Rings of Benzene

Can't make up their minds

2006-10-02T19:39:00.000-07:00

I just don't get it. On one page I see that we had a record monsoon season (4 inches above normal) and the next page I see that we had a drought that has caused black bears to go scavaging for food.

So wait, which is it? Drought? Above average water?

Stupid AZ Drivers

2006-08-24T21:19:00.000-07:00

Alas, I am one of them.

I used to think I was a good driver when it came to rain, wind, and excessive water. I mean, I wasn't so stupid to drive my car under a Tucson underpass where the water level is clearly marked at being 4 ft high. Nor was I stupid enough to go through the washes like many other idiotic Arizona drivers.

But oh no. When I was driving home from Gilbert , I ended up doing something really stupid. Monday weather was awful. It was raining and very windy, at least in Gilbert. By the time I got to Chandler it was also raining hard. And my windshield wipers don't work too well (I need new ones, but who invests in them right before the end of the monsoon season).

Anyway, on my way home, I happen to the intersection of Arizona and Queen Creek. If anyone knows the area, Queen Creek is under construction; right before Alma School, the cones sort of make this weird zig-zag, where it dead ends and you have to take a sharp right hand turn to get onto the right side of the road. Under the best of circumstances, it is difficult enough to manuever around the oddly situated orange cones and signs. But it was dark (it was 8:15), raining and windy, and some of the signs were knocked over.

Sadly, the most important sign was knocked down: the sign that blocked access to the second lane of the east-bound traffic--the sign that indicated that you had to turn right sharply if you wanted to keep going down on Queen Creek.

Ah, stupid me. I saw the sign on the ground, thought it had blown over into the wrong lane, thought I hadn't yet reached the spot to make the quick manuever. To make a long story short, I ended up driving down the wrong side of the road.

Luckily, someone was nice enough to flash their lights and traffic was slow enough that I was able to turn around.

So much for thinking I wasn't just another moronic Arizona driver.

Finally, married

2006-08-02T23:40:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, July 29, I was married to the greatest man in the whole wide world: Michael Latimer. It is so weird to think that now I am married, with a ring (well, other than my beautiful engagement ring) on my left hand.

One thing I learned from this wedding has been that whoever pays makes the decisions. For instance, the wedding cake: I wanted a wedding cake with no ripples (or whatnot) for the edging; my mother then goes and orders a cake with those ripples.

Other things learned include never have a wedding in a city you do not live in. I wish I would have been in Yuma, where I was married, to dictate what was happening with the wedding. For example, I wish I would have been there to see what the florist was thinking for the bridesmaids flowers. I had requested a small bouquet of all daisies (the flowers my mother had at her wedding). Somehow or other, she interpreted this as meaning that the bouquets must include $75 worth of flowers. This meant that my maid of honor went down the aisle carrying a freaking huge (by huge, I mean small baby) bouquet of flowers (which did not just include daisies). Bleh.

Though one thing I did love about my wedding was the guy who did my hair. Jovani, with En Gedi Salon (which, by the way, is the only Christian salon in Yuma--according to one of the ladies there), did a beautiful job with my hair. My husband had asked that I have my hair up, but whenever my hair is up, I look gaunt (which is not easy for my fat face) and angular. So I compromised by having my hair in an updo but with my bangs (long ones) covering my forehead (which is rather big as well). Jovani not only did what I had asked, but he made it better. Turned out really beautifully.

I didn't expect to cry at my wedding, but I should have known that I would, especially I started crying at the rehearsal. So glad I didn't put on the mascara.

Dispensing Plan B

2006-06-11T17:34:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago, I got a chance to dispense Plan B, the emergency contraceptive.

Never would have thought I had a chance to do it. Where I typically work, we don't order it, so I have had no need to do it. And as a result, I never thought about what would actually happen when I was presented a choice with counseling a patient on their Plan B prescription.

