Is thalidomide a word that you have heard? Is it still in the general vocabulary? I wonder. In any event, thalidomide is the reason the FDA has such rigorous drug tests. If you haven't heard of it, it could be because the US did not allow thalidomide to be sold -- although it was introduced as a wonder drug in Europe. Canada had it in circulation from 1959-1961. Canadians might be smug now about health care, but they sure blew it on this one.