Warning: May Cause Sudden Death Of Conversation

Yesterday, I met a foreigner who was coming to New York to join the illustrious world of pharmaceutical advertising. Why? God only knows.

For those of you who are overseas, pharmaceutical advertising in The United States is rather special. Drug brand names can not be mentioned in advertisements unless the side-effects of the drug are also mentioned. The end result is generally either a scrolling warning at the bottom of the screen which lists any number of undesirable side effects, or, occasionally, a character in a commercial who rambles off a string of conditions as though it was perfectly normal to mention things such as "perforated bowels" or "abnormal vision" in casual conversation.

When I found out that my new acquantance was in the advertising field, I asked him if he would be writing the warning at the bottom of the television screen "Warning: May cause sudden death..."

He did not find my comment amusing.