New study: Big Pharma wants you to pick your drugs, not your doctor

A study coming out today done recently by Consumers Union, the folks who publish Consumer Reports magazine, confirms what Your Humble Correspondent has been saying for years: that the deluge of TV and radio ads for brand-name prescription medicines over the past decade or so is influencing people to substitute their own (usually ill-informed) judgment for that of their doctors, to their financial and physical detriment. Our local paper reports on the study and its own follow-up with local physicians and their patients here.

The CU people conclude that serious re-regulation of pharmaceutical advertising is needed to rein in this practice, and I heartily concur. Aside from the annoyance of numerous and repeated drug ads in my TV shows, I am concerned that people are being duped into thinking they have diseases needing drug treatment when in fact this may not be the case at all, or into asking their doctor for the wrong drug when a safer, cheaper alternative (or several) may be available. Drug makers should not be allowed to use the people's airwaves to risk the people's health and solvency for the sake of goosing their own bottom line.

In Memoriam: David Alway, 1951-2007

For those reading this who may not be familiar with the filk-music LJ community (or my friendslist, which is mostly pretty much the same thing), we have had some truly shocking and saddening news this day. Dave Alway, brother of Peter and known on LJ as tnatj, passed away suddenly this morning, apparently of an unexpected heart attack. He had just been at GAFilk 9 with us this past weekend, along with Peter and about 120 or so of his closest friends. I myself bought one of his famous "Duchy of Filkhaven" buttons from him at the con Saturday evening, just prior to the Interfilk auction. Peter's LJ page contains the full story here as well as condolence postings from other LJ filkers, to which you should feel free to add...and a donation to Interfilk in his memory might not go amiss, either.

I cannot add to the wealth of memories and personal knowledge of Dave that others in the community have posted; sad to say, I did not know him all that well myself, though I appreciated his artistry (being a onetime button designer myself) and found him always to be polite and friendly. Since I have no other more personal memories of him than what many shared with him in con filkrooms, house filks and such, I will instead post a poem that I came upon shortly after the death of my mother, over 11 years ago, which gave me comfort. I only hope it can do likewise for Peter and the rest of Dave's family, friends and loved ones. So as to preserve the special formatting and save space, I've placed it behind a cut.
( There Is No Death )