# Thalidomide "joke" - really? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [May 24, 2011, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050 "2011-05-24T19:16:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/21 "2011-05-25T12:31:16Z")
> [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](#): > > Your monitor renders that as an oval? > [😃](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/ellipsis) > /pedant Yeah, stupid mobile non-standard display. Scrolling down a teeny screen past over-quoting, ellipses, or horizontal/vertical ellipsis overuse fills me with a blinding rage, apparently. ---
**Author:** ![Sparky812](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Sparky812](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparky812)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/22 "2011-05-25T13:09:24Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > The joke fails for mere factual incorrectness, like “If ignorance were cornflakes, you’d be General Mills.” Although, I agree that the column’s joke definitely fails on factual correctness, yours does not. That statement is freaking hilariousbecause of it’s factual incorrectness and it’s play on ignorance. ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/23 "2011-05-25T13:09:45Z")
> [@Zotlerg](#): > > I guess I was lucky, but ~20,000 were not. It’s been seen as the worst medical disaster in history. That’s really a gross exaggeration. Yes, thalidome (Contergan) was a tragedy which affected many people because it was considered safe and thus widely prescribed. But it was not the “worst” medical disaster in history. First, do you define medical disaster as to do with a disease, like the Black Plague, AIDS, Ebola, etc.? where ignorance of the effects led to disastrous side results, like blood-letting, lack of hygiene pre-Semmelweis, etc.? where knowledge was purposly ignored, like the fight during [Semmelweis](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignaz_Semmelweis)’ days, the [Tuskegee experiment](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment), etc.? Additionally, [thaliomide](http://www.cracked.com/article/131_5-great-things-you-didnt-know-came-from-horrific-tragedies/) has actually many benefits in treating things besides morning sickness and sleeping problems. ---
**Author:** ![Zotlerg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/8797f3/32.png) [@Zotlerg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zotlerg)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/24 "2011-05-25T13:26:46Z")
To quote the link you gave: "With tens of thousands of victims of the drug worldwide, thalidomide has been called “the biggest medical tragedy of modern times.” As for treating blood cancer, there have been cases of other cancers developing, particularly acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) and B-cell lymphoma malignancies. The renamed drug called ‘lenalidomide’ is still under review by the FDA, so I guess they’re using the public as lab mice. Makes a change. I suppose you don’t have much choice if they say it ‘could’ save your life. 0 0 0 ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/25 "2011-05-25T13:33:26Z")
That woman was asking about whether Proctor & Gamble was run by Satanists. :rolleyes: Accurate or not, she deserved a zing. ---
**Author:** ![Zotlerg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/8797f3/32.png) [@Zotlerg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zotlerg)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/26 "2011-05-25T13:39:52Z")
You don’t see the irony in zinging someone’s silliness, with something equally silly? ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/27 "2011-05-25T13:47:40Z")
Sure. Okay, now 1986 is fixed. What was wrong with 1987? ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/28 "2011-05-25T14:04:21Z")
> [@Zotlerg](#): > > You don’t see the irony in zinging someone’s silliness, with something equally silly? Stupidity. Hers was stupidity. And stupidity should be painful. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/29 "2011-05-25T14:08:34Z")
> [@Sparky812](#): > > Although, I agree that the column’s joke definitely fails on factual correctness, yours does not. > That statement is freaking hilariousbecause of it’s factual incorrectness and it’s play on ignorance. Thanks, but “If ignorance were cornflakes, you’d be General Mills” is actually from [another Cecil column](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/52/does-a-woman-retain-traces-of-her-male-partner-after-giving-birth), and the fact that General Mills doesn’t actually make cornflakes was something [he addressed later on:](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/681/do-mcdonalds-milkshakes-contain-seaweed) > [@Cecil](#): > > Jonathan, I have a shameful confession to make. Many years ago, in response to a particularly dimwitted letter, I wrote, “If ignorance were cornflakes, you’d be General Mills.” Priceless, eh? Here’s the confession: General Mills doesn’t make cornflakes. However, it was funnier that way. ---
**Author:** ![Zotlerg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/8797f3/32.png) [@Zotlerg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zotlerg)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/30 "2011-05-25T14:11:30Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > Stupidity. Hers was stupidity. And stupidity should be painful. He claimed she was stupid because her mother took Thalidomide (he’s a charmer, hey), the drug does not have those effects, certainly not well known to. As the kids today say - FAIL! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/31 "2011-05-25T14:22:01Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Thanks, but “If ignorance were cornflakes, you’d be General Mills” is actually from [another Cecil column](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/52/does-a-woman-retain-traces-of-her-male-partner-after-giving-birth), and the fact that General Mills doesn’t actually make cornflakes was something [he addressed later on:](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/681/do-mcdonalds-milkshakes-contain-seaweed) This confession needs a retraction. General Mills makes Total Corn Flakes, and used to make a product called Country Corn Flakes. