4 Jan What Has Become Of The Republican Party?

What Has Become Of The Republican Party?

Yesterday was a sad display of where the Republican party has come under Trump. While the Democrats were celebrating taking control of the House with a very diverse set of people, the Republicans sat there and watched.  Who was watching?  An overwhelming number of old white guys.  They could have been gracious and applauded the Democrats, but they chose to just sit there.  

And even worse was the spectacle playing out at the White House.  While the Democrats were getting great tv coverage, Trump decides to have a press conference.  This is so small of him.  He knew he would get tv coverage.  He did not disappoint.  He said some of the most ignorant things a President has ever said.  Not just recent presidents, but in the history of all of them. He once again proved just how dumb he really is.  It was said to see clips of it. 

The Republican party has no conscious now.  They put their trust in Trump and have rode him to the bottom.  Unless there is some drastic change in the next 2 years, they are going to be a very minority party after the 2020 elections.  

I know there are many people who support the Republican party and what it to return to its roots. That may eventually happen but it will take a large purge of the Trump ass kissers and the “Freedom Caucus .”  That will take time, maybe many years.  I don’t particularly care.  I am an independent.  I can’t support anyone who continued to support Trump after the things he has done. I want at least two strong parties because we need that for a healthy democracy.  Trump republicans are not it.   

3 Jan 2019 Why Do I Have Targets Not Goals?

Why Do I Have Targets Not Goals?

Most people around New Years come up with a list of goals for the year. For any it is to get into better shape.   The challenge with this is there is no measurable way to track progress or success. If you set a target instead of a goal, then you have a metric based way of tracking things.  With a target, you can also break it down into sub-components to measure how well you are doing.  

It is ok and desirable to make significant targets you want to achieve. In fact, you should make a target that seems almost impossible.  I say almost because a target has to have some reality to it.  If your target is to make one million dollars in income this year and you are only making fifty thousand, then there is very little reality in what you want to do.  However, if your target were $150k, thus tripling your income, then it would be a big challenge but not out of the question. 

It may seem daunting on how you get there.   This is where you need milestones.  It can be weekly, monthly or quarterly. For me it is all three.  I will have specific targets over each of these timeframes. This will allow me to course correct as needed. 

All of my targets are challenging.  It comes down to am I willing to do the work necessary?  I can plan all day long.  I can come up with detailed metrics.  However, the day in and day work determine success.  Do the work required, period.  No excuses.  Blame no one. Take total ownership.   Simple yes, easy no.  Worth it? Absolutely. 

2 Jan 2019 What Is My Why?

What Is My Why?

Most people have trouble defining why they want or need something.  They have no problem saying what they want or need. A coach told me that unless you can articulate your why you will not have a burning desire to achieve your want. Without that burning desire there is no chance of you obtaining your want.

My challenge in the past has been defining my why.  During the past year I had some things happen that brought my why into focus.  I received a medical diagnosis that was an easy fix but let me know just how easy things could change.  I also had another potential medical issue that turned out to be not the issue we thought it could.  These two events finally convinced me that I have to take better care of my physical self. 

My personal life also underwent some challenges that told me I have to make changes there too.  It is never easy to have a breakup of a marriage.  No matter how close you remain, someone always is hurt.  I can only reassure that the breakup will be done with integrity.  It is not the case where one has to win and the other loses.  Neither of us wants that.   We have no immediate timetable.  We will move forward as both are able to get organized and eventually relocated. 

I do have the burning desire to take charge of my life and get on the path to realizing all I can.  It is an exciting future.  2019 will see a tremendous transformation in my life.  I look forward to meeting all my targets and see the changes.   

1 Jan 2019 What’s In Store For 2019?

What’s In Store For 2019?

There are millions of people who say they are going to make big changes in their in life starting today.  Health and fitness clubs all over are crammed for the month.  Slowly but surely this dies out and by March things get back to normal.  They can almost guarantee it because they see it every year.

Why does this happen?  Because people don’t have their why.  Is 1 Jan really any different of a day?  No.  It has been used as a reason to start on some path to better their lives.  I know of this organization that uses December as a time to get people to start the habits and routines for a better life specifically so their mindset it not fixated on 1 Jan.  Many people gain weight between Thanksgiving and New Year because of all the holiday activities that have “bad” food.  If you start making changes on 1 Dec you may limit that weight gain.  I have started on the change process myself over the past several months. 

