CVS and Tobacco, Do they Really Care?

So, CVS is going to stop selling Tobacco Products! CVS Cares, the “Health Care Company”, or so they tout.

I’m not going to defend tobacco products in general since of course there is health risk. I would think everyone on this planet, and maybe a few other planets know this by now.

I’m also not going to dictate what a store can, or can’t… should, or shouldn’t sell in their store.

However, I just love when big companies make health choices for people, especially ones that are just so… marketable. They claim they are trying to market themselves as a health care company… However they aren’t doing away with their Liquor section, the junk food section, the soda. We won’t even delve into all the crap that comes out of the pharmacy in the name of health. Have you watched those pill commercials? Everyone in them are the pictures of health after they take that golden little pill while the small print voice over guy, in as fast a speak he can do, talks about coma, death, heart attack, cancer and and all the other just mere side effects one may experience. But hey… talk to your Dr. about taking it cause a zit on your chin may just be worth the cancery side effect yes? Then of course there is the couple that sits in separate bathtubs, in the woods, after her man has supposedly had the erection of his life. (I still don’t get the bathtub reference. Is it because he was hard as porcelain? Is it because after all that sex they needed a bath, outside, in the woods? Get it, the woods?)

Smokers, eventually, have health problems. We all know that. Emphysema, Heart trouble, Lung Cancer… They are all out there for you to enjoy later in life if you choose to partake in the smoke. Health Insurance companies make you pay more if you are a smoker. I have even heard the argument that the reason health care costs are so high for everyone is because of smokers. However, what about the other non-related smoking health risks that seem to get ignored by the majority of the population? Let’s talk obesity for a second. Obesity, the number one cause of Diabetes Type II related illness. Aside from all the health problems diabetes brings, there are knee problems, back problems, breathing problems, injuries. These are problems that can start in mere childhood, prompting an influx of Doctor visits, Hospital visits etc. Yet, if you are a smoker, check this box. YOU are the problem with health care costs, because we know, at the end of your life 30, 40, 50 years down the road, you will need more care than you do now. Plus, smoking smells and a lot of people just don’t like it. Course I don’t appreciate the smell of day old alcohol pouring out of people’s pores, but I guess that’s just me.

I could go on the theory that what CVS is doing is a step in the right direction, and really, it is a good thing I guess, but it is the only step they will take. They will never do away with the liquor, the junk food. It makes them way too much money. It’s real easy to get rid of one product and call yourself a “Health Care Company”, it’s a whole other thing to actually be one.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers Super Bowl Uproar

So apparently, the RHCP went “unplugged” for their Superbowl performance. The Internets noticed all their guitars unplugged and went mad! Mad I tell you! How is it NOT ok for a singer to lip sync but ok for a guitarist to “air guitar” they say! They have photo evidence and all! Bring out the pitch forks!

Anthony Kiedis, the RHCP lead, still sang live however, so no pitch forks on him.

Well, the great Flea (RHCP bassist) has responded. According to the official Red Hot Chili Peppers site:

[quote cite=”Flea” url=”http://redhotchilipeppers.com/news/454-a-message-from-flea”]Dear everybody,

When we were asked by the NFL and Bruno to play our song Give It Away at the Super Bowl, it was made clear to us that the vocals would be live, but the bass, drums, and guitar would be pre-recorded. I understand the NFL’s stance on this, given they only have a few minutes to set up the stage, there a zillion things that could go wrong and ruin the sound for the folks watching in the stadium and the t.v. viewers. There was not any room for argument on this, the NFL does not want to risk their show being botched by bad sound, period.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers stance on any sort of miming has been that we will absolutely not do it. The last time we did it (or tried to) was in the late 80’s, we were thrown off of ‘The Top Of the Pops’ television program in the U.K. during rehearsals because we refused to mime properly, I played bass with my shoe, John played guitar atop Anthony’s shoulders, and we basically had a wrestling match onstage, making a mockery of the idea that it was a real live performance.

