 Overnight Open Thread (6-2-2014) Quote of the Day Because style and linguistic nuance trump competence - it mattered not that in reality, Barack Obama had less DC experience than Dan Quayle when he announced his presidential bid; he looked and sounded great- he sounded exactly like the chattering class themselves. Thus assured Obama was in the club, his lack of qualifications for what he would do if he won didn't matter. Obama Defines His Foreign Policy Goal: "Don't Do Stupid Shit" A goal. Not an accomplishment, of course. Still trying to figure out what President Barack Obama’s foreign policy doctrine is? Search no more. The White House has got you covered. AOSHQDD: Where Things Stand in Mississippi (Updated) Update: this thread came a bit late on Friday, and with tomorrow's election on a lot of people's minds, I've updated it to include our weighted poll average and a link to county-by-county breakdown as a percentage of the vote Medicare's CMS: Hey You Guys, We're Losing $6.7 Billion Every Year Due to Fraud & Error But It Would Be Too Expensive To Fix It Um, would it cost more than $6.7 billion per year to fix it?Medicare spent $6.7 billion too much for office visits and other patient evaluations in 2010, according to a report from the inspector general of the Department of Health and Human Services. After Deadly Shooting at Jewish Museum in Brussels, French Police Arrest Four Jihadists Three were killed at the museum -- two Israelis and a Frenchwoman. Another was shot and remains in critical condition. Benghazi Mouthpiece Susan Rice: Likely Deserter Bowe Bergdahl "Served with Honor and Distinction" Six non-deserting US troops were killed searching for this guy. She also claimed he was "captured on the battlefield." NRA: Yeah, A Bunch Of People Walking Into A Restaurant With Rifles Is "Weird" And You're Not Helping Gun Rights By Doing It. People seem to be surprised the NRA would come out against groups of people walking into restaurants with AR-15s and other rifles but I'm not. The NRA has always promoted responsible gun ownership and use. There's nothing responsible about being a jackass. Monday Morning News Dump Does Matthew Yglesias Ever Tire Of Being Embarrassingly Wrong About Everything Obama Seeks To Land The Killing Blow On The US Economy Was Hillary Clinton A Good Secretary Of State? Bidding For 2022 Olympics Not Going Well Your Electricity Prices Are Going To Go Up The Paradox Of Expertise UCSB Solipsists Leftist Minimum Wage Policy Backfires In Seattle Suburb Vets Who Served With Bergdahl Call Him A Deserter Patterico Hosting Video That The Left Is Trying To Scrub From The Internet How To Tell Someone's Age When All You Know Is Her Name Spain's King To Abdicate The Throne HP Unveils Laptop That Runs Android Aereo And The Supreme Court Spaced-Out Challenge: The Lunar X Welcome again to the Spaced-Out Challenge! Whether you have a question about equipment, a new astronomical discovery you want to expand on, or just want to kick back and enjoy the cosmos above, come one come all on our weekly astronomical journey. Kings vs Blackhawks Game 7 [Y-not] So tonight we learn who is advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals to meet the NY Rangers. Game 7 of the Western Conference Final is tonight at 8 p.m. Eastern. Follow this link to find out how to watch on line. Food Thread: Free-Form Edition Part 2 [CBD] Do not eat wild mushrooms unless you are an expert at identifying them. It simply is not worth the risk. This is a blog post, not a field guide. Once again....do not harvest and consume wild mushrooms unless you are trained in their identification. 