What is in store for me?  To make any change you should declare it publicly, so you have accountability.  There has to be some measurable component.  Here is my declaration.

I will optimize my body for fitness and life.  Whatever that translates into a specific weight I will accept.  My target is to fit into pants with a waist size of 34.  

I will treat food more as a fuel than an indulgence.  I will allow myself plenty of times to enjoy it, however, for the most part I will respect what I eat. My target is one “cheat day” a week.

I will continue to enhance my spiritual journey.  That does not mean any specific religious path but a realization that there are powers “out there” greater than me.  My target is to attend a 10-day silent mediation retreat. 

I will get my personal relationships in order.  I have some that need to be altered and others enhanced.  My financial target is debt free by 2020.

I will transition my business life to one where I can be location independent. My target is a consulting business by 2020.

I will provide monthly status updates on each.  

As someone said, “you have to get comfortable being uncomfortable if you want to see great change.”

Happy New Year!

31 Dec 2918 How Did The Year Go?

How Did The Year Go?

I started this blog with the one goal of posting something every day.  Well here we are at the end of the year and I did accomplish what I set out to do.  I did not meet all the goals I set for personal development.  I have made big strides in some areas of my life. Over the course of the year I have ranted a lot about President Trump.  I think I bashed him more than any one group or individual.  I think I only repeated myself a few times.  I may have covered the same topic from different angles but not outright the same.  I did do two postings on opioids that were very similar.

At the start of the year I was going to use this tracking system to make sure I did not have duplicate postings.  That fell by the wayside pretty quick.  For the most part I had no problem coming up with things to write about. There were a couple of times it was down to late the night before or even early in the morning a posting was due. 

I can’t say there was a posting I wished I had not done.  I may not have been as persuasive in some of my arguments in some postings.  Also, I may not have been as empathetic or compassionate as I could have been. This is especially true for the topics that are labeled as a disease when I say it is a choice.  That is ok. We need healthy, honest and open dialogue.  

What have I learned?  I gained great respect for people who have done this for a long time.  Getting content out every day is a grind at times.  I have to admit there were a couple of times I was ready to just stop.  But the weeks and months did pass.  

Will I continue?  I am not sure.  I am thinking about a longer form that is posted weekly. I am also considering going back to podcasts.   Or maybe I will do a combination of two.  I guess I better decide soon as the New Year is upon us.

Thanks for following me on this journey over the past year.  Let’s see where 2019 takes us.

30 Dec 2018 Am I Optimistic About The Future?

Am I Optimistic About The Future?

I know a lot of my postings are negative in tone, especially the ones about President Trump and Congress.  However, those are short-term in nature.  A new President will get elected at some point and Congress will swing back and forth between the two parties in power.  The overall institutions for the country are strong and are resilient.  Do we have big issues, absolutely?  There is a growing chasm between young and old, with young being under 35 and old over 55.  Both have large numbers to impact elections.  Each have different views (in a global sense) on where the country should go. This is ok and healthy for a democracy. But they should fix what they agree on and not just oppose each other.

It will be interesting to see how the country evolves when the white population is less than 50% and become a majority minority.  For the young crowd I don’t think this will be the big issue as they are much more integrated then the older crowd was. Slowly but surely our institutions will start to reflect the changing demographics.

On the world stage, the biggest challenge will be to see if Russia and China transition to democratic rule vice authoritative rule. If each stay on their current path, then there is a greater chance for conflict due to the ruthless nature of dictatorships. There is a positive in that both of their economies depend on the rest of the world. This is especially true for China. The United States and China are deeply inter-wined economically. Both depend on the other to maintain their countries standing.

The one big thing that tempers my optimism is that of the Islamic faith. Islam is very similar to where the Catholic Church was 500 years ago. Islam needs to have their reformation. Also, Sunni Islam and Shia Islam have to settle their centuries old disagreements. I doubt in my lifetime I will see these changes. But as each country modernizes the people will not want to live the austere life as dictated by the radical side of Islam.

I am optimistic about the future. Every generation produces great leaders who transform the world for the better. The future is always bright if you demand accountability from your politicians and you go out and vote.

29 Dec 2018 How Often Do You Think “What If?”

How Often Do You Think “What If?”