We mimed on one or two weird MTV shows before that and it always was a drag. We take our music playing seriously, it is a sacred thing for us, and anyone who has ever seen us in concert (like the night before the Super Bowl at the Barclays Center), knows that we play from our heart, we improvise spontaneously, take musical risks, and sweat blood at every show. We have been on the road for 31 years doing it.

So, when this Super Bowl gig concept came up, there was a lot of confusion amongst us as whether or not we should do it, but we eventually decided, it was a surreal-like, once in a life time crazy thing to do and we would just have fun and do it. We had given this a lot of thought before agreeing to do it, and besides many a long conversation amongst ourselves, I spoke with many musician friends for whom I have the utmost respect, and they all said they would do it if asked, that it was a wild trippy thing to do, what the hell. Plus, we the RHCP all love football too and that played a big part in our decision. We decided that, with Anthony singing live, that we could still bring the spirit and freedom of what we do into the performance, and of course we played every note in the recording specially for the gig. I met and spoke with Bruno, who was a beautiful dude, a real talented musician, and we worked out something that seemed like it would be fun.

We recorded a track for the day, just banged one out from our hearts that was very like in spirit to the versions we have been playing live the last few years with our beloved Josh on guitar.

For the actual performance, Josh, Chad, and I were playing along with the pre recorded track so there was no need to plug in our guitars, so we did not. Could we have plugged them in and avoided bumming people out who have expressed disappointment that the instrumental track was pre recorded? Of course easily we could have and this would be a non-issue. We thought it better to not pretend. It seemed like the realest thing to do in the circumstance. It was like making a music video in front of a gazillion people, except with live vocals, and only one chance to rock it. Our only thought was to bring the spirit of who we are to the people.

I am grateful to the NFL for having us. And I am grateful to Bruno, who is a super talented young man for inviting us to be a part of his gig. I would do it all the same way again.

We, as a band, aspire to grow as musicians and songwriters, and to continue to play our guts out live onstage for anyone who wants to get their brains blown out. Sincerely, Flea [/quote]

What do you think? Should there be an uproar or are haters gonna hate? Let us know in the comments below.

How TV Ruined Your Life: Aspiration

Making my rounds on the internet this morning and came across a video I haven’t seen before that made me chuckle. Mind you, it’s about a year old, but it’s fun and dare I say it, has a lot of truth to it. If you have the time, grab yourself a drink and cozy in for about 13 minutes. Then let us know your thoughts in the comments.

How TV Ruined Your Life is a six-episode BBC Two television series written and presented by English satirist and broadcaster Charlie Brooker. According to IMDB, How TV Ruined Your Life is a comedic documentary series in which Charlie Brooker uses a mix of sketches and jaw-dropping archive footage to explore the gulf between real life and television.

CVS Caremark to Stop Selling Tobacco Products

CVS Caremark pharmacies will phase out tobacco in U.S. retail stores by Oct. 1, officials announced Wednesday, saying that selling cigarettes side-by-side with medicine undermines the mission of promoting good health.

The chain will lose about $2 billion in revenues annually from sales of tobacco in its 7,600 stores, but CVS Pharmacy president Helena Foulkes said it just makes sense for a firm now positioning itself as a health care company.

“It was very important to us that, as we’re working with doctors and hospital systems and health plans, that they see us as an extension of their services,” Foulkes said. “It’s virtually impossible to be in the tobacco business when you want to be a health care partner to the health care system.”

President Barack Obama immediately praised CVS. “As one of the largest retailers and pharmacies in America, CVS Caremark sets a powerful example, and today’s decision will help advance my Administration’s efforts to reduce tobacco-related deaths, cancer, and heart disease, as well as bring down health care costs – ultimately saving lives and protecting untold numbers of families from pain and heartbreak for years to come,” he said in a statement.

The move is also an effort to help curb tobacco-related illness and the 480,000 deaths caused by smoking each year in the U.S. Despite huge reductions over the past 50 years, about 18 percent of Americans — 42 million people — still smoke, health officials say. Smoking costs the nation about $289 billion annually in direct medical costs and lost productivity, according to federal figures.