So what did I do? I did the horrible thing: I told her to take one tablet now and wait another 12 hours before taking the other--just as long as it hadn't been over 72 hours since the time of the occurrence.

Oddly, I haven't had much time to think about what I did.

Does that mean that I have implicitly given my support to whatever behavior the young lady engaged in? Does that mean that now I should fill and dispense the medication without ever thinking about the moral implications? Or did I merely do my job?

The explanation I gave to my fiance was this: I did my job. I was neither giving my acquiescence to her behavior (whatever that was) nor was I now forced into a position in the future that I must now dispense and fill Plan B.

Maybe I have just given myself a little bit more time to think about the next chance to counsel on it. But I need to make a decision soon about how I will next handle it.

When extra time is not really necessary

2006-06-11T17:28:00.000-07:00

A guy I work with at one of my jobs(yes, now I am working two jobs, with a total of 60 hours--at least, depending if I pick up any more hours--between the two of them) has often mentioned how one of his friends with ADD or ADHD (I should know the difference) has been able to get extra time taking his tests here at the University of Arizona through SALT.

But not only does this guy not need the extra time (because he really can focus and just doesn't like focusing in school), he actually cheats and brings in extra study materials into the quiet, empty room that SALT provides. And by empty, I mean no teachers, no instructors, no supervisors. Just the student and his crib sheet.

And now an article comes out that says many of the students who take extra time for the SAT really don't need the extra time and score better grades than students who take the test during the normal time. Surprising discovery, eh?

There goes the job search

2006-05-26T15:16:00.000-07:00

Its that time of year again, when I am looking for a summer job. Anyone willing to hire a hard working, conservative (or whatever) student? I am proficient in reading writing and arithmetic. Among other skills, I have great customer service skills and an award-winning personality.

No one hiring? That's a shame. *wink* Ok, I guess the new question is, does anyone know of anyone else hiring over the summer?

My current job recently cut down on my summer hours, dropping me from a total summer earnings of around $3000 to $2000 (with taxes taken out, of course). But that can't do. I need more money to pay for rent, to pay for my wedding, and to pay for my fiance's car. Oh and to pay for our new apartment. I NEED MORE HOURS! EEH.

Besides, I don't want to widdle my days away. My current position only requires that I work from 5 - 9 (and on some days, only from 6 - 9, which is really sucky) on weekdays, which means I sit at home sucking up the cold swampcooled air and keeping my electric bill high.

By the way, what is a high electric bill in Tucson? Ours runs around $55 to $90 a month. Gas is about $20, water around $55, and Cox about $112 (my roommate just *must* have HBO).

Illiteracy = Feminization

2006-05-26T13:27:00.000-07:00

Recently, I was reading a book titled The Alphabet versus the Goddess, which examines the effect that the alphabet had on cultures. The basic principal of the book was that as countries embraced the alphabet (according to the author, the ancient Hebrews were among the first), there was a shift away from the Goddess toward more masculine dieties, masculine values (courage, independence, etc), and misogynist attitudes. The author points to examples of how women's freedoms were deminished in literate cultures like ancient Israel, Athens, and Europe while women's prerogatives flourished in Egypt, India, and China because their use of written language relied more upon images (something far more feminine, far more right brain) than upon abstract shapes with no relation to the original thought or symbol (something far more masculine, far more left brain).

Anyway, what I got from the entire book was that Illiteracy = Feminization, literacy = masculinization. So I suppose that is why the feminists who control (ok, sounds a little too conspiracy, but oh well) the NEA and our schools are so intent in not teaching children to read or use proper grammar, not teaching children numbers but on rather teaching them to talk about their feelings, letting them watch movies, and generally deprive them of anything that is abstract.

Why I dont like McCain Part VII

2006-05-09T17:50:00.000-07:00

I will have to agree: Yet another reason why I will not vote for John McCain--not for President, not for Senator, not for local janitor. Never never.

The man is out for his own gain. The man is in to keep his job--not to respect the constitution, not to serve his constituents.

So what's the big deal?

