Ann Ferro: Conversations at the hairdresser

Salon discussion: Shoes, butter and opioids
“I just gotta take these shoes off.  My feet are killing me,” she said. The shoeless woman had just entered the salon carrying three shopping bags and a gigantic purse.
As she wiggled her toes she continued, “Why I wear these things is a mystery … well, not really. They cost a fortune and I guess I think I should wear them.”
Patty, one of the stylists, asked why she wore them today.
“Oh, yes, well, I was shopping at Lord and Taylor and I thought that I should dress for the event.”
Patty countered with, “I do remember stopping in at Lord and Taylor one day on a whim. I was wearing an old coat that looked pretty ratty. I’d been working in our barn and, for some reason, thought I needed some new stockings. Well, I wasn’t in the store a minute when I noticed that I was being followed. You have to think, stores do have pilferage, and they have to find ways to prevent it. I’m sure that they have done some investigative work to determine what the typical shoplifter looks like.”
Rustling her newspaper, one of the women in the waiting area spoke up, “Talking about investigative work, did any of you see that Johnson and Johnson have been fined  $572 million for producing and distributing opioids?”
My nosey mind perked up, “You mean the baby powder people? They aren’t the first, are they? No, I think other companies have been held liable.”
And the discussion started to fly around the salon, bounding between customers and stylists.
“I have a problem with that. So, the pharmaceutical companies produce pain medication. If it is used inappropriately, is that their problem? Land O’ Lakes makes butter. If I eat too much and get sick it’s not Land O’ Lakes’ problem.”
“This article says that part of the lawsuit indicates that Johnson and Johnson gave false information to doctors about how to administer the drugs. One source said that the company told doctors to increase doses if the patient was having chronic pain problems, even though there was no science to back that up. It would be like Land O’ Lakes telling you that eating butter made you thin.”
One of the women, who had just changed into a smock, interjected, “Well, I know that no one should give my nephew, ‘Dave’ [not his real name] anything stronger than a tic tac. That boy is a quick-minded druggie waiting to go off and last week he heard that lower back pain was difficult to diagnose. I can see a backache coming on. Hope his doctor is savvy enough to see through him.”
Another customer remarked, “Savvy, since all of this opioid problem became known, my doctor won’t prescribe the ‘good stuff’ at all.  I have a lot of pain from arthritis in my wrists and ankles and he tells me to take Tylenol. It helps not at all.”
“So, Johnson and Johnson encouraged the use of opioids with false information to the prescribers. And people died because of this from addiction caused by prescription and overdoses.”
“I feel sorry for the doctors. They get access to information about medication from the drug companies. I always thought that the Food and Drug Administration checked these things out.”
The gal with the newspaper added, “It says here that a ‘60 Minutes’ program said that the FDA actually allowed the drug companies and distributors to get away with murder. They knew that the drug producers and distributors were aware of and encouraged over-prescription and pill mills, but all that happened was that the drug companies were fined a fraction of the profits they made in a day.”
One of the stylists said, “Someone is on the take.”
“Ya think? Let me read this from the article: ‘The drug industry began lobbying Congress for legislation that would limit the agency’s enforcement powers. Congress passed a law that took away the most potent tool the DEA has — the ability to immediately freeze suspicious shipments of prescription narcotics to keep drugs off American streets.’”
“Oh my gosh, Congress was influenced by the power of the drug industry. What a surprise!”
“So, now, what is happening is that the producers and distributors of this thing that is dangerous, a menace to public health that has caused so many deaths are finally, maybe, being held responsible.”
Our lady with the expensive but painful shoes stood up and said, “This conversation makes me want to ask, what’s the difference between let’s say Johnson and Johnson and, oh, Remington or Savage Arms, firearms manufacturers or let’s say Walmart which sells guns?  What about Congressmen blocking legislation that requires universal background checks or restriction on the number of bullets you can buy? What about the babies killed at Sandy Hook or the innocents killed at Columbine or Parkland? Why are they different from those who died from opioids?”
Dead silence.
“Yeah, what is the difference?”
The shoeless woman spoke up, “This is too much to think about.  All I wanted when I came in today was a haircut and comfortable shoes.
Ann Ferro is a mother, a grandmother and a retired social studies teacher. While still figuring out what she wants to be when she grows up, she lives in Marcellus with lots of books, a spouse and a large orange cat.