Sullivan gives a virus update, and has this to say about “BigPharma” (as it is known, in accordance with prophesy):
I guess I should add that these not atypical results show that although basic scientific research must be funded by government, the “evil” pharmaceutical companies are, in fact, among the most beneficent organizations in the history of mankind and their research in the last couple of decades will one day be recognized as the revolution it truly is. Yes, they’re motivated by profits. Duh. That’s the genius of capitalism - to harness human improvement to the always-reliable yoke of human greed. Long may those companies prosper. I owe them literally my life.
And he’s right, that is the genius of capitalism. Through the completely voluntary exchange of individuals, each really working only for his or her own benefit, a disease that 20 years ago would’ve killed inside of a few years is now controlled enough to allow Andrew Sullivan to continue his rantings on the internet.
In general it seems that those who rant against pharmaceutical firms really just don’t understand the alternatives. Our choices in this less than ideal world are not between “cheap drugs” and “expensive drugs”. No, our alternatives are “expensive drugs” and “no drugs”. I, for one, will take the expensive drugs over a stagnation of research and development. Pharmeceutical progress is one of the many things that make it better to be poor in 2005 than to be rich in 1905.