2006-04-29T01:15:00.000-07:00

Reuters has an article detailing how employers are going to deal with the hispanic walk outs. (I mean, how hard is it to deal with an employee who is absent? I know where I work, we have three absents/sick days without doctor's note/late days before we are written up. After the first write-up, we can be fired. Just follow policy. No need to make a bigger deal out of the whole thing.)

Anyway, this stuck out to me:

"The appetite for construction in the Southwest is so ravenous that getting employees to come and work for you is a major obstacle. If you're going to be competitive, you had better have a good working relationship."

*eye roll*

Simply said, it is called raising your wages. Among other things. Hey, maybe if they raised wages to become more "competitive," then they might start attracting legal American workers. Who knows where the concept might lead us.

Cultural Reactivism?

2006-03-29T12:58:00.000-07:00

Currently reading Multicultural Jurisdictions:Cultural Differences and Women's Rights by Ayelet Shachar. He describes three types of responses toward "assimilation pressures" from the state: full assimilation, limited particularism, and reactive culturalism.

Reactive culturalism is defined as a "response [that] entails a strict adherence to a group's traditional laws, norms, and practicies as part of an identity group's active resistance to external forces of change [....] In all, these amount to attempts to more clearly demarcate the group's boundaries by walling it off from the outside world."

And that is what will happen as a result of these marches by the students, with the upside down American flags topped by a flying Mexican flag. The only thing is, that it will be the average voting American (yes, I understand that that concept is "changing") is gonig to be the one to "more clearly demarcate the group's boundaries" by literally "walling it" (think America) "off from the outside world" (think Mexico).

Michelle Malkin had it right: "I predict this stunt will be the nail in the coffin of any guest-worker/amnesty plan on the table in Washington."

(BTW, thanks Garrett, for the MM link)

For my Aunt Sal

2006-03-27T15:19:00.000-07:00

...who I know is looking me up from Atlanta using the search string "Laura Keslar."

I am too lazy to make myself a wedding website and, as a result, I will continue using my lovely blog to post all the mundane things, information, etc for those who care but mostly on the sidebar.

All I know so far is that we have a chapel picked out (cheesy website, I know. The place is better than the site); a reception site picked out; like the colors purple and gold (hard to imagine, I know--I promise, no pimp weddings); have my gown picked out; have Giovanna, Apryl, Ashley, and Carerra as my bridesmaids; know where we are going for our honeymoon (January 5-January 13, 2007 to Malaga, Spain with a day in London); have registered (at both Target and Bed, Bath, and Beyond with both of us wanting to register at Sears as well); and obviously know the date of our wedding.

I promise, when I have more time, to actually post this stuff in more detail.

Let's make a political statement!

2006-03-27T14:58:00.000-07:00

"At least 11 million illegal immigrants, most of them from neighbouring Mexico, live in the United States and are responsible for keeping the human machinery of US cities humming." - BREITBART

On another immigration note: we have all heard about homeless dumping by hospitals, but illegal dumping?

Ok. Maybe not the right word. But I heard from one of my fellow pharmacy students who works at a local Tucson hospital a weird story. If someone can verify it or correct me, please do.

Anyway, he said that when an illegal immigrant is injured and requires hospital attention, the border patrol will actually leave the immigrant there and not pick them up. If they did pick them up, then the Border Patrol would be responsible for that illegal's health care (which is a big sum of money). So instead, the hospital just gives the illegal immigrant's friend or family member located elsewhere in the state a call to pick him up.

So if whiny babies turn out to be conservative

2006-03-23T22:20:00.000-07:00

...do self-reliant babies turn out to be bad lovers?

Oh the things we learn in class

2006-03-23T22:02:00.000-07:00

Economics and politics pop up in class, even when you are just studying drugs like antibiotics.

