Unethical Pharma Ad: Niaspan from Abbott Labs

Someone obviously is as offended by the Niaspan ads as much as I am. So I can't add much more to this video which, rightly, attacks the Niaspan ads.

No matter how often I watch it...

...I don't understand this commercial at all. And I have a sinking feeling it's very obvious to most viewers, so I probably shouldn't admit my confusion. It would appear this man is at a job interview. When he mentions that he loves his bank's Raise Your Rate CD, the interviewer hears other declarations. Why? Is it because nobody loves their bank, or no bank has ever had a Raise Your Rate CD so he would have to be hearing wrong? If so, that's not clear at all. Besides lots of people love their banks. I love my bank. Just because there are scummy, money-grubbing, lying, cheating financial institutions like Bank of America, and Citicorp who don't want to give their customers one extra dime doesn't make this commercial believable if, in fact, that's what it's about.

Ally Bank | "Interview" Commercial

Person-proof containers.

Is nothing made well any more? Let's discuss medicines. Right now I am using a cream for a rosacea-like rash. The tube is annoying because the cap does not fit properly. It seems that it was not threaded correctly so one has to hold it just right to replace the ill-fitting cap. At the same time, the contents seem to escape the tube without squeezing so while attempting to replace the cap, one is being oozed upon by a cream which is not completely without its dangers. I say wasting because this small, poorly designed tube of prescription medicine costs $129.00. Another equally costly prescription medicine I take daily is Avodart (don't ask!). These widely prescribed yellow capsules have the peculiar flaw of sticking together. So in attempting to shake out a single dose, I get a clump of capsules that look like a science project. As it is almost necessary to rip them apart, it is prudent to remember the WARNING on the label: If contact is made with leaking capsule, wash immediately with soap and water. Wouldn't you think that a multi-zillion dollar pharmaceutical company like GlaxoSmithKline could solve this problem?

No happy ending.

Are we all living in a fool's paradise? Is Japan's nuclear accident more serious than we know? I read today that the radioactive water is running into the sea. That can't be good. Since most of us know nothing about nuclear waste, are we the unknowing masses in the science fiction horror film who are completely in the dark while the leading characters work feverishly to bring the disaster under conrol? Is there a multi-billionaire villain sweating it out, hoping the problem is fixed before he has to admit defeat and fly off with his family to a remote aerie before an angry mob tears him apart? Or will the anxious scientists and workers seal those renegade reactors in concrete and give each other high fives knowing the world has been saved? And, if so, will the last scene of this movie be an aerial shot of an American reactor, followed by a medium shot of a worker leaning back in his chair, chatting on his cell phone, just as we hear a shrill screaming of a malfuction alert. The End.

Equal time for hubby.

Since I have spent so much space on Michele Bachmann, I thought you might like to see her husband, Marcus. He leads a very profitable and meaninful life trying to cure people of sexual addictions and the even more important Christian goal of curing homosexuality. I assume that Michele, believing she can become president, has plans to make her husband the Sex Czar. His role would be of course to help us all avoid sexual preoccupations and the evil of evils, masturbation. If you want to see the kind of obsessions he is bravely trying to cure, check out The Dump Bachmann blog. Anyway, shown here is photo of Marcus with the girls and a flattering illustration that captures his charming sense of gay abandon.

"May I (beep) help you?"

People and companies do so many things that mystify me. Here's one that I was exposed to today that has been annoying me for months. Barnes and Noble in Coral Gables has a very nice store with a great cafe and an excellent CD/Video department. The latter is where I have my problem. Some device in that department—like our own home fire detectors—must have a battery. When this battery wears out, the device emits a beep every half a minute or so until the battery is replaced. Nothing unusual about that. What is unusual is that the store has not replaced the battery and the beep has been emitted every few seconds for several months now. Each time I got to the store, I expect it to be repaired, but all I get is beep, beep, beep, beep. I asked the clerks why it hasn't been fixed. Like most salespeople today, they seem to have a fear or engaging in a conversation or answering a question incorrectly so they just give me the helpless expression or the "I don't know" line. You would think being exposed to this repetitive beep would drive them crazy. But that must not be so, because the beep goes on.