.... that peddle, or sell, distribute, market, promote, or in this case, push, a ‘questionable’ product.

By questionable I mean; what they dispense causes more harm than good. But I still love them the same, and treat them as if they sold things that didn’t cause obesity, heart disease, cancer, liver disease, car accidents, addiction, "(and the beat goes on):,"  I Twittered myself !

Funny thing is though; I know in my heart that I’d probably do the same thing if I were in their shoes, in these times. Statistically speaking, they are not the ones to be laid-off. Their companies are known to flourish in these uncertain times. People can’t be without their booze, cigarettes and pop, even if they are jobless, or homeless.

.... is able to somewhat joke about the situation. "You know how many skoals I sell in a month in Pennsylvania?" .... he's asked me the last time we met at our family reunion. "I don't know, how many?" "Oh, roughly about twenty thousand cases." he replied. I didn't know what to say, or how to put it to my cousin. I expected to hear a large number, but not that large. I had a hard time showing my happiness for him; I must say. Where as he was seeing the number of cases of 'his' product being shipped monthly, I saw all these people, probably all men, with wads of tobacco under their lip, standing in the park where we were. And spitting. I started to fantasize and see them do other things and knew I had to say something and stop the senerio from progressing to far in the medical journals where it was heading. I wanted to show him, and his mother who was standing there looking proud, that I was happy for him; but, "good for you!" just wasn't in me. Nor could I look in his face as I answered. I looked at my feet, and saw Clint Eastwood spit his juice on my shoe, then spit again hitting a dog right between his eyes.

"Woaha, that's a shitload," is how I put my response to his success. I think his dad patted him on the shoulder at that point, when he remarked, "and tell him how many packs of cigarettes were sold, get this JR." They were always, as long as I knew them, on the 'one-up-manship wagon' and didn't know how to yank on the reins and calm it down when it got going.Their son almost seemed shy when he answered. And a tad bit embarrassed and possibly a little guilt showed around the edges, but I couldn't say for sure.

"Oh, almost triple that amount." His hand went up to his lip area and his fingers played with his sole patch after he told me, probably wishing he had a cigarette. We grew up together. He knew me well enough to know what I was thinking, and why I got quiet. That was my sign when I was becoming uncomfortable with the hypocritical bend the conversation was having. He quit smoking a year after he started working there, and had a hell of a time doing so ....but yet he continued working there and has been for about five years now.

"Hey, your Mom and you lost weight, wish I could but I ain't much to exercise."

"Either are we. I'll tell you about it .... "

....I announced, eager to change gears.

                                  The  smart  way  to  'S M O K E'

.... laughing at himself. The gears changed effortlessly and without popping a clutch, and there was little effort needed in keeping my smile in place, or my joy of seeing him after these many years; both were genuine and no need for paint or make-up, or booze to help this reunion along. There was no edges to smooth or ice to break with this cousin. And no parents nudging their agenda of special interest. His parents were no longer living. They left him with the family tavern. This cousin is one of the most out going in my family, everybody loved him. The nicotine pusher and I had to wait in line to see him. Nobody asked him for his autograph and he didn't have to resort to sunglasses because of all the camera flashes going off; but damn near.

"Hows dealin one of the last legal drugs," I asked, when I got close enough.

"Never better, JR. Hey, help me with the beer would ya. I have a few cases in the car."

"Didn't we do this two years ago?" I asked, knowing the answer. Then I noticed the nic-pusher wasn't around to help unload. He sneaked away.

"Hell, I don't know." he gave a good Jimmy Carter impersonation. "I must have been in a black-out."

"Hey, I heard you quit, good for you, man," as I picked up a case of beer.

"Yea, I should have known .... you know what Tony Montana's boss told him?"

"Sure do Cuz; never get high with your own supply."

"You want a beer?"

"Sure I'll have one."

"Or would you rather have a coke? That's what I'll be drinking today."

"Oh, no way. You read my latest hub, didn't you?"

"Yea, I guess that'll be the next thing I'll quit.... you didn't send one to our pop pushin cousin did ya?"

"As a matter fact ...."

"No wonder she didn't show-up!"

"Oh, you didn't hear ..."

"Hear what?"

"She had to go to Switzerland for business."

"Ahhh, poor girl."

We all know that water is important but I've never seen it written down like this before.

(I Twittered myself again ....could I go blind if I do it too much?)

W A T E R

1. 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated.

