Does everyone need a purple pill?

I came across this interesting article in Forbes Magazine while reading the
BBC Ouch Web Log. Written by Scott Reeves, one of Forbes.com's personal finance editors, Bipolar Disorder in the Workplace explains what bipolar disorder is; examines the pros and cons of declaring the condition to one's employer; and makes sensible suggestions about possible
reasonable accommodations which employers might consider making.


In addition, I listen to Forbe’s audio edition and really enjoyed the following article aboutPill Pushing drug companies. Do you know what happened on August 12, 1997? The FDA lifted restrictions on drug companies ability to directly market drugs and medical devices to consumers without lengthy disclaimers on possible side effects. Does it seem like the amount of comercials for perscription drugs has increased in the last ten years? Well, if it smells like a french frie, it's probably a french frie- lifting these advertising restrictions in 1997 lead to a stream of TV adds for perscription drugs. It has changed both the way consumers demand spacific drugs and the way many companies do their R&D. Big sellers seem more important than innovation. “Discovery is a risky business.” “The easiest profits come from Me Too drugs.”

(Just to be clear, these 2 articles are un-related. I posted them together because I only wanted to make one trip to the Forbes web site to obtain the exact URLs. I was impressed with Forbe's discussion of bipolar disorder in the first article and disappointed by the behavior of the drug companies in the second.)