You should always look to the past for lessons learned. As the saying goes those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it. However, there is a big difference from studying lessons learned and spending time asking yourself “What If?”

Everybody can look back on their lives and point to specific decisions they made. Many of these decisions had a big impact. Some may have come out as you wanted, and others may have brought about results that had their own challenges. For those challenging ones it is easy to get into the trap of trying to predict what would’ve happened if you made a different choice?  It is easy to assume that the alternate choice would not have had as many challenges. That is wishful thinking at best. You make a decision at that time with the best information that you have. If your decision is based on a lot of factual data, then there is a good chance you can predict how things may come out in the near-term. Now near term may mean days or months or at most a year. It is very difficult to predict many things after a year and the difficulty grows exponentially each succeeding year.

If your decision is based on more emotion then facts, then your desired outcome is even less predictable. You may get some satisfaction in going back and asking yourself what if I made a different decision, however it really is a waste of time and more importantly a waste of emotional energy. Just accept that you made the best decision at the time. If better data comes up, you can always make a course correction. Learn from the past just don’t dwell on the past.

28 Dec 2018 What Do We Do About Opioids?

What Do We Do About Opioids?

Rarely does a day go by that there is not an article in the news about opioids. Now I have to admit I have no experience in dealing with this issue.  I don’t know anybody hooked on them.  I probably have some very misguided opinions about it.  

Can we as a society do anything about it or does it come down to the individual? Does the person have to hit “rock bottom” before they can begin to change?  I don’t know.  I am not the most sympathetic person for drug addicts.  If you have to physically do something to take the drug, then just don’t do it.  Yes that is extremely simplistic and maybe naïve.  If you don’t just stop then how will you ever stop?  In the end it all comes down to an individual’s discipline. If they have it they will stop, if not they probably end up killing themselves.  No amount of hand holding or tough love will do it.  Is it hard to stop, it seems to be or all would.  Just because it is hard does not mean we shouldn’t do all we can to help the person help themselves to stop.  

I don’t buy into the argument that it is not in the addicts control. That is an excuse pure and simple. If that were the truth than nobody would be able to stop cigarettes cold turkey.  Somehow people do.  I know someone who stopped cold turkey after decades of smoking and never had another one. It was his choice it was his to control.  That’s why I asked, until the addicts chooses can we help at all?   

We can’t get rid of opioids. They have a valuable medical purpose when prescribed and used as intended.  We can and should invest in rehab facilities. We should only treat addicts as criminals when they commit criminal acts.  We should help addicts when they want to help themselves.  If an addict chooses to continue down that path, I don’t think investing in them is the best use of resources, find someone who wants to change and help them.  

We can’t save everybody.  We can only save those who want to be.  Adult addicts are still adults. Make them responsible for their choices and not excuses for them. 

27 Dec 2018 How Do You Find The Truth?

How Do You Find The Truth?

There are so many news outlets it is tough to decide which one(s) are trustworthy. I sometimes turn on MSNBC and Fox News and flip between each one to see how they are presenting a particular story. It is funny, or kinda sad, that the same story can be told in two very different ways.  Both sites claim to have journalistic integrity. If that were true, wouldn’t the stories sound the same or at least close?  MSNBC is considered a Democratic/liberal leaning station and Fox News is the Republican/conservative place.  Each has an audience it wants to sell advertising.  As with any business, it targets its message to who is viewing. 

I have no problem with each station making money.  However, don’t claim you have journalistic credentials and then report in a way your viewer base agrees with.  State that what you say is the subjective views of the station/reporters as told by the presenters.  That would be the honest way.  Do not sell anything as objective.   

So where would we get “objective” reporting.  Some would claim that National Public Radio is the objective platform.  I would argue that most of the Republican/conservative crowd would laugh at that say it a very liberal organization. 

Where does that leave us?  People have to listen to or read multiple sources in order to be informed.  They can’t accept at face value that their “trusted” network/paper will give them objective reporting.  It is critical that we are knowledgeable as society in issues that affect us all.  How we get that knowledge is just as important as what the knowledge is.        

26 Dec 2018 Will Others Follow General Mattis?

Will Others Follow General Mattis?

I was finally glad to see a Senior member of the cabinet leave the administration of Pres. Trump. UN ambassador Nikki Haley left earlier, now Gen. Mattis has prepared to leave as Secretary of Defense.  He was scheduled to leave at the end of February but Pres. Trump did not like the positive press the General was getting and is giving him one more week.