Health experts and groups like the American Pharmacists Association and the American Medical Association have urged stores that house pharmacies to stop selling tobacco for years. Many small, independent pharmacies and small private chains already ban tobacco, said John Norton, spokesman for the National Community Pharmacists Association.Target stores stopped selling tobacco products in 1996.

But CVS is the first large retail pharmacy chain to do so.

“This action may not lead many people to stop smoking; smokers will probably simply go elsewhere to buy cigarettes,” CVS medical officer Dr. Troyen Brennan wrote in an editorial published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. “But if other retailers follow this lead, tobacco products will become much more difficult to obtain.”

Pharmacy retailer Walgreens released a statment on Wednesday in which it said it has been “evaluating” the place tobacco products hold on its shelves. Representatives for Rite-Aid Corp. and R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. wouldn’t comment on the pending announcement late Tuesday, calling it “speculation.”

“We will continue to evaluate the choice of products our customers want, while also helping to educate them and providing smoking cessation products and alternatives that help to reduce the demand for tobacco products,” Walgreens said in the statement.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.

Shaun White Bows Out of Slopestyle event, Too Much Risk

Snowboarding star Shaun White announced Wednesday he will not compete in the slopestyle event debuting in the Sochi games, citing the risk of injury associated with the course.

“After much deliberation with my team, I have made the decision to focus solely on trying to bring home the third straight gold medal in halfpipe for Team USA,” White told TODAY in a statement. “The difficult decision to forego slopestyle is not one I take lightly as I know how much effort everyone has put into holding the slopestyle event for the first time in Olympic history, a history I had planned on being a part of. “

White’s announcement comes after he took a fall Tuesday and jammed his left wrist while on a practice run on the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park course. It’s the latest in a slew of small injuries the snowboarder has experienced.

“With the practice runs I have taken, even after course modifications and watching fellow athletes get hurt, the potential risk of injury is a bit too much for me to gamble my other Olympics goals on,” White said.

While there is inherent dangers in a sport like slopestyle, in which competitors are judged on a variety of tricks they do on rails, boxes and jumps, White is among several snowboarders who’ve expressed concerns about Rosa Khutor Extreme Park. Criticism increased after Torstein Horgmo of Norway, considered a medal contender, fell off of a rail Monday and broke his collarbone — knocking him out of the Games.

Canada’s Sebastian Toutant said the course felt like “jumping out of a building,” and Finland’s Roope Tonteri told reporters that it was “pretty sketchy,” adding, “I just don’t want to get injured. It’s not a really fun course to ride.”

Changes were made to the course after feedback from riders on Monday — the combined height of all three of its jumps were reduced by about six feet. Snowboarders said the changes were an improvement.

“They put some wax on the rails, so it’s not as slick,” Toutant told the Globe and Mail. “And the jumps are still really high, but they made the transition to the jumps way smoother. I still think they could cut the jumps down a little bit, so it makes a smoother transition.”

But White and others still took falls. Tuesday, Finnish snowboarder Marika Enne crashed on the course’s final jump and was taken out on a stretcher after hitting her head.

White is now focusing all of his energy on the men’s halfpipe, and if he succeeds, he’ll make history as the first American man to win three Olympic gold medals in a single event.

Considering his friendship with snowboarder Kevin Pearce and what he watched him go through, we here think he made the right decision.

‘Sherlock’ Solves His Biggest Case Yet!

A new episode of Sherlock has arrived… or has it? This one is a bit different than his other cases, but we here at the Yak thought it was definitely a great one for him to take on. In this episode, Benedict Cumberbatch helps to solve the “Sign of Four (or is it Three)” attempting to defeat his new arch nemesis, Murray-Arity. Will he succeed? Watch and find out!

http://youtu.be/-7jS7X-2ggA

Ann and Nancy Wilson, Led Zeppelin Cover

You know how you are traveling around the internet on a lazy Sunday (while waiting for the big game to start) and you run into something you just think is amazing? Yeah, it’s older, but still absolutely amazing? Well, I still think this is, so I thought I would refresh all our memories with this most wonderful tribute that aired over a year ago. You know it’s good when it makes Jimmy Page and Robert Plant tear up. Making it even more special is the late John Bonham’s son Jason on the drums. Truly special and worth seeing again. Stairway to Heaven, Tribute to Led Zeppelin by Heart at the Kennedy Center. Turn it up and enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2BDi7GmXMI

BREAKING NEWS: Actor Phillip Seymour Hoffman Found Dead in NY Apartment

Story developing ….

