The most recent 20 comments posted to Electrolite by Michael:

Speaking of which - this is bloody frightening (as usual):

there is no known fatal dose of marijuana, phramacokinetically speaking.

I recall a study done some time ago (no idea what the reference was) which suggested that, in order to acheive a lethal dose of THC, you would have to smoke about 1 olympic-sized swimming pool of median-potency pot per minute for about 15 minutes. You would of course (a) die of asphyxiation and (b) explode before you got there, but that's besides the point.

I avoided the proceedings, except for the Empower DC benefit last night which was really fantastic: a real reminder of what the DC scene was like in earlier days. Another reason why I want my city back.

We used to have free concerts and midnight strolls along the tidal basin. Now we have barriers and snipers and soon I'm sure there'll be curfews (for adults - we have one on kids) and more.

I *so* did not sign up for this!

This too shall pass.

My dad, who is so utterly a finance lawyer, says it like this:

"It'll either get better, or we'll all die."

The question is, which comes first.

Randall -

I still don't see any *evidence* that you've been mislead about vaccines to a serious degree. I also have never seen much evidence that they are particularly harmful to children's immune systems: although there is some it's neither especially convincing nor does it outweigh the benefits of vaccinations.

Chicken pox can be very deadly. It can, as mentioned earlier, pop up again later as Shingles. My grandfather had that a few years ago, and while he now only has a little scarring in his eye (and some visual occlusion); it was scary for a while. In kids, it spreads like wildfire, and costs a ton in terms of unpleasantness, missed school, and missed work for parents.

Ooops. Missed thin in the last one. The vaccine link to Autism is bogus. (here's a press release, I don't have the originals handy...there've been a few studies on this recently: http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s907211.htm)

I have to weigh in on the vaccinations thing (because I work in public health, and because there's been much discussion of this at my office recently). The short, somewhat snarky answer one of my coworkers (currently pregnant with twins) gave her anti-immunizations friend is this (similar to Chad's comment): "you can afford not to get immunizations only because almost everyone else does."

The thing about vaccinations is that they're more important in epidemiological terms than in individual terms. Having everyone immunized means a disease goes away. Having *almost* everyone immunized means tougher variants quickly emerge, and any infections spread super fast. Especially in urban areas, where populations are dense, and doubly in lower-income areas where populations tend to be even denser and care penetration is poor.

I'm not a fan of flu shots or other vaccines for not-really-deadly diseases. They may or may not weaken the immune system, but they're almost certainly an unnecessary drain on resources. HOWEVER. Chicken pox can be very deadly. Ditto measles. And Hepatitis. All preventable, all deadly, and all communicable. Not vaccinating for these kinds of things is really playing with fire, not only for yourself, but for everyone around you.

Xopher - I'd send you a Gmail, but need an email addy. You can email me, and I'll send it your way!

I have a few GMail invites lying about. Let me know if you want one (Kathryn?)!

This all makes me feel much better about my college newspaper, The Oberlin Review, which in one issue misspelled the college President's name (Nancy Dye) as "Die," "Dey" and "Dy" all on the front page! I deny any responsibility: I was a photographer.

It's really awful: I keep thinking that I've reached the point where things can't make me madder anymore (which is a scary feeling in and of itself) only to have to have the same thought, a few hours later, madder still.

I can't yet resign myself to the horrible conspiracy theories: that "They" have been planning for so long; that the complacent, incompetent media and bought-and-sold courts are just a historical coincidence. I can't just hope that it'll all just pass with the next swing of the pendulum.

Or maybe it's me who's gone insane.

Reminds me of something that's been going on here in DC (and elsewhere, I'm sure, I just know about DC): The second wave of gentrification (the yuppies who move in after the young trendy folk have already made the area "safer"/more expensive) takes the position that all the things that attracted people to a neighborhood in the first place (good music scene, arts, bars, restaurants) are now Bad Things and Attracting Unpleasant Elements.

So the some people want the ANC to ban live music and deny liquor licenses in my neighborhood (Adams Morgan, for those ho know DC).

I'm all for less cars getting stolen on my street, but turning all the bustling businesses into abandoned buildings doesn't sound like a good plan.

The thing is, you see: in New York, they replaced the porn shops with other things. In DC, they just close them.

I get bronchitis at least twice a year, and always have. Since antibiotics stopped helping about fifteen years ago, I've learned a few tricks. Melanie's suggestion is a good one. Another thing to boil and inhale is sage. The fresh kind. Do this before bed, because you'll be rather loopy when you're through.

A few sips of Hot Lemon and regular salt water gargles help, especially for the clearing up bit.
(Hot Lemon = lemon juice, honey, and fresh grated ginger, heated up, and drunk. Go easy on the honey if you have a phlegm-y cough).

And keep the humidifier on HIGH.

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