It must be stated that there are real dangers in ordering drugs online. Some sites ship substandard drugs. Others may not adequately check for drug interactions. Sites that prescribe drugs without a physician’s consultation may offer pills that are dangerous for certain individuals, such as those with compromised immune systems. Furthermore, two Internet pharmacy offerings — cheap drugs from Canada-based online pharmacies and prescriptions obtained online without actually seeing a doctor in person — raise some questions.

Here are some guidelines from the FDA to protect yourself when purchasing drugs over the internet:

• Check with the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (http://www.nabp.net, (847) 698-6227) to deternine whether a web site is a licenced pharmacy in good standing
• Don’t buy from sites that offer to prescibe a prescription drug for the first time without a physical exam, sell a prescription drug without a prescription, or sell drugs not approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
• Don’t do business with sites that don’t have a registered pharmacist available to answer questions.
• Avoid sites that don’t identify with whom you are dealing or don’t provide a U.S. address and phone number to contact if there is a problem.
• Don’t purchase from foreign web sites. It is illegal to import the drugs bought from these sites, the risks are greater, and there is very little the U.S. government can do if you get ripped off.
• Beware of sites that that advertise a “new cure” for a serious disorder or a “quick cure” for a wide range of ailments.
• Be careful of sites that use impressive sounding terminology to disguise a lack of good science or those that claim the government, the medical profession, or research scientists have conspired to suppress a product.
• Steer clear of sites that include undocumented case histories claiming “amazing” results
• Talk to your health care professional before using any medications for the first time.

There are some incredibly beneficial pharmaceuticals on the market today but care is needed when using these powerful drugs.  Visit your local physician for an exam, and if a prescription is necessary, have the prescription dispensed through a VIPPS certified pharmacist.

Using the wireless broadband infrastructure of one of the most popular and largest telecommunications company in the United States today, users can access and use Mobile Shopper without having to pay for extra subscription fees. This first feature of this kind in the US will result in a big opportunity for Sprint to increase its data usage as well as expand its user base. Unlike other existing mobile Internet services offered by hand-held mobile companies, Mobile Shopper will simply earn from the Internet fees that are charged on mobile online users while revenues from online advertising will help maintain the mobile shopping features.

Mobile Shopper is revolutionary in that it will  enable customers to shop for virtually anything from clothing to appliances by using their hand-held mobile phones.  The goal of mobile online shopping is to generate revenues as well as  to widen the mobile phone user base by pushing them to use their cellular phones for data services such as Internet surfing and video and music downloads. With faster wireless data speeds and better user friendly handsets could help expand the mobile shopping market using a mobile commerce adaptation of mainstream online shopping. Internet marketing analyst Alan Goode of Jupiter Research believes that with the launching of Mobile Shopper, the market for mobile online shopping in North America alone could reach $505 million by 2008 and increase to $1.9 million in 2010.

When using Mobile Shopper, users can conveniently search for a particular product at the lowest price or browse for products by retailer or category. Once the particular product is selected, customers can email product details to themselves for future reference, forward it to a friend or buy the product directly using their cellular phone.

To make mobile online shopping even more convenient, customers can create a Mobile Shopper account using their mobile phone or on a computer by clicking on www.sprint.com/mobileshopper where they will be asked to provide their shipping address as well as credit card information with a secure PIN. Using their Mobile Shopper account, users can easily make a purchase by simply selecting a product and entering their phone number and PIN without having to key in account information. Purchases made through Mobile Shopper will be reflected on the customer’s credit cart statement similar to online purchases made through the Internet.

The surgery, announced on his Web site, came two days after Woods finished two shots behind Trevor Immelman in the Masters. He most likely will miss The Players Championship, but should return in time to play the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines on June 12.

Woods was upbeat about the procedure remarking: “ The upside is that I have been through this process before and know how to handle it. I look forward to working through the rehabilitation process and getting back to action as quickly as I can.”  

The recovery is expected to be four to six weeks, meaning Woods will not be able to defend his title May 1 in the Wachovia Championship. He likely will miss The Players Championship, one of three non-majors he has never missed since turning pro.

No team that started 2-10, as Detroit did, has won a World Series and only three rallied from such a rocky start to even be in the playoffs: the 1951 New York Giants, 1974 Pittsburgh Pirates  and 2001 Oakland Athletics.

Despite a lineup with seven All-Stars, Detroit ranked last in the majors in runs, hits, slugging percentage entering Monday and was tied for the most double-play groundouts and was next to last in batting average and extra-base hits. The pitching is nothing to write home about either.

Miquel Cabrera is off to a poor start. The entire team is struggling but his lack of production stands out because the team signed him to a fat contract worth over $152 million over the next eight seasons.

