Bizarre Super Bowl Moment

New England's last second victory over Carolina topped off a great Super Bowl. There were many odd moments at the bowl this year: the Janet Jackson incident, the streaker, and some interesting ads. But the strangest thing in my opinion was from a new Viagra competitor ad. This ad was from Cialis, supposedly a better ED medication. There was nothing all that interesting with this commercial until it started listing some warnings concerning the medication such as avoidance of alcohol and possible side effects. It then gave this very bizarre warning:

Erections lasting longer than four hours, though rare, require immediate medical help

At first I wasn't sure if this was an intentional effort to amuze or just one of the many typical warnings that are listed at the end of an ad for a prescription medication. In the last week, I've seen this commercial a few other times. Also, I've seen a few commentaries on this. So it seems it's not intended to be amuzing.

My question about this warning is how would someone request medical help if this should occur? It would make for a quite bizarre call to 911. Wonder how the person answering the 911 calls would respond? And what would be the medical procedures to assist the man? Very, very bizarre....

Biographies

After buying 5 books two weeks ago covering 21 biographies, I've started with the biography of George Washington by Marcus Cunliffe. I'm slowly but surely making my way through this book, reading a little before bed each night.

What interests me about historical biographies are the circumstances that create a great person. Most all of the great people of the past had to overcome tragedies, self doubt, fear, and other issues. Also interesting are the important decisions that these famous people made, decisions that impacted history for hundreds of years.

In Washington's case, there was the decision to support the colonies over England. As the rebel movement grew, Washington tended to take the middle of the road mood. Some of his friends were loyalists and ended up leaving the colonies. Washington's decision to support the colonies seems to be heavily based on his loyalty to Virginia. It was where he grew up and was the center of his life. Interesting that this seems to be a similar decision making process that Robert E. Lee made at the start of the American Civil War.

Another interesting decision was the decision by the Continental Congress to appoint George Washington as the commander of the Continental Army. And even more interesting was Washington's decision to agree to this. Washington had won respect of many of the delegates. Also, he was from a strategically important colony outside of New England which would help build support for the war through out the colonies. However, Washington didn't have all that much military experience. His service was limited to some frontier warfare during the French and Indian War. He didn't lead at any high positions where strategic war lessons could be learned. There were many others available who had more experience for this position. Nevertheless, the Congress made the decision, and Washington accepted.

These types of decisions seem common to all people. Accepting a challenge to take on a difficult task is something that occurs in many people's lives. The person may be poorly prepared for such tasks, but he takes on the challenge, learns, and perseveres. This willingness is a trait common in many of the great historical figures of the past.

I'm about a third of the way through this book. One reason I like writing about what I read is it helps me better appreciate the book and it helps me remember it. I guess it's little bit like taking notes in school many years ago, but without the worries of grades.

posted by Ken on 3:02 PM permalink and comments  

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