I hope this is the start of a mass exodus of cabinet members. I don’t think it will change how Pres. Trump leads, but it will at least tell him what people think of him.  If Gen. Mattis resigned out of disgust, what is it going to take for the others to follow? I would be stunned if the cabinet members really believed in and supported what Pres. Trump does. I can’t see how any rational person would believe what he is doing it’s good for the country.

But I have to remember it is all about politics. It has nothing to do with how good it is for the country or how bad it is. It is all about keeping whatever political influence you have. That may be a cynical view, but it seems to be reinforced every week. There is no other explanation for why the other cabinet members remain.

I really want our administration to do well. I want the country to do well. It helps no one if the country is not on the right track.  Will others leave? I am not holding my breath. All I hope is that the damage is able to be minimized over the next two years. In 2020, winter is coming for the Republican Party.

25 Dec 2018 Do You Have Gratitude?

Do You Have Gratitude?

I used to not be grateful for all I had in my life.  It was not I felt like I deserved any of it, I just didn’t recognize how fortunate I was.  Today I have a deep gratitude.  You have a pretty great life if you can say that the vast majority of decisions were made by you and not forced by someone else.  There have been very big consequences for my choices, but they have been mine.

Christians around the world celebrate today as the birth of their religion.   Though I do not have a strong Christian faith, I do have beliefs that our lives do not end with our physical deaths.  Today is a day for reflection and to give thanks and gratitude.

There are groups of “families” I am a part of and people that have been and are part of my life.  I have love and gratitude for all of them.  I may be remiss in not expressing that gratitude, but it is there.

To my biological family, well we have a lifetime of experiences, but we still have that bond.   My Australian family, my love for you has grown deeper every year.  My Navy family, to those alive and those passed, I treasure our time together.  To my WDS family, thank you.

Ariel, I can’t put into words how much you mean to me and my love for you. You have an inner light that shines so bright.  Our journey continues.   

I know I should single out so many more people.  Thank you for your gift of friendship, love, guidance and laughter.  I am a better person for knowing each and every one of you.  

Merry Christmas

24 Dec 2018 Can You Be Too Young For Congress?

Can You Be Too Young For Congress?

The Constitution states you must be at least 25 years old to be member of the House of Representatives and 30 years old for the Senate.  These ages were set over 200 years ago.  At that time 25 was “old” and 30 was very mature. The country was also vastly smaller then in physical size and population.  

It would be the very rare person whose breath of experiences at those ages would allow them to be effective today.  I would be hard pressed to think of anyone in their 20’s who could be a good Congressperson.  This is not a critic of the individual, just the immense responsibility the job calls for. The same for a Senator in their early 30’s.  Are there people out there who could do it, I am sure there are.  I would still have significant reservations and would need to have careful study on what thay have done.  Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at age 29 will be an interesting test of this.

I also believe you can be too old for Congress.  You would be hard pressed to convince me that someone past the age of 80 can be an effective representative. If airline pilots have to retire at 65, so should people in Congress.  A state and district need to have turnover in the political offices in order to get new ideas and thinking.     

There will be more younger people elected to Congress in 2020.  It will be interesting to see how well they are able to do the job.  

23 Dec 2018 Should I Respect Ignorant People?

Should I Respect Ignorant People?

Free speech is hard at times to support.  You have the “liberal” whinners in college who won’t tolerate any speech that is different than theirs and you also have the “conservative” Congressmen like Jim Jordan and Mark Meadows who prove every day just how ignorant they can be. 

I would love to have the opportunity to talk each of these groups.  I like getting into to discussions with people who can’t defend their positions.  I am amazed they take it as a badge of honor to look stupid.  They passionately believe they are right.  What they fail to see is everybody is not right all the time or wrong all the time. Like the line in the movie City of Angles, “just because you believe it does not make it true.”

I am sure there are many people who would vehemently disagree with what I believe. That is ok, that is what free speech is all about.  I would not block someone from having opinions just as I would expect the same courtesy. 

What we need to be very careful about is people who are able to force policy positions or laws that don’t represent the values this country has defended for over 200 years, with free speech at the center of it.