Cabrera averaged 32 homers, 115 RBIs while hitting .318 the previous four seasons in Florida.

The third baseman on Monday went 2-for-4 with an RBI, just his second since the opener, to improve his batting average to .205 against Minnesota.

Reigning AL batting champion Magglio Ordonez was hitting a miserly .234 before going 3-for-4 Monday. Placido Polanco, Gary Sheffield and Ivan Rodriquez all had sub-.200 batting averages through Sunday.

When you factor in that the Tigers possess the second highest payroll in baseball at nearly $139 million dollars, this could prove to be a long hot summer in Motown.

The study also indicated that consumers value  security over merchant incentives like rewards and discounts. In fact, more than half of the survey respondents consider the security of their financial information as the deciding factor when they make purchases. An additional two thirds of shoppers feel more secure when they don’t have to enter financial information.

Additionally it was revealed that more than half of online shoppers think about the payment method they will use before they click on the merchant’s checkout button. Sixty-six percent of consumers prefer e-commerce sites that offer multiple payment methods, and about half of online shoppers prefer the convenience of using alternative payment methods.

The buyer has indicated that out of respect for the deceased actress he would not put the film on the internet and try to exploit her  said memorabilia collector Keya Morgan. “That’s not his intention and I would never get my name involved if that were to happen.”

Monroe is clothed and the man’s head remains out of the frame for the entire 15 minutes of the film, said Morgan, who watched it.

Monroe was rumored to have had an affair with U.S. President John F. Kennedy, and Morgan said then FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, a Kennedy rival, went to great lengths to try to prove it was Kennedy in the film.

The film has surfaced before , Monroe’s ex husband the late baseball great Joe DiMaggio, once tried to buy it from the collector for $25,000 but “he would not part with it,” according to FBI files on Monroe that are available on the FBI Web site.

Morgan is a well-known collector said he learned of the existence of the film while working on a documentary about Monroe, who died in August 1962 at age 36. A former FBI agent told him about it, and Morgan said he confirmed it by tracking down the son of the FBI informant, who had provided a copy to the FBI. 

One of the most commonly heard complaints from returning travelers is that they are exhausted from their vacation. The whole idea of going away is to relax, and enjoy yourself. But when you factor in preparation for the trip, packing and unpacking luggage, airline hassles, etc.  a vacation can be one giant headache in the guise of a good time.

Consult your local chamber of commerce and you may be astonished to see the wealth of interesting and sometimes free events, museums, concerts and the like right under your nose. With a little imagination you can have a wonderful vacation right in your own backyard. The advantages of a stay at home vacation are somewhat obvious. You basically have control of what you will or won’t do. At the end of the day your own warm and cozy bed is waiting for you.  No jet lag, crowded airports or sticker shock when the final bill hits your credit card. Sounds pretty inviting doesn’t it. Put on the tropical music and your sunglasses and let the bar-b… I mean luau begin.

However, despite Clinton’s repeated criticism over the comments, a new Quinnipiac poll released Tuesday shows Obama’s position has not changed from a similar poll conducted early last week.

Clinton holds a 6-point lead in the just-released Quinnipiac poll that was conducted April 9-13. Obama’s comments first surfaced on April 11. The organization reports there was no noticeable difference in the results from the two days immediately following news of the comments.

Oil settled at a record closing high of $111.76 a barrel on Monday.  Analysts predict that $115.00 a barrel is right around the corner. 

Analysts have also noted that the weakness in the U.S. dollar is partly responsible for  the current spike in crude oil prices.  As the dollar has dropped versus the euro, many investors have flocked to commodities such as oil and gold to preserve the value of their assets.

It is reported that the study is the first of its kind and hope it will prompt lawmakers to invest more money in programs aimed at strengthening marriages. Two dissenting experts not connected to the study disagreed with the findings arguing that the creation of jobs would be more effective in aiding all types of needy families.

Mr. Scafidi’s research was sponsored by four groups who consider themselves part of a nationwide “marriage movement” — the New York-based Institute for American Values, the Institute for Marriage and Public Policy, Families Northwest of Redmond, Washington, and the Georgia Family Council, an ally of the conservative ministry Focus on the Family.

“The study documents for the first time that divorce and unwed childbearing — besides being bad for children — are costing taxpayers a ton of money,” said David Blankenhorn, president of the Institute for American Values.

Scafidi’s calculations were based on the assumption that households headed by a single female have relatively high poverty rates, leading to higher spending on welfare, health care, criminal justice and education for those raised in the disadvantaged homes. The $112 billion estimate includes the cost of federal, state and local government programs, and lost tax revenue at all levels of government.