 Downtown Hot Springs Leaders Unveil Major Redevelopment Plan
Hot Springs should immediately start to revitalize its downtown by hiring a full-time downtown economic development director and creating a private investment fund for the area, a new report by community leaders says. Trinity Industries To Locate Railcar Facility At Nordex Factory In Jonesboro The former Nordex USA wind turbine factory in Jonesboro has been sold to a subsidiary of Trinity Industries, a Dallas-based firm that will re-open the closed plant as a railcar manufacturer creating up to 350 jobs. Cook: Tom Cotton’s Vote Against Violence Against Women Act Haunts Him Tom Cotton’s vote against the Violence Against Women Act is coming back to haunt him again. You may recall, Cotton was the only Arkansas Congressman to vote against this act that was designed to safeguard women and families from domestic violence and strengthen law enforcement protections. P.A.M. Adds McLarty To Board, Authorizes Stock Repurchase Plan P.A.M. Transportation Services, Inc. has appointed Franklin McLarty to the company’s board of directors and he will serve on its audit committee. Arkansas AG Approves Wording Of Marijuana Decriminalization Initiative Attorney General Dustin McDaniel approved the popular name and ballot title for a proposed constitutionalamendment that would decriminalize marijuana in Arkansas. First Federal Bancshares Renames To Bear State Financial - Harrison-based First Federal Bancshares of Arkansas has changed its name to Bear State Financial, Inc. and will alter its ticker symbol for public trading and increase its authorized shares. Shareholder Week Brings Effort To Oust Wal-Mart Chairman Rob Walton Wal-Mart is often in the center of a battle between the Wal-Mart insiders and any number of outside groups seeking change, and shareholder week usually involves public displays of dissatisfaction from hourly workers and labor unions. This year is no different. Brent Birch Selected To Lead LR Tech Park Brent Birch, Chief Information Officer for Arkansas Business Publishing Group, was selected as director of the Little Rock Technology Park Authority Board, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Tourism Officials Want Motorcyclists To ‘Head Out On The Highway’ Get your motor runnin’Head out on the highway Looking for adventure In whatever comes our way“Born To Be Wild” – Steppenwolf Struggling To Find Workers, Poultry Industry Calls For Immigration Reform The head of the Poultry Federation is calling for comprehensive immigration reform, saying that his industry is currently struggling to find workers. May 30, 2014: TV Newser: ABC News Has Best May Sweep Since Roone Arledge was In Charge
ABC News is taking a victory lap after the network’s newscasts finished in first place in either the key news demo or total viewers, or, in the case of “Good Morning America,” both. Mar 6, 2014: Neither CBS nor ABC have included a skeptical scientist in their news shows within the past 1,300 days, but both networks included alarmists within the past 160 days -- CBS as recently as 22 days ago. When the networks did include other viewpoints, the experts were dismissed as “out of the scientific mainstream” or backed by “oil and coal companies.” (SOURCE: Sean Long: News Busters: "COLD SHOULDER: ABC, CBS Exclude Scientists Critical of Global Warming for More Than 1,300 Days") Mar 5, 2014: News Busters: CBS Drops Coverage of Latest ObamaCare Delay; ABC Provides No GOP Rebuttal After being the lone network to report ObamaCare's newest delay on Wednesday morning, CBS dropped the story on Wednesday evening's news cast. Both NBC and ABC reported the news but only NBC provided criticism from Republicans. Feb 21, 2014: Shot In The Dark: Dispatches From Planet Media The problem with most – as in the vast majority – of media people when writing about the Second Amendment is that most of them haven’t the foggiest idea about the subject, and all of their sources on the subject are fellow liberals. That’s the only excuse I can think of for this piece of suppurating journalistic drainpipe-meat from ABC News: May 13, 2014: NRCC: John Barrow’s politicking called out by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
John Barrow is known for being a self-serving politician whose only focus is to better position himself for re-elect. While the priorities of 12th District families are second to the priorities of John Barrow’s ambition, this latest bill, which would require Members of Congress to fly coach, is so transparent that the Atlanta Journal-Constitution called out Barrow for his shameless ways. May 9, 2014: Tucker Patch: Atlanta Journal Constitution Cup Winner Greater Atlanta Christian School senior, Sam Weyen, received this year's top honor - the Atlanta Journal Constitution Cup.May 8, 2014: Georgia Public Policy Foundation: Atlanta Journal-Constitution Publishes our Op-Ed on Trade Authority This op-ed appeared in May 7, 2014 edition of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.May 4, 2014: Decoded Science: Insufficient Mental Health Treatment for Veterans Contributes to High Suicide Rate This scandal mirrors a situation uncovered last year by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. In August 2013, the newspaper revealed that 16 veterans had attempted suicide while waiting to receive mental health care at the overburdened Atlanta VA Medical Center, in Georgia. Apr 15, 2014: Columbia Journalism Review: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution does the Medicaid story we’ve been looking for - So it’s only fair that we acknowledge The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, which on April 5 published the Medicaid story