CDC Classifies Overdoses From Opiates and Heroin As An Epidemic

It is amazing to me that in the President's State of the Union address, in Jon Stewart's interview with Nancy Pelosi, or in any of the other political coverage recently, not one mention has been made of what I consider to be two of the greatest challenges facing our country today: the number of children and adults who are killed by guns every day, and the heroin epidemic sweeping the country.  I can't understand how our elected officials can keep arguing about everything else and ignore this.

To the Editor:

Philip Seymour Hoffman’s tragic death puts a very public face on an epidemic health condition that is ravaging families across New York and the United States (“Actor’s Heroin Points to Surge in Grim Trade,” front page, Feb. 4).

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has classified overdoses associated with prescription opiates and heroin as an epidemic. The loss of life and the impact on communities across the country have been front-page news. There is little debate that there is a significant cause for alarm.

Unfortunately, state legislatures and policy makers have failed to address this public health crisis with prevention, treatment and recovery supports adequate to reverse its impact.

We will make progress only when there is increased prevention and education targeting at-risk populations, widespread availability of Naloxone to reverse the symptoms of an overdose, treatment on demand and services to help people in recovery to stay in recovery. Gov. Peter Shumlin of Vermont is to be praised for his leadership on this issue. We need others to join him.

JOHN J. COPPOLA
Executive Director
Alcoholism and Substance Abuse
Providers of New York State
Albany, Feb. 4, 2014

What does God's voice sound like?

Kudos to Aaron Sorkin for writing an amazing rant for the character of Maggie on the HBO series Newsroom.  If you haven't caught any of the episodes, watch for HBO to run it again and be sure you don't miss a single line of this well-written script.

In this episode, the staff is rehearsing possible questions for potential Republican candidates if their network is awarded the presidential debate.  Maggie's suggestion for a question for Michelle Bachman is "What does God's voice sound like?" She convinces the staff that she is serious by pointing out that if Bachman is being truthful when she says that God told her to run for President, then she is a prophet and we should pay attention to everything she says.
 

And, of course, if she cannot answer the question, then she is not telling the truth and no one should vote for someone who lies to the American people. In response to criticism that the news anchor could not denigrate Christians in such a way, Maggie responds that she is standing up for herself, her family, her church and her congregation by revealing this "false prophet."


You may say that Aaron Sorkin is simply one of the liberals that run the media and television and so, of course he is going to get his punches in against the conservative Bachman supporters.  But the important question here is "What DOES God's voice sound like?" Would you want your news anchor to ask such questions of candidates and hold their feet to the fire of public scrutiny?


Does anyone out there remember Ross Perot?  In 1992, 20 years ago, he gained a following by talking to voters as if he believed they could actually understand the issues.  I remember because it made such an impression on me.  He went on national television and for one half hour did a presentation that now would be done with Power Point, but he used charts and an old-fashioned pointer to explain in clear language what his economic policy was. He advocated a novel idea: that we do away with Medicare and Social Security for "those who don't need it." those like Warren Buffet, no doubt.  Twenty years and we are still having the same conversation!