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In addition, something else is going on. In the liberal view of human nature, there is no evil. Humans are at worst blank slates to be written on by the benign interventions of the culture ( via the government, such interventions to be managed by liberals, of course ). When some monstrous act has been committed, there is always a rush to find some morally neutral independent factor that is amenable to intervention. Why the liberals fear to face the reality that humans are tragically flawed, and always prone to evil? A big question, but I think that with the decline of traditional religion, and the belief in any ultimate moral order to the universe, people are simply too frightened to contemplate the reality of human nature.

That was newsworthy enough, but the media went gaga when they discovered Bishop had received a prescription for Hoffman-LaRoche Inc.'s acne drug Accutane, which had earlier been linked (albeit mainly by the media itself) to suicidal behavior. As it happens, the medical examiner later reported no trace of the drug in Bishop's system.

So you can sue for $70 million for having a prescription that you never filled? Cool! Time to sue the makers of Prozac. Never used it, but I'm going to get me a prescription right now! That 1 piece of paper is better than betting on the lottery!

Don't get me wrong suing deep pockets is destroying companies, but the way Accutane is being protrayed is also a joke. As a friend, microbiologist, put it "Accutane is a carcinogen," and would never ever prescribe. A good dermatologist will talk extensively with a person seeking to take the medication, no matter what age the patient, because of the very real high risk of depression/suicide associated. The possibility of birth defect is virtually 100%. Derms require women to be on the birth control pill for 30 days prior to starting Accutane treatment, and two other forms of birth control while taking the medication. Laboratory studies are performed prior to each new 30-day prescription, pregnancy testing required prior to each new prescription. Yes, there are a lot of women that have and are taking the course of this medication. The FDA and drug companies know this is a very dangerous drug, yet hey there's some very very big bucks to be made because it is used by so many. Many docs will not prescribe this medication.