[Dixielandjazz] Medical Doctor

[TCASHWIGG at aol.com]

In a message dated 11/13/03 3:25:26 AM Pacific Standard Time, 
luda at arnet.com.ar writes:

> You get your pay as soon you finish your show or before..not so in 
> medicine.
> There are musicians millionaires or at least earning a lot of money, more
> than others professions.
> ``not every thing that shine is gold ``  dear friend.
> We do music for enjoyment. 

The average working musician in the USA makes about $13,000.00 a year, and 
with no medical benefits or insurance for most.  They must pay $250.00 or more 
for a lawyer if they need one and often they do, $85.00 an hour or more for an 
auto mechanic, about $400.00 a month for health insurance if they can get it 
for them and their family, and most doctors will not accept patients who do not 
have insurance. They could make more money managing a McDonalds or Burger 
King,  their managers earn about $25,000 a year + some benefits.

Yes, many doctors do have to wait to get their money from the insurance 
companies in this country, however they like that because they can charge much more 
and not have to worry about getting paid even if the patient can't afford the 
treatment.  Very few Doctors in this country will accept cash payments and 
lower the fees for their services.

I know some countries the Doctors do not get paid as well, I saw three 
Russian Doctors get arrested in Turkey a few years ago for Prostitution, and when 
they were asked by the judge why they came to Turkey to do that activity they 
replied; because we make more money in one day doing this in Turkey than we do 
in a month practicing medicine in Russia.

We do have a major problem in our country with Doctors, Lawyers and Insurance 
companies, but the three of them created the problems and most of us simply 
feel like they deserve each other and the merry go round they ride on often at 
our expense.

NO, I do not hate Doctors, however the reality is simply that we should all 
try and stick to our own chosen professions and earn a living doing it by being 
the best we can at that profession, what ever it is.  Unfortunately many 
musicians who also spend much more than 8 years studying and a lifetime of 
practicing to be professional can't earn enough income from their work to pay their 
living expenses and raise a family like everyone else.

The few who do make it into the upper income brackets, do so with the help 
and promotion of other professionals who often make more money than the 
musicians do especially the musicians and bands starting out.

To be a successful musician is definitely one of the most difficult 
professions in the world to achieve, my comments in Jest of Doctors playing music on 
their days off, was to simply illustrate a point that musicians can flip burgers 
and serve fries on their days off for about $6.00 an hour but they can't go 
to the local hospital and look at people with colds and tell them to take two 
aspirins and go home and charge the insurance company $50.00 for the aspirin, 
and twenty dollars for a box of nose tissue, and $100.00 for five minutes of 
their time to tell the patient they have a cold or the flu.

I have made most of my money and kept it by avoiding going to Doctors and 
Lawyers, learning how to repair my own automobiles, plumbing, home repairs, 
landscaping, painting, etc, now if I could just learn how to work on my own teeth I 
could buy a new Mercedes, or Porsche, or Lambroghinini, like the ones my 
Dentists drives to work every day.  My family is not proud to say that we bought 
one of them for him, and before he took over the practice, I bought a new 
Caddilac for his Father.


In all fairness to Doctors & Lawyers with lots of disposable income from 
their often excessive fees and earnings, they do make good investors for making 
CDs and financing small record labels and projects.  Many of them just love to 
have lavish cocktail parties and hire a band that they financed a CD project 
for and give all of their friends a copy of the CD with their name on it as the 
"Executive Producer."  This gives them the musical fix they long for and makes 
them almost in Show business.   They also invest heavily into the movie 
business for the same reasons.

So my advice is to let the good Doctor sit in with your band, if he is 
successful in his profession and can and will invest in your CD project or promoting 
your band with what you need more than talent,  "MONEY."

Cheers,

Tom Wiggins

Musical content   "Were in the Money Now"  "Money makes the World Go Round"