we’ve been looking for, and set an example for other news outlets on how to spotlight one of health reform’s biggest inequities. Apr 7, 2014: SB Nation: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Spoke With Ahmed Hill Back on Friday, (and why I had to find this out yesterday through Twitter instead of from the Google Alert I set up, I'll never know) the Atlanta Journal-Constitution posted a recruiting blog entryfocused on what's going on with Marquette signee and Augusta, GA, native Ahmed Hill.May 20, 2014: PRWeb: Contact At Once! Named Atlanta Journal-Constitution Top Workplace Contact At Once! announced today that it has been recognized for the third straight year as an Atlanta Journal-Constitution Top Workplace for 2014.Mar 19, 2014: PR Newser: Chick-Fil-A CEO Is So Over This Whole ‘Gay Marriage’ Thing In an extended interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution last week, Cathy said he “regrets” turning his company into a corporate spokesperson on social policy:Feb 14, 2014: Kyle Wingfield: Atlanta Constitutional Journal: What Democrats won't tell you about income inequality Jan 30, 2014: SND: How The Atlanta Journal-Constitution covered a winter storm Melissa Angle, projects editor at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, shared the story behind the paper’s special edition, which published Thursday.Jan 25, 2014: Autism Votes: Atlanta Journal Constitution: 'Health Plans Should Cover Autism' The Atlanta Journal-Constitution today published an opinion piece by Sen. John Albers, the Senate sponsor of Ava's Law, calling for enactment of autism insurance reform legislation this year in Georgia.Jan 7, 2014: AALAC: AALAC makes the front page of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution On January 2nd, 2014, AALAC made the front page of Atlanta Journal-Constitution in Craig Schneider’s article, “Asian Americans entering politics”. AALAC Executive Director Helen Kim Ho’s Op-Ed piece regarding the importance of immigrant voters was also published in the paper. Oct 27, 2013: Finding Zealots: GRM’s Social Media Campaign Featured in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Guest Relations created a program in September 2009 to honor the courageous fight of children with cancer.Oct 23, 2013: Poynter: Atlanta Journal-Constitution apologizes for weird tweet The Atlanta Journal-Constitution apologized Wednesday for a tweet about a lottery winner that said he could now “get 40 acres and a whole lotta mules.”Oct 10, 2013: NPAA: Staff Cuts At Cox Newspapers, Reuters Today at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Cox flagship paper, news spread that the 10 person photography staff will be cut to only five people by November 1st. Sept 19, 2013: Jim Romenesko: Atlanta Journal-Constitution hires two Star Tribune reporters, including a Pulitzer-winner On Wednesday, the Star Tribune lost editor Nancy Barnes to the Houston Chronicle. Today it was announced that the Minneapolis paper is losing two reporters — religion writer Rose French and her husband, Pulitzer-winning investigative reporter Brad Schrade — to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.Jan 24, 2013: Deadspin: Asante Samuel's Mother Died, And The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Used An Inappropriate Photo I get that the overworked and underpaid web editor only has a certain number of in-house photos to choose from (Gettyand the AP have much more appropriate ones, so perhaps the paper is trying to keep under its monthly limit), but they went with one that's not even particularly recent.Jan 13, 2013: Thrashing The Blues: AJC takes shot at Thrashers fans. Why? I have my own opinions about their news coverage (I read it because it's basically my only option for decent-ish metro Atlanta news), but aside from Mark Bradley and Jeff Schultz, I've found their sports coverage borderline useless. June 8, 2013: News Busters: Atlanta Journal/Constitution Political Cartoonist: Contraception Debate’s About Controlling You Syndicated editorial cartoonist Mike Luckovich, working for the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, created a cartoon bashing the Catholic Church for controlling women. July 6, 2011: Huffington Post: Atlanta Cheating Scandal Unveiled By Reporters Three years ago, Heather Vogell, an investigative reporter at the Atlanta Journal Constitution, sat down with a data analyst to crunch some numbers.July 1, 2012: Inma: Reader-driven improvements bring circulation gains to Atlanta-Journal Constitution "Reader value strategy" — which centers on a focus of core readers and move toward the journalism readers want — leads to AJC's first circulation gains in seven years. May 23, 2011: Huffington Post: Roddy White Lashes Out At Atlanta Journal-Constitution Atlanta Falcons receiver Roddy White went on a profanity-laced rant on his Twitter account directed at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.May 4, 2011: Atlanta Business Chronicle: WSJ tops in circulation, AJC reports dip The AJC reports Monday through Friday circulation dipped to 183,415, down from 196,201 last year, according to the report from The Audit Bureau of Circulations which tracks numbers in the industry for advertising and other purposes Dec 2, 2010: Creative Loafing: Julia Wallace is no longer AJC editor Staffers were informed during a meeting earlier today that Julia Wallace, who oversaw the AJC's redesign and shifted its resources and focus on the northern 'burbs, has stepped down as the daily paper's executive editor.Nov 11, 2010: Creative Loafing: 'Burbs or bust The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has left Atlanta – literally and figuratively – in its