Today, in a class that introduces first year students to the top 200 drugs, we learned that less and less antibiotics are being produced. According to the article in class, the drug manufacturers were reluctant to conduct reasearch and develop the less profitable antibiotics and more likely to do research for drugs that treat chronic illnesses like arthritis, hypertension, and diabetes. The article then indicated that the government keeps funneling moneys and funds to research attached to a big scare disease--like cancer--instead of the little scares of drug resistant germs.

Though this sounds like part of the problem, what other reasons exist as to why companies have forshook new antibiotic research and development. In other words, what has the government done with restrictions, etc to make companies rather produce other meds.

Some of the recommendations that have been made have requested for a relaxation of government regulation (some of which include "reducing the costs of clinical trials (i.e., regulatory flexibility concerning the evidence necessary to demonstrate safety and efficacy; NIAID-sponsored research to develop rapid diagnostic tests, etc.)" as well as having "Congress [...] implement administrative recommendations at FDA and NIAID to facilitate the approval processes for manufacturers of new antibiotics").

Part of the problem simply sounds like overprotection from the government. Yes they want to prevent that one death, that one Thalidomide baby, from appearing on the front page of a newspaper. And so would I. But what of those individuals who merely want a chance to way their risks and their benefits, those people who think getting rid of their rheumatoid arthritis pain at the risk of developing a stroke. Or maybe, what about those thousands of death that occur because a drug was not approved this year that could have helped save those people's lives.

I guess as Stalin (or was it Lenin) said: "A single death is a tragedy, a million deaths is a statistic."

Not much of a surprise, is it?

2006-03-08T16:26:00.000-07:00

The Wildcat published this letter to editor from a group of pastors:

With due respect to our UA campus colleagues in the Christian faith, especially our friends at the St. Thomas More Catholic Newman Center at the University of Arizona, we offer an alternative view to the one expressed in Friday's "Campus clergy support stance on gay marriage." While the students in the ministries we serve hold a variety of views on this subject, we are pastors who affirm and welcome LGBT couples, individuals and their families. We do this because our reading of the whole and heart of the Christian Scriptures, especially as seen in context and through the lens of God's gospel and justice in Christ, compels us to this view. This leads us to pray and work for the day when LGBT persons will finally be able to enjoy fullness of life, including marriage and/or civil unions, with all the joys and responsibilities therein. We personally believe that the so-called "Protect Marriage Arizona" initiative is a bad idea.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out which denominations stand behind this letter.

Rev. Dee Dee Azhikakath,
United Methodist Campus Ministry

Rev. Ben Larson-Wolbrink,
Presbyterian Campus Ministry

Rev. Seth Polley,
Episcopal Campus Ministry

Rev. Ron Rude,
Lutheran Campus Ministry

Hackneyed Dribble--Nothing Impressive

2006-02-13T11:42:00.000-07:00

It is kind of sad that the candidates who have responded to Garrett's questionaire sound exactly like my INDV 101 class back in 2003. Please, people, stop parroting Professor Spike the Dyke.

"...perspective being shaped by class, race, gender, and ethnicity."

"As someone who has never been directly affected negatively or positively by affirmative action...."

"Women in underdeveloped countries still are not afforded the rights that we as women in America experience...men in this world suffer from the same inequities that women do, and that is why a Women’s Resource Center is necessary" [Note by Laura: BTW, what does this have to do with what ASUA does? Maybe I am missing out on the true purpose of ASUA.]

Michelle Gregory, current ASUA Club Advocate
Running for Executive Vice President
As questioned by The O’Hara Factor, http://oharafactor.blogspot.com/

Likewise, stop spouting the anti-gun positions so touted by the media. It gets boring.

"The sheer number of people killed every year by those who handle guns are staggering."

Michelle Gregory, current ASUA Club Advocate
Running for Executive Vice President
As questioned by The O’Hara Factor, http://oharafactor.blogspot.com/

and

"I believe that allowing anyone to bring guns and other weapons on campus only creates a more dangerous environment. It is the job of the police to keep students safe and programs such as Safe Ride to assist in that goal." [Note: It's the job of the police to protect the students? I thought the job of the police was to protect the government. Who knew?]

