LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

     Miyamoto Musashi says: "It is better to use two swords rather than one when you are fighting a crowd,...". As a physician acupuncturist, if you have elected only the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture and not your local, state, and national medical societies to represent you, then you are fighting a crowd with only one sword, rather than the two that are available to you.
     In the third year of our organization, the most important focus of our time and effort is on the activities of the Liaison Committee: our establishment being announced to the state medical boards and legislative bodies; our position being explained and demonstrated to county, state, and AMA/AOA/FDA administrators; and a mutual agreement being negotiated with the AAAOM, the principal society representing non-physician acupuncturists. In order to have any strength in these liaison activities, we must use not only the sword of legitimate Medical Acupuncture, but also the sword of orthodox medicine.
     The time has come in the evolution of the "new medicine" when it is no longer sufficient for us to find our own way, offering our services independent of the national movements in mainstream medicine. It is imperative now 1o stand as representatives both of our acupuncture subspecialty and our training as orthodox physicians.
     To accomplish this goal, I encourage each of you to join the mainstream in order to be stronger in your own subspecialty. When we can present the establishment with five hundred card-carrying AMA, state medical society and county medical society mem bers, then our requests as medical acupuncture subspecialists will be heeded.
     We are a new organization, and the AAMA Review is our first publication. Our history is short: the first year was spent on conducting membership campaigns, creating a central operating structure, and exploring the scope of member interests and educational needs to be pursued through the Academy. The second year was a time of consolidation, identification of the most important member projects, and organization of Academy activities under the supervision of strong committee chairmen.
     In this third year, we will concentrate our resources on getting our important projects into movement: the work of the Liaison Committee as I outlined above, the creation of a Research Committee to initiate a wide range of clinical projects, a final membership drive drawing on the high potential candidates who have graduated from our UCLA Extension programs, and the second national symposium to be held in Philadelphia in March 1990.

Remember: "Aurum nostrum non est aurum vulgi." *

Joseph M. Helms, M.D.

* "Our gold is not ordinary gold."

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