'Drastic action is needed' now to stop Ebola epidemic

The World Health Organization says “drastic action is needed” to stop the Ebola virus outbreak.

Hey Earth.. maybe we need to start paying attention to this…??

'Drastic action is needed' now to stop Ebola epidemic

Mom Wants Overdose Reversal Drug Available To Families of Addicts.. and with that a question of ethics abound

The number of people dying from heroin overdoses in Ohio has increased exponentially. State lawmakers are considering a bill that would allow an addict’s family or friends to give a drug that can halt an overdose. Some medical experts worry expanding the drug’s availability could cause other problems.

I recently found myself in a pretty heated debate with family over this drug.. I was doing my typical act of playing devil’s advocate.. I am slightly still torn as to what the right answer should be.. Should someone be permitted to bring back a person who overdosed on drugs?

I was told be the naysayers who said nay: “No, we cannot play God.”
"No, the drug addict made the choice."
"No, they will live to do drugs again."

All valid points, I suppose.. but I expanded on it all perhaps too much for a family meal. I guess you should never talk politics or religion at the dinner table. Add to that, thanks to me, Narcan.

Before moving on, let’s first explain this:

Narcan is the brand name for naloxone. It sends someone overdosing on heroin or synthetic opioids into immediate withdrawals and restores breathing.

On the point of playing God. We do anyway.. each and every day. Doctors and family members decides who dies—hell they just decided, in a sense, to allow Casey Kasem to meet his earthly demise.. And isn’t medical advancements ensuring we play God on a more regular basis? At one time in history, we’d put a feather over someone’s face to see if they were dead. These days we can restart the heart up to hours after it stops.. we can make a body live again. We can keep the soldiers in war alive to get prosthetic limbs. And while we cannot restart the brain—yet—Obama is working on that.

So if we play God already with people who get ailments, why not do the same with those who OD? Are they less than people? Did their choices compel others to say they are not worthy of living? Dig deep into your soul for the answers to that.. and while you’re in there, come up with a a concise and totally appropriate paragraph on why doing drugs is ”wrong” to begin with—but minus our the PSAs from Nancy Reagan and Mr. T that are undoubtedly ingrained in your psyche from childhood, if you’re a baby from the 80s that is.

These are deeply troubling questions for me.. 

I find myself agreeable to the premise that some addicts will live to die another day, do another snort, and take another needle. Yes, they will take a hit and keep on hitting, with Narcan to possibly blame for their furthering of their habit. I also think, however, that this near death experience will enlighten them to the possibility of kicking that deadly habit and choosing an alternate and more healthy way to die: Old age. Maybe that is just the dreamer in me..

America and the world is filled with deadbeats and junkies, whores and heathens. Sinners and saints are hard to find, the murky middle is where too many human beings belong.

But in a society where we regularly play God, it’s perhaps a decent and timely question to start deciding if we should pick and choose who lives and dies.. or if we should just play God in a more universal (*or Catholic!) way.

Yes… the medical team can try to revive a person who ODs.. but should the family? Is it wrong? …riddle me this: Is wrong to revive someone with CPR, or as Mrs. Doubtfire did, relieve someone of choking at a restaurant? Imagine that scene.. Mrs. Doubtfire Part 2, with Piece Bronson injecting himself with heroin.. and Doubtfire has to administer the Narcan..  Now THAT would be a modern take for a sequel, perhaps.

I am going to continue to debate this question internally.. 

I will also continue to argue both points with anyone willing to have a discussion. I have not yet decided..

But I know this final thing: We are moving towards a society where humans and machines merge.. I think Narcan is a nice fit on that highway. Good or bad.. God or devil. The devil’s always in the details..

Mom Wants Overdose Reversal Drug Available To Families of Addicts.. and with that a question of ethics abound

A part of me thinks that Shia LaBeouf  is a whore for attention.. the other part of me thinks his behavior has gone beyond the ‘act’ and is becoming real.. 

Nonetheless, his latest stint in the public eye involves his arrest at the Broadway musical Cabaret last night..  According to witnesses, reports, and all that: He was smoking and being very loud and disruptive..  

Read some more here..

And yes, this may not be the most important event in the news today, but it’s interesting to me. Either we are watching a new modern version of Andy Kauffman in action, or we are seeing the default behavior of a flailing and failing celebrity. 

Act or not, the Shia has fallen.

Vet Could Lose Home For Displaying Small US Flag In Front Yard Because It Violates Home Display Rules

A veteran could lose his home because of a small flag he has placed in a flower pot in front of his home.

The headline speaks a million more words.. It’s all true, too. The ‘home’ rules dictate that this veteran may actually lose his entire abode simply for the sin of displaying the flag of the nation he could have died for..