There are extremes at both end of the political spectrum who want to prevent free and open dialogue, disagreement and discourse.  We must be ruthless in letting either side dominate “their way.” I could never respect either of those extremes.

22 Dec 2018 Do You Want The Wall?

Do You Want The Wall?

Congress is trying to pass a sort term spending bill to keep government open for a couple of months. Everybody thought it was a done deal until the President got some criticism from the “conservative” pundits that he was weak.  Of course, his ego could not accept this, and he decides to not support the bill because it does not fund the wall.  I keep saying everyone should tell him he said Mexico would pay for it and we will build it when they start paying.  His has no argument against, it was the cornerstone of his campaign.  

Do I want the wall, of course not.  It will be a waste of money and not keep people out. Other than the Great Wall of China, there have been very few that met their purpose.  The Maginot Line was the great wall to keep Germany out of France during World War II.  You know how well that turned out.

We need secure borders.  We need a vetting process to determine who should come in.  We can’t support unlimited immigration.  There is not a country in the world that allows that.  I understand why people want to come here.  I would ask why don’t the other Central and South American countries open their borders to more people?  I know Columbia is dealing with a major problem of people from Venezuela. It rivals our challenges.  

I want Congress to stand strong and not fund a wall.  The President can complain all he wants but only a minority of the country wants a wall.  Most want immigration reform, but not a wall.   

The only thing Congress should send the President is document for him to fill in saying how much Mexico gave this year for the wall. Congress can then add that to the budget. Until then, no money for any wall from the US taxpayers.

21 Dec 2018 Is Alone The Answer?

Is Alone The Answer?

After the divorce from my first marriage, my mother could not accept that I was happy alone.  It was such an alien concept to her.  No matter what I said she did not believe me.  She thought I was really miserable deep down inside. I was and am comfortable being alone. However, that is not how I think a full life should be lived.

I have no problem spending a lot of time by myself.  However, it is easy especially for me to get disconnected from people when I do that.  I can go a whole weekend with very little interaction.  I know my life is better the more I get out of my comfort zone and meet people.  

One of my goals is to be more sociable and meet more people.  I know I have to be the one who reaches out and initiates the interaction.  People are not going to just start coming up to me.  I was told by a coach that to really grow you need to get comfortable with being uncomfortable.  I have taken the comfortable route for most of my life.  It is time to see what uncomfortable brings me.  

I am ok with alone but know it is not the answer.  I am not ok with just ok anymore. 

20 Dec 2018 Do We Need The ACA?

Do We Need The ACA?

A federal judge has ruled the entire Affordable Care Act, “Obama Care,” is unconstitutional.  Now this may only be a short-term ruling that is changed on appeal or it goes to the Supreme Court and is upheld.

We do need a national medical Insurance law. This should not be a state by state governed process. It is too convoluted and costly. I’m not convinced that a government run option is the way to go. There needs to be competition in order to drive efficiencies. But these efficiencies should not be at the expense of quality care. The stockholders of the insurance companies are not the number one factor in decisions. The companies have to make a profit to compete.

I wrote earlier in the year what I thought the basic tests each citizen should get it each year at reasonable cost that is covered in their premium. The challenge comes with pre-existing conditions and paying for procedures to keep seniors alive another 9 to 12 months. Most people would be amazed to know how much Medicare pays to keep a person alive for 9 to 12 months instead of letting the natural dying process takeover. No one wants to tell someone they can’t have a procedure because it is not worth the expense to keep them alive another nine months.

However, if we are to afford quality care for all then some tough choices have to be made. We simply can’t afford to pay for every procedure for everybody all the time. Well we could but, we would first have to balance the budget and then decide what other area of federal spending needs to have drastic cuts on the order of over 100 billion.

We need national health insurance, are we willing to have the tough conversations and then legislation to implement it?

19 Dec 2018 How Do You Christmas Shop?

How Do You Christmas Shop?

I can’t remember when the shopping day known as Black Friday came about. I don’t know if it was a marketing thing that was put out in the last 20 years? I certainly do not understand the need to go out at midnight or five in the morning to make a purchase for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving.

I really can’t believe people would stampede into a store to buy something. It really shows how far we have come in making wants into absolute needs. It is sad Christmas has become a way for businesses to make money vice what the whole purpose of the day is supposed to mean.