quest for suburban readers As subscriptions and advertising revenue plummeted for most dailies, the AJC cut its newsroom by more than half,stopped distributing in most Georgia counties, closed its suburban news bureaus, disbanded its editorial board, discontinued its daily business section, launched complete redesigns of the weekday and Sunday papers, and reorganized its editorial staff at least four different times.Nov 10, 2010: Saporta Report: Gift of building does not absolve the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s downtown departure But that voice — the voice of reason, hope and progress — has been muted at today’s Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Instead, the newspapers seem hell bent to portray the City of Atlanta and the core of the region in the worst possible light Aug 23, 2010: Eater: Critic John Kessler Returns to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution John Kessler, the once and future restaurant reviewer for the The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, has announced his return to the paper as principal restaurant critic this Friday after an absence of almost six years.Aug 17, 2009: Huffington Post: Atlanta Journal Constitution Moves To Suburbs The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is moving to the suburbs, abandoning its downtown space that the company described Monday as outdated and in need of substantial funds to maintain and operate.Aug 17, 2009: Atlanta Business Chronicle: Atlanta Journal-Constitution moving HQ to Dunwoody The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC) confirmed Monday it will leave its downtown headquarters and make its new home in Dunwoody in the first quarter of 2010.July 23, 2009: Seattle Times: Atlanta Journal-Constitution gets new publisher Michael Joseph has been promoted to publisher of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Cox Media Group announced Thursday.Apr 27, 2009: SND Region 3: Atlanta Journal-Constitution redesign launches tomorrow Find a sneak peek of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's redesign that launches tomorrow (Tuesday, April 28) athttp://www.ajcsundaysneakpeek.com and also at http://www.youraudiencedelivered.com.Apr 19, 2009: New York Times: An Atlanta Editorial Voice May Move to the Right “I think they’re trying not to offend,” said Kenneth Edelstein, a blogger and former editor of Creative Loafing, an Atlanta alternative weekly. “It’s definitely a move to the right, and it’s a real change for a paper that was the most important progressive voice in the South for a long time.” April 15, 2009: Huffintgon Post: How Journalism Plays Twister...To the Right Exhibit B: Cynthia Tucker -- the Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial page editor of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has long been the kind of contrarian voice that we journalists allegedly worship -- is being moved up and out of her slot in what local observers say is part of a seemingly futile bid to woo back conservative suburban readers: It's safe to say, however, that for the first time in generations, the state's leading editorial page finally will have abandoned its mission as a progressive voice in favor of a carefully constructed mirage of "balance" -- designed not to tell the truth, whether it's unpopular or not, as much as to mollify conservative readers.Apr 13, 2009: Reuters: Atlanta Journal-Constitution needs its D.C. bureau The AJC — the 22nd-largest U.S. daily by weekday circulation and 13th largest by Sunday circulation — said on Monday that it named Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and editorial page editor Cynthia Tucker as political columnist in Washington, D.C.Mar 25, 2009: Wall Street Journal: Atlanta Journal-Constitution cutting news staff by 30% The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said Wednesday it is slashing its news staff by about 30% and will stop distribution to certain counties around AtlantaMar 10. 2009: Libertarian Republican: As other Liberal papers die, Atlanta Journal-Constitution makes a desperate appeal to Conservatives and Libertarians It's planning to move the paper to the political center, scrutinizing their news reporting for liberal bias, and even inviting more participation from conservatives, and at least one libertarian on the editorial page.Apr 2, 2008: Huffington Post: Luckovich's Lament: Cartooning Obama Is Gonna Be Tough The more editorial cartoonist Mike Luckovich sees of Barack Obama, the more he likes the President-elect. Oddly enough, this turn of events has the Pulitzer Prize winning artist very, very worried.Mar 8, 2008: Huffington Post: Key Newspapers Weigh In On Obama v. Clinton Obama was the recipient of the Atlanta Journal Constitution's support. The paper, whose reach extends into parts of South Carolina - where the Democrats will be voting a week from Saturday - and Florida - where they will cast ballots shortly thereafter - wrote of the Illinois Democrat: "[He] has demonstrated an appeal across many of the lines that have divided America. That is a critically important attribute, because the scale of changes that must be made to correct America's course cannot be accomplished with majorities of 50 percent plus one. "Different moments in history require different types of leaders, and part of the art of picking a president is matching the person to the challenge and to the time. So while both Clinton and Obama would make very good presidents, Obama is the person; this is his time." Feb 27, 2008: The Body: Atlanta Journal-Constitution Profiles Advocacy Group HealthSTAT, Including Work With HIV/AIDS The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Tuesday