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/32 "2011-05-25T14:22:40Z")
> [@Zotlerg](#): > > He claimed she was stupid because her mother took Thalidomide (he’s a charmer, hey), the drug does not have those effects, certainly not well known to. As the kids today say - FAIL! 😃 Oh boy. “As the kids today say”? Go back home Grandpa, no one’s on your lawn. Seriously, humor is subjective. Some people found it funny. Some did not. I can’t put thalidomide up as a sacred cow, however…I tend to think most things need to be laughed at, or you would cry. The human condition is such that there is a ton of pain in this world and I for one don’t want to be sensitive about every damn thing. I just can’t be arsed to care that much, or my heart would break. Ergo, I laugh. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/33 "2011-05-25T15:18:31Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > Sure. > > Okay, now 1986 is fixed. What was wrong with 1987? The top 5 songs? 1. “Faith”…George Michael 2. “Alone”…Heart 3. “I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)” …Whitney Houston 4. “C’est la Vie”…Robbie Nevil 5. “Shake You Down”…Gregory Abbott On the topic; the Old Wench and I both have thalidomide “babies” in our families. Back when I first read it I remember having a little twinge that “Hey - wait a minute - they are probably the three smartest cousins we have” but the moment passed quickly. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/34 "2011-05-25T15:30:36Z")
> [@Zotlerg](#): > > You don’t see the irony in zinging someone’s silliness, with something equally silly? Having a bit of trouble making it out. Maybe if it were arranged vertically? ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/35 "2011-05-25T15:34:14Z")
> [@Zotlerg](#): > > I can usually ‘get’ these kind of insults, and often don’t really care. > I knew a victim at school, he was very bright, just had deformed arms. > My own mother was about to be given the drug, but at the last minute her doctor decided against it. I guess I was lucky, but ~20,000 were not. It’s been seen as the worst medical disaster in history. > **I just didn’t like his association with mental faculty and Thalidomide. It’s basically wrong, and ignorant.** > That’s all really. > . > . > . Thalidomide was never approved in the US. US doctors didn’t (couldn’t) prescribe it. The few US cases were women who were in Europe during pregnancy and prescribed it by a doctor there or got it illegally. I’m assuming you were not born in the US. ---
**Author:** ![Sparky812](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Sparky812](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparky812)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/36 "2011-05-25T15:41:57Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Thanks, but “If ignorance were cornflakes, you’d be General Mills” is actually from [another Cecil column](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/52/does-a-woman-retain-traces-of-her-male-partner-after-giving-birth), and the fact that General Mills doesn’t actually make cornflakes was something [he addressed later on:](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/681/do-mcdonalds-milkshakes-contain-seaweed) Yes, I realized that. Although, Cecil acknowledges that initially it was unintentional and later realized that it was funnier that way. It is still not analogous with the Thalidomide joke. ---
**Author:** ![Sparky812](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Sparky812](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparky812)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/37 "2011-05-25T15:58:34Z")
> [@picunurse](#): > > Thalidomide was never approved in the US. US doctors didn’t (couldn’t) prescribe it. The few US cases were women who were in Europe during pregnancy and prescribed it by a doctor there or got it illegally. > > I’m assuming you were not born in the US. Some US doctor’s “did” prescribe it to patients. From Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > “although thalidomide was never approved for sale in the United States, millions of tablets had been distributed to physicians during a clinical testing program. It was impossible to know how many pregnant women had been given the drug to help alleviate morning sickness or as a sedative” Also, Thalidomide could be ordered by mail from Europe and/or bought in Canada until 1962. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/38 "2011-05-25T22:55:19Z")
> [@Zotlerg](#): > > 0 > 0 > 0 /squints at the screen Dammit, time for the annual eye checkup, I guess. This is getting bad! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/39 "2011-05-25T23:05:26Z")
Anyone who wants to read a truly indelible and tasteless portrayal of Thalidomide side effects should read Irvine Welsh’s short story “[Fortune’s Always Hiding](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecstasy:_Three_Tales_of_Chemical_Romance).” Warning: spoiler is fairly stomach churning. In it, a thalidomide baby (now grown to a young woman without use of her malformed arms) tracks down the pharmaceutical executive responsible, and cuts off his arms with a chainsaw, using only her feet. Not my cup of tea, but damn if it wasn’t memorable. ---
**Author:** ![sinjin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@sinjin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sinjin)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2011, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050/40 "2011-05-26T01:23:58Z")
I suggest the OP not watch the film [Brain Candy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_Candy) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thalidomide-joke-really/583050.md?page=3)