By Merlin Lessler —<\/p>\n
Take this pill! Sue the dirty bums! This is what our society has come down to. If you judge it by the ads on TV. No matter what\u2019s wrong with you, there is a pill to fix it. No matter what happens to you, there is someone to blame, and someone to sue. This is a gripe I\u2019m compelled to air every few years (11 in this case).<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s start with the pills. \u201cDon\u2019t pay any attention to this list of side effects; the FDA made us reveal them.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s what the pharmaceutical companies would say at the beginning of their spiel if they were truly honest and forthright. Instead, they create an image so appealing as to obscure any negative input.<\/p>\n
One \u201cpill\u201d ad shows an attractive, middle-aged woman, now freed of her arthritic pain, leisurely swimming in warm tropical waters. She\u2019s accompanied by a collection of happy friends and a beautiful golden retriever that gently paddles in and out of the group. The waves gently lap the shore while the announcer\u2019s melodious voice quietly suggests that taking the medicine may increase your chances of a heart attack or a stroke and lead to death, or stomach and other intestinal problems, such as bleeding ulcers, which may appear without warning and also lead to death.<\/p>\n
What the FDA should do is make them show images of people experiencing the side effects instead of swimming around in paradise. Maybe then we\u2019d pay attention to just how risky these miracle cures are. But we don\u2019t pay attention to the side effects. They hardly register. And that\u2019s okay because the law firms that feed on our missteps, the ones that dominate our TV screens, are there to make sure we get retribution. They\u2019re on our side!<\/p>\n
And to think I thought the Camel Cigarette ads I grew up with in the 1950\u2019s were unscrupulous, the ones in which they invited smokers to take a \u201c30 day Camel\u201d test.<\/p>\n
\u201cSmoke Camels for thirty days and discover for yourself what throat specialists discovered: not one single case of throat irritation in a coast-to-coast test of hundreds of people.\u201d<\/p>\n
I accepted their invitation; I bought a pack of Camels. And, even though I was only ten years old, I was smart enough to quit after one day. Besides, if I got caught, my mother would have killed me.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s no pill for that!<\/p>\n