2. In 37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so weak that it is often mistaken for hunger.

3. Even MILD dehydration will slow down one's metabolism as much as 3%.

4. One glass of water will shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a University of Washington study.

5. Lack of water is the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.

6. Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.

7. A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.

8. Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer by 79%, and one is 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer.

And now for the properties of COKE (ie. soft drinks, Cola, Pop)

1. In many states (in the USA) the highway patrol carries two gallons of coke in the truck to remove blood from the highway after a car accident.

2. You can put a T-bone steak in a bowl of coke and it will be gone in two days.

3. To clean a toilet: Pour a can of Coca-Cola into the toilet bowl and let the "real thing" sit for one hour, then flush clean. The citric acid in Coke removes stains from vitreous China.

4. To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers:

Rub the bumper with a rumpled-up piece of Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil dipped in Coca-Cola.

5. To clean corrosion from car battery terminals:

Pour a can of Coca-Cola over the terminals to bubble away the corrosion.

6. To loosen a rusted bolt: Applying a cloth soaked in Coca-Cola to the rusted bolt for several minutes.

7. To bake a moist ham:

Empty a can of Coca-Cola into the baking pan, wrap the ham in aluminum foil,

and bake. Thirty minutes before the ham is finished, remove the foil,

allowing the drippings to mix with the Coke for a sumptuous brown gravy.

8. To remove grease from clothes:

Empty a can of coke into a load of greasy clothes, add detergent, and run

through a regular cycle. The Coca-Cola will help loosen grease stains.

9. It will also clean road haze from your windshield.

For Your Info:

1. The active ingredient in Coke is phosphoric acid. Its pH is 2.8. It will dissolve a nail in about 4 days.

Phosphoric acid also leaches calcium from bones and is a major contributor to the rising increase in osteoporosis.

2. To carry Coca-Cola syrup (the concentrate) the commercial truck must use the Hazardous material place cards reserved for Highly corrosive materials.

3. The distributors of coke have been using it to clean the engines of their trucks for about 20 years! Now the question is, would you like a coke or a glass of water?

....aren't merely from the huge quantities of liquid sugar that promote obesity and diabetes; they're also from the highly acidic phosphoric acid found in carbonated soft drinks. The acidity is so high in these drinks that you would have to drink at least eight full glasses of fresh vegetable juice to neutralize it. That's why drinking sodas strips your bones of minerals -- it's a strategy for your body to buffer the acid.

The great Coca-Cola rebellion

Do you want the Coca-Cola Company getting into bed with your family doctor?

Too late.

In the ultimate betrayal of family medicine, the American Academy of Family Physicians has accepted a six-figure payment from Coca-Cola. In return, the soda pusher gets to help "educate" people about sweeteners.

This is like Dracula buying his way into the blood bank.

At least 20 doctors have resigned from the organization in protest, with hopefully many more still turning in their cancellation notices.

Already, the spin is in full swing.

Dr. Douglas Henley, executive vice president of whatever remains of AAFP, said, "We will move forward with this commitment together by providing educational materials on sweeteners and how to maintain a healthy, active lifestyle while still enjoying many of the foods and beverages consumers love."

Sorry, doc – but you should take your degree, stick it in an envelope and send it back to your medical school. Consumers may love sodas and diet sodas – but these drinks are in no way part of a "healthy, active lifestyle."

Remember, Coke's idea of health food is adding small amounts of vitamins to its concoctions and giving them new names, like "Diet Coke Plus."

We haven't seen the results of their joint propaganda effort yet, but the ingredients in Coke's sugar-free products speak volumes.

Aspartame is one of the worst substances ever put into our food with Uncle Sam's blessing. This artificial sweetener has been linked over the years to everything from migraine headaches and memory loss to seizures and even cancer.

One new study even finds that artificially sweetened sodas can cause kidney damage. Just two drinks a day can impair the kidneys' ability to filter blood, according to a study presented at the American Society of Nephrology's annual conference.

And we're going to let the people who sell this stuff educate us about it? It doesn't take much to see this plan was flat the moment they opened the bottle.

Proving again that Coke ISN'T the real thing,

William Campbell Douglass, M.D.

PS: Another win for common sense! The "Smart Choices" program is being flushed down the toilet of history. I told you about this scandalous food-labeling scheme just a few weeks ago. The food industry created a fancy new logo to make some products look like health food – when, in fact, they were nothing but junk. You didn't fall for it – and now, the program is being cancelled.