In 1966, an attorney, Mark Lane wrote a book called Rush To Judgement,  that basically was critical of the Warren Commission for being to eager to believe that Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone shooter in the Kennedy assassination. He was one of many people who considered the theory of conspiracy in the death of Kennedy. But this post is not about the assassination or conspiracy; it is about how we arrive at our own appraisal of guilt or innocence, or truth and objective analysis of an event.
We are faced almost every day with the news of a shooting, abduction, fire, accident, or other event that the media sees as newsworthy. Sometimes they are local in nature, but frequently they are nationwide stories. A perfect historical perspective can be recounted in the O. J. Simpson trial. From the very first reports until the trial itself, we all had an "opinion" of guilt or innocence. But, the question is, how do we process these events when we have very little data to really come to a reasonable conclusion? Even after the trial and eventual acquittal, there is still doubt of guilt or innocence.
The most recent shooting of Trayvon Martin is a good current example of the way we all perceive the event, even without the benefit of the facts. The death itself is another abomination of the shooting of any human being. His being a child only make the death more tragic. But, it seems that sides are being chosen as to what happened and why, only knowing what we have seen or heard. We see the impassioned plea of the parents and friends, and then the impassioned plea of the family and friends of the alleged shooter. But, we do not know what happened so how do we choose a side to support? More to the point, should we be more critical in our thinking about what we see and hear?
We can certainly can understand that the media plays a role in how we see and hear information. They have a story to tell and they choose how to tell that story. They select the video clips, the people that are interviewed, and the "experts" who speculate and explain the facts as they see them. But, it seems that we have to be more discerning in accepting any unsubstantiated information. The media generally seems to be an unbiased source, but they wok on a fast news cycle. So, every shred of "evidence" is presented to bring attention to the event. But, it is our responsibility to recognize that we are in no position to judge or select guilt or innocence.
I really believe that the trend to rush to judgement will continue as an emotional response to tragedy. My sense is that we can mourn the death with the family, but not come to any conclusion about the motivation, the actual events, or the blame until we have all of the facts. What we do know is that we have another dead child, and that is difficult to come to terms with...

It has been said before that there is "nothing new under the sun" and this is true with the current price of gasoline. We have been here before, and we will be again. For as long as I can remember, the cost for a gallon of gas has been a political football, a constant gripe from consumers, cage rattling from OPEC, a source of material for comedians, and pundits placing blame. We are not drilling enough, China and Russia are buying more, so it is supply and demand. The oil companies are gouging us and Congress should hold hearings to find out what is happening. And, of course, in an election year there are candidates who will make sure that we have gas for $2.50 a gallon and an effective energy policy. But, it seems that everybody is missing the most important cause; the consumer!
Yes, in a free-market economy, some or all of the above can be factors in the rise and fall of prices. I have had courses in macro and micro economics and can see that supply and demand is an important part of all pricing, including gasoline. But, I also see that we as consumers are gluttons for petroleum. Weather it is more plastic crap or fuel, we squander our resources. We can either continue to bitch about it, or, change our habits.
Americans, by and large, like to have one car with one driver and want to go wherever we want, when we want. We do not car-pool nearly enough, or strategically plan our shopping trips to minimize trip length. We warm our cars up for too long, use air conditioning at the first sign of warmth, and drive short distances rather than walk or wait for what we want. And, we continue to buy cars and small trucks that get less than 20 miles a gallon.If you are one of the drivers that do all of the right things, congratulations! You are in the minority however. 
So for now, we will listen to the fear-mongers telling us that gas will be x dollars by whenever. But we really have the drivers seat if we just stop using so much gasoline. Just s thought...

The most recent prescription drug mistake made at a New Jersey CVS made me think about how often these errors are made. In this case, Tamoxifen, a cancer drug, was substituted for fluoride pills meant to strengthen teeth in children. Despite the fact that it is happening everyday, it is difficult to get good hard numbers about these mistakes. The best I could find is at least 1 and 1/2 million cases are reported each year and these have resulted in either injury or death. We have no way of knowing how many cases go unreported or are missed when a death occurs. I have always been concerned about medications and really prefer not to play Russian roulette with my health, but, sometimes it is necessary to see a doctor and accept some form of medication. I have a strategy that although not foolproof, does provide a safety factor.
First, it begins with the doctor. If a medication is recommended, I want to know everything about it. What is the expected outcome? What is the dosage? How often and for how long? What are the side effects if any, and are there any contraindications? Are there any foods or vitamins that reduce its effectiveness? Is there a generic form and is it as good as the brand name. Should it be taken at the same time every day and with food or on an empty stomach? What if I miss a dose? Are there any reactions that should cause concern? How long will it take to see the expected result? If you are seeing more than one doctor, make sure that your records are available to all physicians that you see.The doctor should be able to answer these question and if not, then he/she should find the answer. We pay top dollar for healthcare and we should expect good answers and explanations.
Then, it is off to the pharmacy to pick up the medication. Verify with the pharmacist that it is the correct patient name, correct drug, the correct dosage, and ask any questions that are relevant or that you may have missed with the doctor. Again, we pay high prices for medications and should expect accuracy. Pharmacists basically count pills and do not make any compounds anymore. Make sure that they provide the correct medication.
Before you begin taking the drug, read the enclosed documentation at least for the most important information. Verify what the doctor has told you and follow instructions.
If you have an unidentified medication and want to find out what it is, there are drug identifiers available on the web. All medications are coded and can be identified by number. Sometimes the number is all on one side, but frequently it is on both sides. Here is a link to one site but there are others.

If we take care to protect ourselves, we have a better chance of not being a statistic, but there is one area that we really do not have control over. And that is if the mistake is made during manufacture. It happens, and for that error, we have to trust the FDA. Any regular readers know how I feel about this agency of the government. This is the time to cross the fingers and hope that the manufacturer has a good quality control process...