Senator Matthew Boepple
Running for Re-election
As questioned by The O’Hara Factor, http://oharafactor.blogspot.com/

The monster known as Nero

2006-02-06T12:30:00.000-07:00

Kittens are hellish little creatures. They tear off the fake mustaches, attack your toes and eat your hair, jump into your plate of lasagna, and, I swear, this little one tries to kill me by running through my feet.

Why the new kitten? Roommate seemed to have momentarily misplaced old kitty outside (he ran away in Phoenix while he was staying with her parents), rommate got new kitty, roommate found old kitty, now we have two kitties.

Little monster indeed though: thinks big kitty is a play toy, thinks my food is his food, and thinks tracking his poop around the house on his paws is fun and games.

Though every night, when he curls up in bed against my back, I think it is all justified.

Out with the ugly ruffled skirt, in with the ugly shirt dresses

2006-02-06T11:01:00.000-07:00

I think I just discovered which fashion I am going to learn to hate this season: the shirt dress. Though not as hideous as the ugly ruffled skirt and the towel dress, it still is ucky. Maybe its just that I remember too much of the T-shirt dresses that kids used to wear when I was in early elementary school with their pony tails to the side, but I still get a bad vibe as I think of cuffs and pockets and button-up fronts.

When Yellow turns to Red

2006-02-02T11:40:00.000-07:00

According to Garrett over at the O'Hara Factor, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education has changed its rating of the University of Arizona from a "yellow" to a "red."

Upon reading some of the University's policies, I wonder whether school policy has changed since I lived in the dorms. After all, I was able to hang from my dorm window a banner that, while somewhat ambiguous, still could be interpretted as being insensitive.

Currently, the University of Arizona's Community Housing Standards state that anyting that is hung up or posted on the dorm bulletin boards have to follow guidelines:

"All materials for posting or display must have the approval of the Hall Director and comply with Community Standards for civility [....]"

and, more specifically to what I did:

"You are not permitted to hang any signs, flags, or banners from any exterior windows in the residence complex/halls/apartments. In Babcock you must seek approval by the Hall Director prior to hanging a banner." --See Banner Policy

Hee! I guess I can definitely say that I would have gotten in trouble for that one. Maybe the UA's change was in response to what has happened over at ASU in 2004, when two students tried to put up their opposing views in their windows and were told to take them down.

Hating even the garment spotted by the flesh (Part II)

2006-01-25T14:37:00.000-07:00

Those preachers that came to campus last week must have made quite an impression that two columnists would chose to write about them.

And today's columnist just seemed to reinforce what I said in the last post: the mere abrasiveness of the message and its delivery is what caused people to become to irrate. Mr. Morefield wrote that "the strong-armed tactics of modern evangelism fail when confronted with a more educated populace."

But I missed something initially. It wasn't just the abrasiveness, it was an issue of pride, of the very hubris that Mr. Morefield accuses the preachers. As I quoted Mr. Morefield, the "educated" public is too smart for meanies like Bible Jim.

"This is no longer 1730s Massachusetts [...] We are smarter now than to follow bullies--and that's exactly what such evangelists are."

According to scripture, there is nothing new under the sun. Behold the Greeks; Paul wrote the Corinthians, saying:

"For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:"
- 1 Corinthians 1:17-28

and again:

"And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:" 1 Corinthians 2:1-4

Unlike the claims of the columnist, we are not smarter than the past people's before us, we still have the same foibles, the same follies, the same issues of pride--and it is that pride which prevents people from seeing through the abrasiveness to the message. Instead, all they see is the "meanness," the discrimination.

If Mr. Morefield's sole complaint against these preachers are their "fire-and-brimstone" preaching and "carrying signs that claimed Muslims, homosexuals and baby-killing women would go to hell," then his complaint is pure hogwash, one of the world, a jerk response. (After all, the style of preaching is supported throughout scripture and the signs saying that muslims, homosexuals, and baby-killing women are going to hell are technically scripturally accurate.)