And to anyone who thinks that these Nazi-ish weirdo draconian home rules are normal, it’s situations like this which command discernment  and common sense. . Ok, we get it, you don’t want Christmas lights of more than one color.. but no gardens? No play sets? No American flags?

No flags…

Vet Could Lose Home For Displaying Small US Flag In Front Yard Because It Violates Home Display Rules

Video: Woman Violently Beaten As Toddler Tries To Intervene

And others just recorded on iPhones while the toddler tried to help..
Guess what humans: you’re disgusting sometimes

Video: Woman Violently Beaten As Toddler Tries To Intervene

Flu vaccine contains 25,000 times more mercury than is legally allowed in drinking water

Flu vaccine contains 25,000 times more mercury than is legally allowed in drinking water

Rupert Murdoch’s Trouble Has Only Just Begun

Rupert Murdoch’s Trouble Has Only Just Begun

Swine Flu Confirmed at Shelter for Unaccompanied Minors

Swine Flu Confirmed at Shelter for Unaccompanied Minors

NBC declares: Why It Pays to Watch the World Cup at Work

The big match is Germany vs the USA today at noon EDT..

And NBC is telling workers across America to stop working and watch soccer..

Don’t think this will go over well .. 

NBC declares: Why It Pays to Watch the World Cup at Work

Homeland Security Seeks Thousands Of Pairs Of Underwear For Detained Immigrants

Homeland Security Seeks Thousands Of Pairs Of Underwear For Detained Immigrants

VA deaths covered up to make statistics look better, whistle-blower says

Records of dead vets were changed to hide how many people died while waiting for care at the Phoenix VA hospital, whistle-blower tells CNN.

We aren’t just talking about ‘numbers’ and stats here.. we are talking about lives. Lives now ended .. This is deeply troubling. And the iceberg’s tip will only lead to bigger things..

VA deaths covered up to make statistics look better, whistle-blower says

Another study confirms: Pesticide exposure in pregnancy linked to autism risk in kids

Women who live near sites where commercial pesticides are used may be more likely to have child with autism, study finds

Yes there are studies all of the time which indicate strange things are associated with autism and other developmental disorders.. But this is not the first time I have seen the link between pesticides and the impact on brain neurons.. 

Give the story a full read.
And no, it won’t settle anything.. but it certainly may make some of our daily lives unsettling.

Another study confirms: Pesticide exposure in pregnancy linked to autism risk in kids

USGS Scientist Says Alaska, New Zealand Quakes Might Be Linked

With massive quakes striking off the Alaskan and New Zealand coast Monday, a scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey said he is weighing the possibilities that the two might be connected.

I don’t know if this is a first or not, but quite some time many ‘experts’ have said that earthquakes do not have a rhyme or reason and are not connected.. others like Stan Deyo have been able to successfully predict earthquakes for years.. Those ‘tin foil’ hat wearers have been criticized by the science community at large for some time..

But now someone from the USGS is agreeable to the premise that two quakes on the same day may be connected—and when tension starts on one side of the ring of fire, a burst may occur on the other.

USGS Scientist Says Alaska, New Zealand Quakes Might Be Linked

Report: Story of girl getting tossed from KFC hoax

The report of a Jackson KFC accused of asking a 3-year-old girl to leave because of facial scars was a hoax, according to the Laurel Leader-Call.

And the entire world fell for this.. hook, line, and sinker..

I’ll admit it, even me. I have a sore spot for stories about kids..

Report: Story of girl getting tossed from KFC hoax

M O O N .. that spells DUMB

Arizona man arrested for trying to shoot the moon with his hand gun..

Schools replace 'he' and 'she' with 'ze'

Schools replace 'he' and 'she' with 'ze'

10 Things About Lucid Dreaming

I had my first lucid dream the other night, after weeks of meditation before bed.. I was taking a walk with my son, and we stole a baseball bat. I was worried about being captured, but during the dream told myself it was a dream and I can control it now.. I woke up soon after ..

10 Things About Lucid Dreaming

What company rules your state?

There is a reason people say never to mess ith a Quiji board.. And now video that may prove it.. Believe it or not, a video portends to show signs of a woman being possessed after playing with the board.. Alexandra Huerta, 22, was playing with the ‘other world’ when she was by her brother Sergio, 23, and 18-year-old cousin Fernando Cuevas.. Then came the ‘growling’ and hallucinations.. They were taken the hospital soon after..

Tsunami warning reduced to advisory after quake in Western Aleutians

Tsunami warning reduced to advisory after quake in Western Aleutians