Tom Cruise's anti-medication campaign gets reinforcements

It probably doesnt hurt that he has Katie Holmes blowing him the whole flight either. I doubt I would get very depressed under those circumstances.

 

She blinded me...

 

"Help me take your medication, TOM... HELP ME... HELP ME, HELP YOU... HELP ME... HELP YOU...!!!"

 

These people should encourage drug use...it almost makes their movies enjoyable....almost.

 

I'm not gonna say who is right or who is wrong, but I don't think you guys take this issue seriously enough. It's easy to knock down Tom Cruise because depression and the "cure" seem so straight forward. But it's not. This is a really serious question once genetic engineering in humans starts rolling. It's not as easy as take the meds or don't take the meds. You're going to find a 50/50 split on this issue in regards to genetic engineering. A real moral battle.

The next generation of human is going to have an advantage over you and me. They are going to have a 24th chromosome or they will at least be engineered to elminate defects. We're gonna be the "unfit". You and me. We'll be the depressed of the future. And what most people are advocating here is that we take the egineered dna and become the same as everyone else. In other words, we take the medicine to feel more "normal".

Well, the Tom Cruise side of the argument is very powerful once you get to genetic engineering. If you want to eliminate all the diversity in the world by taking the engineered dna there may be no getting that diveristy back. If you want to elimniate the outliers (the freaks and genius) they're won't be any getting them back. That is what medicine does. It takes the diversity right out of life. That is what Tom Cruise wants to say. Don't do it. We need these depressed people in the world. That is what he is saying.

I know the depressed people are going nuts right now, they want to feel normal, but you really have to ask the question, is that a good thing for the whole of society. It's good for the individual. We know that. But is it good for the world? I know most of you want to throw that question out the window as ludicrous, but it's real, and it's important. We often forget to think of the long term goals of humanity.

Oddly enough Watson (from Watson and Crick fame) would agree with you that medicating is the only way to make us all the same. But ironically, most of the scientific community and medical community think he is way off. That he is crazy. They think it's a hitler like thing to do, to change people to what we think they should be.

Like I said, I'm not saying who is right or who is wrong, but the Tom Cruise side of the argument is actually going to be very strong in the near future. His movement is actually stronger than you think it is. I'd even go as far as to say that a large portion of the medical community and Scientific community actually agree with him when they actually sit down and think about it.

 

you had me at Science.

 

Phi Slamma Jamma --

I'm the first to acknowledge that these drugs are over-prescribed and abused. My nephew was given a prescription for a drug that ended with him battling thoughts of suicide and demons talking to him. Extremely scary stuff. For ADD. Ridiculous. Over the top.

But you don't present your message this way. You don't ridicule people who feel like they need help. Particularly in a public forum. And you don't pretend to the master of all knowledge of which everyone else is ignorant.

When Cruise confronts people on these topics he does more damage for his cause than he does good for it. He comes off as a know-it-all teenager who has all the answers. That just doesn't work. It offends people. It offended me. And the accusation lobbed against those who work in psychiatry, in general, were beyond ridiculous.

 

I agree, he offended, what he should have said, is

watch,
GATTACA
read,
Farenheit 451
read
To Kill a Mocking bird.

And then ask yourself if diversity is important. and how important is it. Because medicating takes some of that away. When and where do you draw the line.

I think one important thing he should say as well, to help clear up that question we will all have to deal with 20 years from now, is that scientists are going to be the doctors of the future.

 

with an appliance?

 

I'm an excellent Scientologist.

 

if it's my child...and he's depessed...if he has some chemical imbalance (despite the fact Dr. Cruise doesn't believe those exist), I'm gonna do everything I can to help hiim, including explore medication alternatives. it's not my first choice...but i'd have to consider it. because for many...they work and improve quality of life.

 

I should point out that I don't what scientology is, I'm approaching his comments purely from a scientific point of view.

I should note too, that I would do the same. My child would get medication if they were depressed. I'm actually in favor of medication, genetic engineering, and all that. But I'm willing to acknowledge that any reduction in diversity could have a negative impact on our society. Then again, it may not. But I think it's a real thing to consider.

 

I will tell you how he lived (with science).

 

Beat me to it. Phi SlammaJamma, you've gotta rent Gattaca someday.

 

"Ethan, I can see you're very upset about depression medication."
"Kittridge, you've never seen me 'very upset'".

 

my Science is a little grander than yours"

 

Kid, you gotta have two things to win. You gotta have balls, and you gotta have science. You got too much of one and not enough of the other.

 

ADD has been connected to a certain braintype, according to that children with one that braintype (ENTP I believe) are often MISdiagnosed with ADD. These are the types who seem to not want to pay attention in school, but are still very intelligent kids, they tend to grow up to be excellent in computer or technology related fields.

FCIR / ENTP "Strategizer"

"precocious planner," imaginative, alert to possibilities; quick thinking; likes complexity; computer proficient; enjoys one-up-manship; enthusiastic, outspoken, artistic, comedic, manipulative, spontaneous, entrepreneurial; logical abstraction skilled.

That concludes my needless lesson in braintypes. Thanks.

 

I took ritalin for years after being diagnosed with ADD, and now as an adult I work in the technology field. Doesn't that just blow your mind!