(Let me repeat my warning: I do not know what the preachers preached, so I am not endorsing their message by any means. However, even if these gentlemen did speak the Truth through the same methods as they did now, the public would still oppose them--hence the validness of what I speak.)

Hating even the garment spotted by the flesh

2006-01-24T12:41:00.000-07:00

Under no circumstance am I supporting the preachers who have come to campus, the most recently Bible Jim (especially considering that I have not heard them myself and those who did have said that they misuse scripture).

However, among the complaints and criticism of them was the overwhelming dislike for the preachers because they were mean, rude, or whatever. People want loving, kind preachers who preach upon the love of God, not his justice, not the damnation that results from our own sin. We all seem to forget at times there are different preaching methods: one that is with great mercy but another with fear and dread. As it says in Jude 1:22 and 23:

"And of some have compassion, making a difference: And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.."

And although these men may have been wolves in sheeps clothing, or preachers twisting the gospel of God, the problem that most people have with them is their abrasive natures. But oftentimes we forget, that the Bible itself can be abrasive.

My little space bug

2006-01-23T11:05:00.000-07:00

I love my little Honda Insight. Great little car. I can drive from Yuma to Tucson and back on one tank of gas (or there abouts) and from Chandler to Tucson on half a tank. Not only that, but its quiet, cute, and looks like a little space bug (according to my mother-in-law).

And what is with the old men constantly asking about it. One older gentleman even thought he could fit his golf clubs in the back.

The only problem with the vehicle has been in regards to the splash plate underneath the car, which keeps falling down whenever I used non-Honda parts (bah!). Well, that and the fact that it only handles up to 400 lbs including driver and luggage.

To spite Garrett

2006-01-20T12:06:00.000-07:00

Garrett over at the O'Hara Factor seems to think I am on hiatus. But I am not--*cue evil laugh*--I am merely apathetic to all that is going on.

But to prove him wrong, I am here to complain about how this Republican (according to the Yuma Country vote records, I am still a Republican) will never like John McCain or welcome him back into the fold, whatever fold that is.

The Cookie Flies Both Ways

2005-10-28T11:19:00.000-07:00

I know it is late, but the AZ Daily Star featured an editorial on Tuesday about the rape victim who was denied access to Plan B. In it the author wrote: "But that person [the pharmacist] should not be making decisions for the rest of us [the victim? society?]."

Well, the cookie flies both ways. Just as much as a pharmacist should not be making decisions for an individual, that individual should not be making decisions for the pharmacist just because that individual chose to bring their prescription to that pharmacy. In other words, the individual's choice to bring a prescription to a particular pharmacy should not be the end-all to the pharmacist's professional judgement as to what he will and will not fill. And by professional judgement, it is a combination of what he has learned (side effects) as well as his own personal positions.

However, that is not the point. The approach that most people take towards the Plan B debate is as one dimensional as a line. It is always the pharmacist who is making decisions and victimizing the rest of the world. But what if the editorial had said: "But the FDA should not be making decisions for the rest of us." Or how about "But the doctor should not be making decisions for the rest of us."

Consider the case of the doctor first. In order for patients to receive medications that are kept behind the counter, the patient must first visit his doctor who decides on the course of action and the medication. If the prescription does not come from the doctor's office with his signature, the pharmacy cannot fill the script (unless the medication is kept behind the counter but is not considered to be a legend drug, such as insulin, syrringes and other diabetic testing supplies, and, more recently, products containing pseudoephrine).

But what if the patient wants a particular medication that the doctor won't prescribe (doesn't happen often)? What is the next course of action? Finding a new doctor to give you the medication or procedure you want.

This is what should happen when you are trying to find a pharmacist who is willing to dispense Plan B.

But unlike in the case of a doctor refusing to prescribe a certain medication or preform a certain procedure and where we see no uproar from the public, we see a backlash toward the store and pharmacist who refused to fill a prescription based upon personal persuasions.

