"The holidays are coming. It's a time of complete emotional stress."

To say this is considered a self-evident truth. But why is it true?

I maintain that holidays, while perfectly fine and pleasant, are not necessary for happy people. Happy people enjoy their lives all year long. Happy people actually enjoy their work, and maybe even love their work. They enjoy their personal relationships, and only take part in relationships that are enjoyable and fulfilling. Of course they want to take breaks, and it's perfectly fine to do that -- on a holiday, or not.

"The Americans will always do the right thing... after they've exhausted all the alternatives."

-- Winston Churchill

There's no such thing as a "right" to something that somebody else created. In other words, there is no "right" to health care; or to a mortgage-free house; or to an iPhone, a television, or anything else for that matter.

According to Psychology Today Online, physician meltdown is on the rise. When surveyed by the American College of Physician Executives, one-third of health care facility administrators reported disruptive incidents among their physician colleagues at least once a month at their clinics and hospitals. Typical targets: nurses, physician assistants and other support personnel.

It’s unclear whether “M.D. meltdown” has increased in recent years, but Timothy Keogh, a health care management professor at Tulane University in New Orleans, thinks so, citing stressors like rising patient loads, declining reimbursement and the pressure-cooker ambience of operating and emergency rooms.

Gee, do you think so?