Will Pfizer prevent social revolution in this country?
This question came to mind on a recent day when two seemingly unrelated events occurred. I finished reading a book about the decline of the Roman Empire. And a drug company announced an unusual giveaway plan.
With regard to Rome. You think Bush and Cheney were bad? Think Nero and Caligula (the latter a nickname, by the way, that roughly translates as bootsie or half-boots…but I digress). Now that was bad governance! Throw in lead water pipes and a very large group of very ticked off Germans waiting to pour across the Rhine when it finally froze over, and you had the makings of some really serious political unrest.
The only way to keep the lid on was with bread (nothing fancy, Roman bread was just sour dough and spelt) and circuses (very fancy indeed)
So now we come to present day America and its own travails. You’d think with all the glimmers, green shoots, resurgent stock markets and such, that working class proles would be happy as chipmunks—even after “Ugly Betty” has gone into summer hibernation. But strangely, many of these folks are so self-absorbed and unappreciative of the good things that naturally come in train with artificially animated zombie banks and the reinflated Wall Street egos, that they are showing signs of growing stress and unhapiness.
What to do? Washington is stepping up with a much expanded food stamps program (the bread). But where’s the circuses? Heck, you can reduce people to crazed and pathetic humanity bitlets on reality television, but throw even one to the lions and the animal rights crowd is down on you like ferrets.
Enter Pfizer. Its recent offer of free Viagra to the unemployed who have also lost their health insurance perfectly complements the government’s own efforts to assist our country’s fast growing gaggle of dissatisfied proles. The days of sex and drugs and rock ‘n roll may be gone forever. But a diet of basic grits and gritty home entertainment could well carry us through.
Thank you, Pfizer. And Tim and Ben, you just keep them glimmers coming.