Now consider the case of the FDA: every year, the FDA rejects hundreds of drugs already approved elsewhere. With each rejection, many patients who would be helped through those medications are not and are forced to suffer unduly.

Although the purpose of the FDA is to prevent just one picture of another thalomide baby from reaching the press, it inadvertantly causes the death of many others. Should it not be the choice of the patient (and, potentially, their doctor) to decide what medications should go into their body? True, many drugs are harmful to individuals, especially in combination with others. (Take Coumadin (warfarin); it interacts with everything.) However, there are many legend drugs that cause mininal side-effects; and likewise, many over-the-counter drugs can cause fatal reactions.

In the case of the FDA, are they not acting as a pharmacist, making decisions for the rest of us? Where is the uproar? Where is the backlash? Oh wait, they are protecting us.

So what's the solution to this? If we don't want any individual (whether it be the pharmacist or doctor and ignoring the FDA) making decisions for us, why not put Plan B over the counter? (FDA rejected that option a while ago.)

Or, alternatively, why not allow the doctor to dispense emergency contraception or allow the pharmacist to prescribe it. After all, doctors routinely give out free samples of statins, birth control pills, and a variety of other medications; similarly, the pharmacist is often the first person the doctor consults with to find a medication that suits their patient and the pharmacist counsels on and recommends medication to patients on a daily basis.

With all these solutions out there to prevent another incident like this from happening, all we hear from the press is how absolutely "troglodytic" these pharmacists are and how their reign of terror must be ended by laws forcing them to dispense medication.

There are other ways out there to preserve the women's choice and pharmacist personal choice without forcing either of them to give up what they both dearly want to hang onto.

*And, on a side note, Viagra is a bad argument to use. I don't know of anyone having a problem with a person having sex or an erection, for that matter. Yes, there are some individuals who do not like premarital sex or extramarital sex, but can you really tell the difference when you give that man his Viagra? I think not.

However, the purpose of Plan B is quite clear. And it is that purpose that a pharmacist is opposed to and openly knows about as he goes about checking and dispensing the medication.

Take note Wildcat and others: the comparison is a faulty one.

And we were doing just fine

2005-10-27T15:34:00.000-07:00

So Arizona's quality of education isn't exactly up to par. In fact, it appears that, along with crime, Arizona ranks as #50.

It doesn't come as any surprise, especially with 1 in 5 public schools failing to measure up to federal standards.

And as much as Governor Napolitano touts education (see all-day kindergarten and increased spending), nothing has happened. In fact, it is funny that the article quotes Napolitano spokeswoman Jeanine L'Ecuyer as saying, "...[The report] appears to reinforce the need for exactly the kind of education reform the Governor has been leading since she took office in 2003." Yes, the educational system wasn't the best in 2002 when Napolitano was elected (Arizona was ranked 44); however, since Napolitano took office, the educational system was gotten worse (mind you, this year's report differs from the last few years in that spending for public schools has been "de-emphasized"*).

*Consider, however, the fact that in 1999, there was only one state who spent less per student than the state of Arizona; that state was Utah. And in 2002, Arizona was still ranked #49 in student spending. According to Morgan Quinto Press, they emphasized spending per public schools back in 2002-2003 but not in 2005-2006. If, then, Arizona was ranked #49 in student spending when the Morgan Quinto Press based their scores more heavily on spending than in 2005-2006, it would not be that difficult to assume that the state of education in Arizona has declined even more drastically than the report indicates. (One caveat: the rankings compare Arizona with other states--not Arizona with itself. If other states have improved education while Arizona remained stagnant, then obviously, Arizona's rankings would drop. However, with the constant attention paid to education by our lovely governor and her cohorts, I would doubt this was the case; hence some of the assumptions made.)

You can find the report referred to in the article at Morgan Quinto Press as well as the individual factors influencing the rankings.