With the advent of online shopping, you would think there would be no need to go out some crazy hour. Who knows, maybe some people just think of that as a Christmas tradition and actually enjoy it?

My routine was to wait until the 23^rdor 24^thof December and do shopping. Most of the time I did not have a specific item in mind. I have to admit I do like the convenience of online shopping. However, I will go out on one of those days to see if something catches my eye.  

I can’t think of a scenario where I would go out and wait in line for anything. I enjoy walking around mall, but not with thousands of people. We will see what this year’s shopping trip we’ll catch my eye.

18 Dec 2018 How Much Should Congress Make?

How Much Should Congress Make?

There was a lot of news earlier this year when Apple became the first Company to be valued at $1 trillion. The 535 members of Congress of which 435 are in the House of Representatives and 100 in the Senate create a budget each year of over two trillion dollars. The salary for a congressman is $174,000 per year. The Speaker of the House gets $223,500. If the saying goes you get what you pay for then we are vastly underpaying our representatives. If you want competent members then you have to be willing to pay for them. You can talk all day long about public service, but I would rather have competence over political ambitions.

I would make two changes to the Constitution. People in the House of Representatives can hold office for two 4 year terms and Senators can have one term of office of six years. I would pay each $500,000 a year. There would be no retirement other than what they can fund for a Roth IRA. I don’t want career politicians and I don’t want politicians to get a lifetime retirement for a short stay of public service.

You will not be able to convince me that there is any value of having a person be in Congress for many years and even many decades. It is proven many times over it takes no special talent to be a member of Congress, especially in intelligence capacity. We need to change that.

I want to attract the best and brightest to help run the country, but I also don’t want them there for a long time. If the President has term limits, there’s absolutely no reason members of Congress can’t too.  Let’s get the best there and pay them too.

17 Dec 2018 Why Did He Threaten A Shutdown?

Why Did He Threaten A Shutdown?

Last week Pres. Trump sat down with Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer. He has bragged over and over again on how great of a negotiator he is. It became evident during that meeting that Trump is only a great negotiator when the other party has no option but to accept his terms. If the other party is of equal or has a more powerful position, he is totally outside his capability. Mrs. Pelosi and Mr. Schumer schooled him on how to debate and negotiate. Trump learned the difference between business negotiations and political negotiations.

Mrs. Pelosi tried to protect the president and have their conversation taken off-line. But Trump’s ego was in it. He was so sure he could dominate those two in a public setting that was televised live. How wrong he was.

It all came down to the border wall he has been talking about for three years. I wish the two Democrats would’ve looked him in the eye and said “why do we need to use tax payer funds for the wall when you claimed over and over again that Mexico was going to pay for it?”  This would’ve put Trump in an uncomfortable position trying to explain why he needs $5 billion of tax revenue to pay for a wall that another country was supposed to pay for.  It is another case of him having no capability back up what he says he’s going to do.

What was even more in embarrassing was when he claimed he will accept responsibility for shutting down the government if he does not get funding for his wall.  Never before has a President taken such a stance. He is going to find out that the Republicans in Congress will not support him on this. 

If he were smart, but he isn’t, he would be doing all he can to ensure his last two years in office have a positive value. I don’t see that happening. He will be like Nero of Rome and burned down anything because his ego is bruised. He will never be able to blame anybody but himself.

16 Dec 2018 Do You Know The Side Effects Of Drugs?

Do You Know The Side Effects Of Drugs?

I think most people get annoyed with the never-ending barrage of drug commercials. Embedded in those commercials is the long list of side effects that goes on and on.  

My mother is like a lot of senior citizens who cake a lot of different drugs. She takes so many that there is no way there can be any clinical evidence that the drugs do not counteract each other. I think if she just stopped all of them and see what happened over the next 45 days I’d bet her quality of life does not change. But the drug industry would not like that because they want people to take as many drugs as possible. Why else would we be bombarded day in and day out with commercials for drugs.

I was taking a drug for inflammation and it had the potential side effect with the Achilles tendon. I found out that was a very true side effect. Fortunately, it was just soreness and not a tear or something worse.

We are the most overmedicated society in the world. Everybody wants a pill take care of everything. There are medications that have a valuable purpose. But if people just took better care of their bodies the vast majority of over the counter medications would not be necessary. 

Everything you take has a potential side effect. Be aware of those and ask yourself do I really need this drug?