profiled the advocacy group HealthSTAT, which stands for Health Students Taking Action Together, including its work on HIV/AIDS policy in Georgia. Members of the group include students in nursing, pharmacy, physical therapy, public health and related fields from nine colleges and medical schools in Georgia. Oct 29, 2007: University of Georgia: Atlanta Journal Constitution Editor Julia Wallace to present UGA’s 29th McGill Lecture A newspaper editor described as fearless and inventive will deliver the 29th McGill Lecture at the University of Georgia on Wednesday, Nov. 7. May 30, 2007: On The Record: Trouble in Atlanta: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Situation The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, one of this nation's important newspapers, has made a decision to eliminate most of its arts critics and editors... Apr 10, 2007: Free Republic: Atlanta Journal-Constitution: 43 newsroom staffers taking buyout Forty-three newsroom employees at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution have opted to take buyouts offered by the paper as part of a restructuring, a spokeswoman said Tuesday. Nov 29, 2006: Electronic Intifida: Write to thank Atlanta Journal Constitution for honest opinion piece Today, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution ran the following op-ed by John Dugard, a South African former anti-apartheid leader. Sept 1, 2006: Columbia Journal Review: The AJC Takes the CDC’s Temperature On Sunday, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution broke the story that the CDC employees who have been receiving the bulk ofcash awards and performance bonuses are not scientists, but management and administrative personnel.  Sept 5, 2014: Hawaii News Now: Gov. Abercrombie signs emergency proclamation, lava moving slowly
Governor Neil Abercrombie has signed an emergency proclamation that will allow officials on Hawaii Island to begin identifying and immediately opening abandoned roads as alternate routes in case the Puna lava flow crosses Highway 130. Aug 16, 2014: Daily Kos: How Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie lost his primary by 36 points Incumbents lose primaries for a variety of reasons—crime, scandal, or when they face unfamiliar voters. Maybe they get outspent, maybe a more powerful politician takes them on. Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie can't point to any of those. Aug 11, 2014: Washington Post: Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s remarkable loss Gov. Neil Abercrombie of Hawaii, a man who bears more than a passing resemblance to former Gov. Jon Corzine of New Jersey, emulated Corzine in a way that he probably didn't anticipate: He lost his gubernatorial reelection bid on Saturday. May 13, 2014: Honolulu Civil Beat: Ad Watch: Abercrombie Plays the Kupuna Card In late April a campaign commercial titled "Neil Abercrombie: Values" first aired. It played up the governor's commitment to keiki. May 12, 2014: Washington Post: Hawaii could end life sentences for minors Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie (D) is considering whether to sign legislation ending life sentences without the possibility of parole for minors convicted of certain heinous crimes. Apr 21, 2014: KITV: $335 million released for Hawaii airport improvements Gov. Neil Abercrombie announced Monday the release of more than $335 million for various capital improvement projects. Apr 15, 2014: LA Times: Hawaii governor apologizes for questioning Inouye death-bed drama Four days after questioning a death-bed letter at the center of Hawaii’s heated U.S. Senate race, Gov. Neil Abercrombie apologized to the widow of its ascribed author, the late Sen. Daniel Inouye, and others he offended. But he stuck to his key assertion Inouye told him the choice of a successor was his alone to make. ------------------------ Neil Abercrombie (born June 26, 1938) is the seventh and current Governor of the State of Hawaii. A member of the Democratic Party, Abercrombie has served as Governor since 2010, and is seeking election to a second term as governor in 2014. Born in Buffalo, New York, Abercrombie is a graduate of the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. Abercrombie began his political career in 1975, after winning a seat in the Hawaii House of Representatives. He served in the Hawaii House until 1979, when he was elected to the Hawaii State Senate. Upon the resignation of Cecil Heftel, who resigned from the U.S. House of Representatives to run for Governor, Abercrombie was appointed to his vacant seat in 1986. Abercrombie served the remainder of Heftel's term on an interim basis until 1987. He served on the Honolulu City Council from 1988 to 1990 before returning to Congress in 1991. Abercrombie served nine consecutive terms in the House from 1993 to 2010, representing Hawaii's 1st congressional district, which comprises urban Honolulu. After incumbent Governor Linda Lingle was term limited and prevented from running for reelection, Abercrombie declared his candidacy for Governor in March 2009. In September 2010, Abercrombie won in the Democratic primary, defeating four Democratic challengers, including Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann, with 59% of the vote. Abercrombie went on to face Republican nominee, Lieutenant Governor James Aiona, in the general election. On November 2, 2010, Abercrombie and running mate Brian Schatz defeated Aiona with 57% of the vote. Abercrombie was sworn into office on December 6, 2010. by Tibor Krausz The mere fact of not believing in the supernatural doesn’t make you a well-grounded rational individual, let alone a humane soul.
