[lit-ideas] Re: flu vaccine
- From: Andy Amago <aamago@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx, lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 27 Oct 2004 17:21:50 -0700 (PDT)
-----Original Message-----
From: Paul Stone <pas@xxxxxxxx>
Sent: Oct 27, 2004 1:43 PM
To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: flu vaccine
>A.A. I don't quite understand this except that Bush blames lawyers for the=
=20
>healthcare problems of this country. Kerry says it's a deeper=20
>issue. Apparently you're siding with Bush.
P.S. I'm not siding with Bush. I think Bush is a feeble-minded nitwit. Howe=
ver,=20
Bush's reaction to the question at the debate was more honest and accurate=
=20
than Kerry's. Bush gave an answer which addresses the part of the problem,=
=20
however incompletely. The solution DOES start with individuals'=20
sacrificing. The meting out of the existing vaccines to the needy IS a=20
different problem and one that I have every sympathy about.
A.A. I'm talking about their responses to the healthcare problems of the c=
ountry, not flu vaccine. Regarding the bigger picture of healthcare being =
so expensive that it's burdening businesses and huge numbers of the populat=
ion are going without, Bush blamed the lawyers and offered no other solutio=
ns. If he does reform tort laws to the point where companies no longer hav=
e incentive to behave themselves for fear of lawsuits, what's left? Return=
ing to the issue of sacrifice, I refer you to Kerry's statement that member=
s of Congress don't sacrifice when it comes to healthcare. So, let's kill =
the lawyers and have good healthcare in this country. Fair enough?
P.S. I think the reason that there is a problem with the flu vaccinations i=
s=20
threefold:
1) people became dependent on vaccines because they were marketed well and=
=20
increased demand tremendously
A.A. Childhood vaccinations have made the biggest difference in irradicatin=
g polio, measles, and the like. Those are mandated. They've been so succe=
ssful in fact and diseases so minimized that government has to step in and =
remind parents to have their children vaccinated. These were public health=
initiatives, not marketing successes. =20
P.S. 2) because of various legal and corporate decisions, it became unprofi=
table=20
to make them in country
A.A. What legal decisions beyond this unverified account of a lawsuit? Cor=
porate decisions are based on bottom line. Except Enron, which was based o=
n fiction.
P.S. 3) A snafu in one of the providers has now greatly decreased the overa=
ll=20
supply AND screwed up the already in progress delegation of that supply
A.A. Suppliers are not easy to find because this is a product that makes a =
marginal amount of money for the manufacturer. It's a nuisance for them.
P.S. It's a problem, but it's surely NOT directly the government's fault.
A.A. Perhaps not, but Bush has weakened the FDA. Generally speaking, he's=
relaxed restrictions on corporations. Pollution, for example, is up, ask =
the Sierra Club. I don't know what he's done with the CDC, but I doubt he'=
s increased funding. The CDC is our front line of defense against biologic=
al warfare and naturally occuring pathogens. It's not extremely surprising=
that this vaccine shortage happened on Bush's watch and not another presid=
ent's.
> BTW, the story about the guy who sued (if it's even true) states an=20
> award amount that is chicken feed to the pharmaceutical=20
> companies. Vaccines bring a very very small return on investment; it's=
=20
> basically a pro bono for them and they don't want to be bothered with it.
These are contradictory statements. A settlement of 5 million dollars is=20
HUGE on a pro bono ROI. Regardless of the fact that they make billions of=
=20
dollars on other drugs. The -5,000,000 is in the books and they're not stup=
id.
A.A. Five million dollars is lunch money. It's a meaningless amount of mon=
ey to the pharmaceutical industry. Even so, they will point to it and make=
a big deal out of it if they need an excuse to give up public health orien=
ted production.
>Kind of a dog eared question, but do you still think Bush's war is a=20
>positive thing?
P.S. Reaction omitted for fear of starting a war.
A.A. This sounds like you still support the invasion. We have lost so muc=
h ground over there that journalists literally cannot leave their hotel roo=
ms. There is at least one reporter missing for a month now, and we don't e=
ven hear about it. A few months ago journalists were able to travel within=
the country to get news, now they can't walk down a street, can't speak En=
glish in public. Stringers have to give them information. Newsweek is pul=
ling out all together. Only journalists embedded with the military will st=
ay. It is far more dangerous than Vietnam was at its worst. There are som=
ething like two dozen landmines in a stretch of about 30 yards in some plac=
es (the actual number is verifiable from that link I sent). Over 700 Iraqi =
police were killed so far. People are faced with death threats and most l=
ikely death if they vote. Oil facilities are constantly sabotaged, car bom=
bs happen with such frequency they're not news anymore. Terrorists are run=
ning the show in Iraq. Our military is so ineffective over there we may as=
well be wearing clown costumes. I almost hope Kerry doesn't win, because =
Bush created this mess and he should be the one to take the hit on it. Thi=
s war is lost, but he's perpetuating the illusion/delusion that democracy i=
s on the march. Go figure.
In fairness to Bush, I recently learned (NY Review of Books, haven't read i=
t yet) that the inspiration and ideology of "they're going to treat us as l=
iberators" came from Bernard Lewis. He apparently convinced the administra=
tion we would be dodging flowers. I'm sure all that high quality Iraqi oil=
didn't hurt either in making the decision to invade, oil that is now unava=
ilable to us. Even if it's true that Bernard Lewis was their muse, it's ha=
rd to believe that Bush et al. are so stupid, so swollen with themselves, t=
hat they didn't even consider the possibility that maybe, just maybe, peopl=
e wouldn't roll over and play dead for the occupiers. =20
Andy
changing into fire-retardant pyjamas,
Paul=20
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