Published: August 14, 2009 05:48 pm      

DAY: Are we asked?

It seems to me that polls and research on topics that are not of any benefit to a large number of us are not needed.

I, in my time, have asked researchers, poll-takers and other groups why they are doing research on things that cannot and will not be of a benefit to us, as a whole. I have read polls that use a percentage to show the public what a particular product can do for you. And maybe a couple of hundred people are asked. They use this as a percentage showing that more favored one product over another.

So let’s say 75 percent said yes. That gives you a poll that states 75 percent of all people favor it. That is not true, because you cannot truthfully say that all the people who were not polled felt the same way.

Some polls are good if enough people are asked, and they give an answer. I asked a person on the phone once what he would put down if I didn’t give an answer. He said that it depended on who was taking the poll.

In other words, he said that he would count me as one who felt the same way he did. So please, folks, don’t put too much stock in what you see in polls.

In past research there were facts that said coffee is bad for you because of the caffeine in it. For years I stayed off, having no more than one coffee a day because of my heart and kidneys.

Now, some research has stated that coffee is good for you, as long as you don’t overdo it. In my particular situation, when I get the jerks, shocks and shakes at 1:30 a.m., I get up, fix a cup of coffee and go back to bed and sleep like a baby. Doesn’t make much sense, does it?

On television, one of those medical ads appears that tells all the good that medicine will do. Then they tell you that you could experience this or that by using said product.

They state that you need to tell your doctor what medicines you are taking. Hey, the doctor already knows what you are taking because he or she prescribed it for you.

The enhanced libido ads really make me mad, as they should never be on the television.

What I would like to see is for our researchers to do research on things that really can be curbed or done away with, such as the kinds of cancer, and maybe research on the generic drugs that could be on the market if it wasn’t for the sanctions set down by those who only want to see the original medicines.

Think about how much money could be saved by those like myself who have to buy the patented medicines, which are very costly, especially to those who have to decide whether they continue to eat or take the medicines. In my thoughts, we, in the greatest country in the world, are at the will of the big pharmaceuticals. If it wasn’t for those places who market generics at a low cost, we would be at a loss of life, either medicine-wise or food-wise.

We have representatives in Washington who have the best health care around, as well as amounts of Social Security qualifications that are so far ahead of what the public will get. Where is the equality of that?

Do a little research on your own and find out what a member of the House and Senate is qualified to get, just by completing one term in office. You will be surprised and mad. And they are the ones who decide what is best for the rest of us in the health-care fields.

• Ray “Uncle Ray” Day is a weekly contributor to the Kokomo Tribune. Contact him at uncleray@earthlink.net or (765) 457-3819.