Actor Phillip Seymour Hoffman (46) has been found dead in his Manhattan apartment Sunday. Law enforcement officials confirmed the news, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The New York Police Department is investigating the death and the Chief Medical Examiner will be working to determine the cause of death. Mr. Hoffman was found dead at his apartment on Bethune street in the West Village of Manhattan. The NY Post reports that his death was due to a drug overdose.

He won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 2005 for his role in “Capote.”

Love Photography? Take Instagram to a New Level. #JJ

Once upon a time, I used to spend hours and hours inside of a dark room. If I think about it long enough, I begin to smell the chemicals on my hands, in my clothes. Photography was a passion in what seemed like a long lost life of mine.

Enter Instagram.

At first, I began using it more as a social platform, not really for photography. I didn’t think it was for real photography. It seemed as if Instagram was more about the pre-teen selfie, or the monthly themes that included, well, different color selfies. “Here is me in pink!” “Here is me in red!” Course, I never participated in those. You see, I’m not a pre-teen or anywhere close to that quite frankly. In fact, my daughter was a little embarrassed when I first joined Instagram thinking that’s what I was about to do. I never did like myself on camera though, so her fear was definitely unfounded.

It just seemed Instagram wasn’t for me. I checked the “popular page” day after day, and other than a few very nice photos, it was mostly made up of, well, selfies. I just didn’t get it… that is of course, until I did.

This takes me to the day I first found an account run by some guy I never met across the country, Josh Johnson (@joshjohnson). It was about a year ago in fact. There was something different going on here. He had a HUGE amount of followers, which a lot of accounts (including many “selfie” ones) had, but it wasn’t all his own photos, and for the most part, not duck lips, unless they were actual ducks. It was indeed beautiful photography… but many different wonderful photographers. Some amateur, some not. Some beginners, some not. Some with thousands of followers, some with a couple hundred. Wow I thought… so this Instagram thing may just be for me! This was a community of people. People who admired one another’s work, admired one another’s spirit, became friends across countries and oceans through this passion I once had.

This community re-ignited it all for me. The smells of those chemicals on my hands came back. The thrill of the Enlarger was back once again in the front of my brain. Course, it’s different now. I don’t have a fancy camera. I don’t live in a dark room (or have access to one for that matter.) I have a phone. I have, now, editing apps on my phone that I find myself playing with hours on end. I’m seeing this world again like I used to, in different angels, in different light, in all it’s simplicity and intricacy, the moods, the beauty. I woke up. I remembered the thrill again. The passion had returned. I made a lot of new friends that share this same passion. All online. All on Instagram. Who knew? All this because of one single creative community of people, run by what turned out to be one pretty cool guy with some pretty cool team members including the wonderful Kevin Kuster, former Playboy Senior Photo Editor! (@kevinkuster) #jj was about to become a household word, at least in this house.

I tell you this story because I know there are so many of us out there that just haven’t found the outlet yet, and I want you to come join me! I want you to come check out @JoshJohnson on Instagram and join in the community. I tell you this now because at this moment, the @JoshJohnson has a contest going on that could win you, with your photo taken with that brand new state of art camera, or your little phone, a trip to Costa Rica to hang in a gorgeous place taking photos with people like you. I tell you this because if you have ever had this passion, you will not regret reigniting that flame.

To learn more about Josh Johnson, this community and the current contest, there is a wonderful interview with Josh Johnson and his comrade Kevin Kuster on The Trip Tribe Blog worth reading. Not only do you get a glimpse behind the man and his team that run this wonderful community, but it also explains how to participate and become a part of it all. (Including the trip contest of course.) Click the link above to read all about it!

Once you’re done, I expect to see you Instagram! Be sure to follow me and say hi! @TheKdd