ask your doctor

TV commercials tend to annoy the heck out of me, so I mostly stay away from the commercial stations (except during football season):  hence, I find myself too much on Netflix, Hulu, HBO Go, or, ideally, no TV at all.

But I do like to stay informed and motivated, so, when I do watch cable, it’s almost always a news station — generally MSNBC, sometimes CNN.  Their reporting is intelligent and informative.  Fair and balanced, you might say.

Here is my gripe:  the commercials and sponsors on those networks are primarily pharmaceutical products.  The advertised drugs are designed for a tiny percent of viewers who happen to have the targeted diseases or ailments.  TV commercials are extremely expensive, which partially explains why prescription drugs are so overpriced.

And, after the ad lists all of the potential side effects (diarrhea to death), it ends with “Ask your doctor if this drug is right for you!”   I’m thinking, if your doctor is treating you, why hasn’t he or she already thought of this answer?  And how many phone calls do doctors get from all the hypochondriacs out there who imagine they have every disease described?

Other than that, I love MSNBC (yay, Rachel Maddow!).  I just wish they weren’t so dependent on drugs for their profits and existence.  I’d rather see dish-soap commercials.  Remember Madge?