First a confession: I find most religious ideas patently absurd, if not outright ridiculous. I’ve seen no convincing argument about the existence of God, much less evidence of him, her or it. Wishy-washy mumbo jumbo about the need for “spirituality” grates on me. I’m an atheist, yes. Now with that out of the way, here’s my gripe: I wish I were in better company. Let me explain. Taylor Quinn, Assistant Features Editor With mass shootings occurring so frequently in the United States, people will naturally wonder what causes them. Mad World News released an article in June titled, “Nearly Every Mass Shooting Has This One Thing In Common, And It Isn’t Weapons.” That one thing, according to the article, is anti-depressants. This is simply not true. The article lists 43 examples of mass murderers being on some type of anti-depressant, which may seem like a lot until you look at how many people are on anti-depressants in the U.S. According to CBS News, 13 percent of the overall U.S. population takes anti-depressants. The U.S. Census Bureau reported 313.9 million people living in the U.S. in 2012. This means that roughly 40,807,000 are on anti-depressants in the country. Now, 43 seems a little more insignificant. These people had previous issues, which is why they were taking anti-depressants in the first place. Maybe it was the depression that led them to kill, not the medication designed to help them. According to Web MD, depression has side effects such as difficulty making decisions, feelings of guilt, feelings of worthlessness or helplessness, feelings of hopelessness, irritability, sad feelings and thoughts of suicide. I may be wrong, but these symptoms could easily cause someone to commit violent acts. Difficulty making decisions, feelings of hopelessness and thoughts of suicide can be a dangerous combination. Two of the medications listed frequently on that original article were Zoloft and Paxil. Zoloft’s side effects, according to WebMD, include drowsiness, dizziness, trouble sleeping, low energy, excessive sweating, weight loss, stomach cramps and feeling weak. Paxil’s side effects according to WebMD include dry mouth, drowsiness, excessive sweating, loss of appetite, head pain, nervousness and sexual problems. None of those side effects would cause somebody to go on a killing spree. One could argue that these medications are to blame because they did not properly do their job, and I would agree, but the medications were not directly responsible for these killings. Another thing to consider is that prescribing the right anti-depressant for a patient is a guessing game. There are no tests to see which medications work the best for a given person. There is a lot of trial and error. Some medications simply don’t work for all people. These medications simply didn’t work for the killers. These medications help many people to live their lives properly when dealing with a mental disorder. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, an estimated 1 in 4 people in the U.S. will experience a mental health disorder, such as depression or anxiety, in a given year. A lot of people suffer from these disorders, and a lot of people are greatly aided by anti-depressant medications. Personally, I take Zoloft for panic disorder, and it has helped tremendously. I started taking it about a year and a half ago and have not had a full-blown panic attack in about a year. Excerpted from "Atheist Mind, Humanist Heart" “Begin at the beginning,” the King said, very gravely, “and go on till you come to the end: then stop.” — Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
* We begin by suggesting a framework of secular belief. It begins with the simple question, How can I justify any of my beliefs? When thinking about why we believe in anything, we quickly realize that every belief is based on other preexisting beliefs. Consider, for example, the belief that brushing our teeth keeps them healthy. Why do we believe this? Because brushing helps removes plaque buildup that causes teeth to decay. But why do we believe plaque causes decay? Because our dentists, teachers, and parents told us so. Why do we trust what our dentist says? Because other dentists and articles and books we’ve read confirmed it. Why do we believe those accounts? Because they presented many more pieces of information confirming the link between plaque, bacterial growth, and tooth decay. And why do we believe those pieces of information? |
