are quick to blame THE GOVERNMENT for things that go wrong or the economic mess that we are in.

I think that the baker who makes my bagels needs to look in the mirror and ask him or herself why he or she makes a mediocre bagel...And the surgeon needs to do the same thing.

This is NOT ABOUT THE MONEY. It is about doing what we say that we will do.

Is there any hope?

They Don't Get It

You know that I am always thrilled to receive comments about my work from my colleagues. Dr. M wrote me the following this morning:

"First, I must say that I always enjoy your posts and am amazed at the quality of work that you produce. Your posterior composites are simply amazing. Perhaps that is due in part to your ‘Art’ background. I don’t think you can teach that level of artistry to somebody—kind of like Michelangelo trying to teach one of his students to draw like him—much of it is inherent talent, so kudos!"

As much as I am overwhelmed to recieve such wonderful comments, I am amazed that others totally miss who I am and what I have accomplished. Most dentists assume that I have artistic talents and that is why my work is beautiful...Sadly to say, I cannot draw, I cannot sculpt nor can I paint. My artistic 'talents,' if I have any are limited to photography.

What my colleagues fail to see is that I have spent the last 20 years acquiring vast amounts of education with much of it with the best in the world and spending $3 million in the process.

My colleagues don't see the passion and the drive to achieve excellence so that I can take care of you in a way that I believe that you deserve.

I can teach any dentist to do what I do and I have taught them...It simply does not interest them. How sad that is for their patients.

Being Looked Up To

I often post my work for professional criticism on the ACE Forum. I beleive that I am a 'good' dentist and my patients believe the same thing. Other dentists can be our harshest critics but I welcome the opportunity to show what I can do for my patients as well as seek constructive criticism from my colleagues.

At this stage of my career, I have been fortunate to be looked upon by my colleagues as 'the standard of excellence' in conservative restorative dentistry. Recently one of my colleagues in Georgia posted the following:

"You guys don't know it but I've seen Bill's stuff. He's world
class...right there with Gerald and Liviu. I cannot for the life of
me understand why it is so damned tough for someone of Bill's class to
become a fellow of the AACD. I would not join for this reason alone."

I never asked to be compared with anyone else; I just show my work for other dentists to offer their comments. It is an honor to be mentioned as one of the standards of excellence.

I do it for you.

My Friend and I

Francisco Banchs and I are very different in so many ways. We are not in the same age group, we were not born in the same country (although we ARE both United States citizens)and my parents were lower middle class and his were not.

None of that matters because we have two very powerful things in common. We both love to fix and save our patient's teeth and we both believe that it is our professional, moral and ethical obligation to pursue EXCELLENCE.

Those of us who pursue excellence were born with something in our character so that practicing excellence is not an option but rather what we do when we take care of our patients.

Most dentists do not like being dentists and do not have the personality makeup to pursue excellence..Making money is certainly more important than striving for excellence.

Understanding why Francisco and I are friends makes a lot of sense.

Steven Jobs

Many people have called Steven Jobs a 'visionary' because he thought of things well before everyone else. I don't think that he was a visionary. What Steven Jobs did was to give us what we wanted...He found a technological way to give us what we dreamed of having. For instance, in the 1960s or 70's if someone asked a young adult what they wanted they would say that they would like to listen to any record or any song in their music collection any time or any place that they wanted...Steven Jobs gave us just that in an iPod.
If you asked people in the year 2000 what they would love to be able to do, they would have told you that they would love to carry their desktop computer or their laptop IN THEIR POCKET.
Steven Jobs gave us that in the iPhone and then the iPad

What I valued most about Steven Jobs was that he believed many of the same things that I believe. In his 2005 Commencement Address at Stanford University, Jobs told the graduates to follow their hearts and do what they love to do. In fact, he asked the graduates if they knew that they were going to die today, would they do what they had planned to do today.

I love fixing teeth; fixing teeth is what I always wanted to do.I don't get bored or burned out by fixing teeth.

Why would you go to a dentist that does not understand that all health professionals are here to take care of their patients? Why would you go to a dentist that does not love to fix teeth?

Steven Jobs and I could not agree more...find what you love to do and do it.

Both My Colleagues and My Patients "Get It"

"Absolutely gorgeous work. Your work with composite is second to none!"

This is what a very successful dentist in McKinney, Texas said about a case that I posted on the internet.

Many dentists around the United States have seen my work on the internet and I am noted for being a dentist that strives for excellence.

My patients are a very select group of dental patients in that you value excellent clinical dentistry, you travel a great distance to visit my office and you pay higher than average dental fees.

Both my colleagues and my patients KNOW that I treat my patients well, making money has never been a motivating factor in my life and that I would never do any treatment that was not in my patient's best interest and certainly would never hurt a patient to make more money.

Most importantly, my patients know that I am constantly striving for excellence in the care that I give them.

I am honored and humbled by the love and loyalty of my patients and kind comments from my colleagues.

Breakfast at Comptons

Compton's Restaurant is a local restaurant on Broadway that you might see on TV during an election year where the reporter asks the folks having breakfast what they think about how the economy is doing. Susan and I go to Compton's every Friday and Saturday morning for breakfast; we spend under $15 for a home cooked breakfast.

This morning one of the waitresses told me that her dentist recommended that she call me for an appointment because HER DENTIST SAID that I had incredible talents for fixing teeth.

I am always delighted when people know what kind of dentistry I do for my patients. It has taken 35 years to get to this stage in my career and I am thrilled.

Can You Trust What You Read?

I went to a website called SmileFinder.Com which directs patients to dentists for 'cosmetic dentistry.' Of course I searched for myself and I learned that few of the 'facts' that they had listed about me were correct. My date of graduation from SUNY/Buffalo School of Dental Medicine was wrong. The address of my office was wrong and the local dental society of the American Dental Association was wrong.

What does this tell us about who we should trust when we search for information on the internet?

Any time you see a dentist claiming that they are a 'Cosmetic Dentist' they are not telling you the truth. There are about 30 dentists in the United States who obtained Certificate of Proficiency in Esthetic Dentistry from either SUNY/Buffalo (The esthetic program is now closed.) or the University of Minnesota and those 30 dentists can accurately state that they "Are a general dentist with a specialty in Esthetic Dentistry."

Just 30 dentists. I am one of those 30.