I've always questioned those in charge. My parents were liberals and came from the 60's. They learned to ask questions because of the atrocities that have been done to the little guy. They taught me well.
So I incredibly saddened to learn today that questioning the system makes me less of a liberal and against science. And apparently incredibly stupid.
I'm shocked. I've been called a conservative, an idiot, an anti-science whack-job, republican, creationist, Zionist, etc. All because I question things.
For the record, I am for science. Science is about questioning the how's and why's of the world. I believe in seeking truth. Science will always be the best way to understand the universe and how things work. It is not guaranteed, which is why we continue to seek the truth.
So, if you ask questions, you are against science. How is that a fair assessment?
Three years ago, I was prescribed a hormonal birth control, a medication that is legal and deemed safe by the FDA. I was told the hormone was so low, I wouldn't have to worry about those pesky side-effects. I followed my doctors advice and took my medicine.
Over the course of one year, my health declined rapidly. My weight ballooned up 20 pounds and I was told that I would have to be treated for diabetes. My hormones were off balance, similar to an older woman going through menopause. I was producing too much testosterone and was having wild mood swings. I started having debilitating migraines. I was only 28 at the time, and years away from menopause. Everything turned upside down. A year before, my weight was fine and my blood sugar and hormone levels were normal. I have a family history of diabetes, but never had had problems myself. I found that to be strange that I could be going through menopause at such a young age so rapidly.
After discussing with my doctor about the medication I was taking, she told me that it "was not possible" to get this reaction from the medication. I must have a disease causing these problems. I will need to start taking more medication, she said. I was warned there would be side-effects, but what I was experiencing was not listed as a possible side-effect from the drug. What I was going through was too severe to be even linked to the medication. I believed her without question.
Until I did some research.
As it turns out, thousands of women have had the same problems using the same medication. All were told the same thing, "it's not possible/there is no link". I told my doctor about what I found and she didn't believe me. I requested to stop the medication anyway questioning her motives behind keeping me on unnecessary medication.
A month off the medication, my blood sugar was almost back to normal. My symptoms started to subside. After a long year, my weight went back down and my hormone levels were back to pre-medication stages.
All because I asked questions.
That same drug now lists my side-effects as a cause of the drug. The drug caused "insulin resistance" where my body was in the pre-diabetic stages. It caused my body to produce too much testosterone. The doctor finally admitted that my problems stemmed from the medication. But it's still legal by the FDA and still prescribed every day. Millions of women have and still use it. I am one of a small percentage that have adverse reactions to the drug. And because my doctor has never experienced my reaction before, she had no idea how to treat me. We are simply waiting for it all to go away. Or I have the choice to take more medication and risk more side-effects.
And you know what? I'm not going to stop questioning things. When Big Pharm intent is to make money off the sick and when the FDA is being paid with lobbyists from those companies, I question their intentions.
When my doctor prescribes a medication that gives me terrible, life-altering side-effects, I question it.
When I look at my toothpaste label and see a poison control warning telling me not to swallow toothpaste, I question it.
When history and science proves that humans are fallible, of course I'm going to ask questions.
I will always question a medical system that is driven by profits and greed. Big Pharm uses salesmen to pitch their products, luring our doctors with perks and commissions. They use science and research to promote benefits of their drugs, all while silencing the negative effects these drugs have on the public. We've all seen this time and time again, with the recall of drugs after they have already caused harm. Fen Phen, Vioxx, Celebrex, Ephedra are just a few of the hundreds of drugs that were praised at first, only to be recalled later for life-changing side-effects and/or deaths caused by the drugs. And while I am very much pro-science, I am against science being manipulated to further the intentions of the greedy, to line the pockets of shareholders.
I am well aware that all drugs are not harmful. We can all agree that the benefits we've seen from science and the medical community is astounding. New breakthroughs in science and medicine have advanced our civilization to new heights. But with new drugs being pumped out faster and faster, isn't anyone worried that these drugs are not accurately studied for long-term effects by independent panels before they are released to the general public? Yes, the drug companies perform research, but is it fair to say it's unbiased when the research is being done by the same company depending on the profits? Is it fair to say that all information is released accurate when the drug companies push their medical research above independent studies?
And by asking these questions, are we really against science?
After learning today that there are some here with direct connections to these companies, I understand their motives to quash anyone who dares to question the system. But calling those who question these motives "anti-science" is flat-out wrong.
I doubt that anyone here is against science.
If anything, we are asking for more science. More study. More Scientific research. What is wrong with that?
And I believe in vaccines. I believe there are huge benefits in preventing serious diseases in our children and population at large. In my short time here on earth, the shot schedule has grown to three times the amount I had as a kid. I question that. I think they have gone a bit overboard though, and feel that adjusting the shot schedule is not going to kill anyone's babies. Saying so is just sensationalizing the argument and shutting down anyone who dares to question it. It's hyperbole, it's dirty politics, it's something I expected to see from RedState or Freepers -- I never thought I would see this on a progressive site like DKos.
It's such a blanket term that allows us who question the system to be not taken seriously -- to be lumped in with Scientology, Christian Science, Conservatives, etc. It's degrading to be associated with people who use religion over science. As someone who is not religious, your assumption is wrong. I don't base my suspicions on faith -- but by research, science and my own experiences with the medical community.
Maybe I just don't have thick enough skin to last on here, but I am saddened that I am being called such horrible things all because I question Big Pharm.
Does that make me less progressive? Does that make me a bad liberal? Well, I guess according to DKos, it does. But I know it doesn't. And I'm appalled by the reaction seen here towards anyone who dares to ask questions.
It was fun while it lasted, but my time is up. I don't want to be a part of something that doesn't allow people to question the system.
Right Where It Belongs
See the animal in it's cage that you built
Are you sure what side you're on?
Better not look him too closely in the eye
Are you sure what side of the glass you are on?
See the safety of the life you have built
Everything where it belongs
Feel the hollowness inside of your heart
And it's all
Right where it belongs
What if everything around you
Isn't quite as it seems?
What if all the world you think you know
Is an elaborate dream?
And if you look at your reflection
Is it all you wanted to be?
What if you could look right through the cracks?
Would you find yourself
Find yourself afraid to see?
What if all the world's inside of your head
Just creations of your own?
Your devils and your gods
All the living and the dead
And you really are alone
You can live in this illusion
You can choose to believe
You keep looking but you can't find the woods
While you're hiding in the trees
What if everything around you
Isn't quite as it seems?
What if all the world you think you know
Is an elaborate dream?
And if you look at your reflection
Is it all you wanted to be?
What if you could look right through the cracks?
Would you find yourself
Find yourself afraid to see?
-Nine Inch Nails