For people who say they love life so much they sure have a funny way of showing it. Why is the GOP always fighting against science and propping up business over people?
Experimental blood substitutes raised the risk of heart attack and death, yet U.S. regulators allowed human testing to continue despite warning signs, says a scathing new report.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration fell short, the report contends, even as red flags popped up during studies by five biotech companies. Rules barred the agency from releasing company trade secrets, and that kept some information hidden and may have led to unnecessary heart attacks and deaths, wrote the authors, who are government scientists and consumer advocates.
"There shouldn't be secret science," said the lead author of the report, Dr. Charles Natanson, of the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center. Safety data need "to be made public expeditiously so science can build on the mistakes" of previous research, he said.
Pathetic. This is really supposed to be news...for the better? If you listened to Republicans talk you would think they actually liked the free market but if you believed them, you would be sadly mistaken.
Qwest Communications International Inc. on Thursday introduced DSL plans with faster download speeds, including one that is the fastest DSL service from a major U.S. phone company.
Qwest is charging $104.99 per month for a download speed of 20 megabits per second. For 12 mbps, it is charging $51.99 per month. The prices are $5 lower when combined with local phone service.
Compare this "great" offer to what I just signed in France, which we all know hates choice and hates the free market, according to the GOP. For €53 per month I receive a 100 mbps internet connection plus phone calls throughout Europe and North America plus TV channels. In local terms for local buyers one euro is one dollar but even with the terrible exchange rate this is a steal compared to the business friendly market in the US. The Republicans only care about giving business everything they want, always at the expense of consumers. It's hard to believe the GOP could do so much damage to the previously competitive US market.
Democrats are taking action and demanding basics such as mandatory food recalls by government and not food producers but the GOP remains happy with the old system despite countless food issues, sickness and even death. Of course food safety is going to cost money but so do hospital charges when people are sick.
The GOP and their do-nothing allies in business will always complain about costs but if they can't afford $2000 per site, there's a serious problem with their business model. Are they suggesting then that it's OK for thousands of American individuals to spend this kind of money at the hospital when they are rushed for salmonella or e.coli sickness? This is what they are suggesting and with the recession plus skyrocketing health care costs, the GOP is simply asking for too much out of average Americans.
In addition to the mandatory FDA recall powers, Congresswoman DeGette continues to push for traceability so that instead of shutting down all producers (such as spinach farmers) consumers and business alike will know where there are problems. Again, this seems like practical, common sense policy which is good news for everyone.
Shouldn't consumers be able to trust the food they are buying and shouldn't business want to avoid being dragged down because of the failure of other businesses? The only concern as the linked headline suggests, is whether business and the GOP will help consumers or ignore them, yet again.
They actually care about the rule of law, oddly enough. And when I say "old fashioned" I of course mean, pre-Bush.
Internet service providers must not release personal information about users in New Jersey without a valid subpoena, even to police, the state's highest court ruled Monday.
New Jersey's Supreme Court found that the state's constitution gives greater protection against unreasonable searches and seizures than the U.S. Constitution.
The court ruled that Internet providers should not disclose private information to anyone without a subpoena.
Someone really needs to tell the US airline industry to stick it. They consistently offer some of the worst service in the world, throw charges on to the customer at every corner, pay management excessive salaries for terrible products, jam customers in to smaller and smaller spaces, receive billions in taxpayer handouts yet it's never enough. Now it's the fault of the FAA for insisting that the US airline industry actually maintains their planes properly instead of providing the maintenance quality usually expected in the developing world. Sorry that Congress is forcing the FAA to finally step up and demand improvements, but if the airline industry doesn't like it, get out of business.
For anyone that flies on a regular basis, do we really want the airline industry telling us what level of maintenance is enough? This is an industry that is struggling with high fuel costs and cutting corners. Maybe others are comfortable with this overpaid bunch of executives calling the shots with safety but considering how well self-regulation has worked in the past across multiple industries, thanks but no thanks. They can go Cheney themselves.
Imagine that. This is yet another example of how the Bush/GOP-FDA has sided with business over consumers. They don't care if humans suffer the consequences as long as business gets what it wants. Having an effective FDA working for everyone costs money but there are just too many ongoing problems for consumers as a result of GOP hacking. Isn't it time we start considering individuals instead of just business?
A chemical in some plastic food and drink packaging including baby bottles may be tied to early puberty and prostate and breast cancer, the U.S. government said on Tuesday.
Based on draft findings by the National Toxicology Program, part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, senior congressional Democrats asked the Food and Drug Administration to reconsider its view that the chemical bisphenol A is safe in products for use by infants and children.
It's hard not to pass on at least some of the blame to the Bush administration and GOP who have systematically cut funding and resources to the bone. In addition, they've also made it a point to let industry "self regulate" instead of providing the oversight that Americans want and need. People expect business to get away with whatever they can and yes, they do exactly that. Even if information was passed to the FDA it's hard to see them even giving a damn because that might slow business. Merck is in a world of trouble but the Bush-FDA is certainly not looking very competent either. For all of the talk about how precious human life is by the GOP they sure don't treat it that way in the Bush-FDA.
To say that Americans detest the airline industry would be a mild understatement. Remember that it was the GOP who bailed this lovely bunch out with billions in taxpayer dollars only a few years ago and what did the US receive for it's investment? Massive executive salaries, salary cutbacks from everyone else, less on time, higher costs to fly, increasingly cramped spaces and an industry that doesn't really give a damn about what consumers think.
As we bail out the newest bunch of freeloading money wasters on Wall Street, think about the airline bailout. Just as business always asks "what's in it for me?" it's high time we ask the same question to business. The bailout model really needs to change.
When Republicans talk about "free market" they hope that those listening believe in the Easter Bunny, because it's completely false. What they really mean is a jury-rigged system where their friends get to avoid competition but in public, they talk about competition and the benefits of competition. (Think ATT and it's re-consolidation in recent years.) More proof that Republicans have trashed our system, driving up costs compared to increased competition in Europe, where costs have gone down. Broadband internet has taken off across Europe, leaving the US in its wake. All the Republicans can offer is snide remarks about "Old Europe" but it's their own policies that are old and stuffy.
“We have four countries that are world leaders — Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands and Finland,” said Viviane Reding, the European telecommunications commissioner. “We have eight countries which have higher penetration rates than the U.S. and Japan. We are not doing badly at all.”
In addition to the three Nordic countries and the Netherlands, four others — Britain, Belgium, Luxembourg and France — had surpassed the United States by July 2007. By January 2008, Germany had also done so.
A security breach at an East Coast supermarket chain exposed 4.2 million credit and debit card numbers and led to 1,800 cases of fraud, the Hannaford Bros. grocery chain announced Monday.
If the Federal Communications Commission were a cop on the beat, congressional watchdogs contend, it would have a lousy conviction record. They find that most of the government agency's investigations fail to result in any enforcement.
According to a report released on Thursday by the General Accountability Office, only about 9% of the completed investigations resulted in enforcement action, while 83% resulted in no enforcement.
In case you are wondering who is on the front line of protecting the American food source, here's a perfect example of why it all needs to change. In recent weeks we've watched clueless CEOs deliver everything from sorry excuses to shoulder shrugs when explaining why Americans have become sick and even died because of food production problems. Notice the quick "hot under the collar" moment shortly into the video as the slaughterhouse executive is asked whether he ordered a recall in 2005 after a previous problem.
All of us would like Congress to do more in many areas and we get frustrated but what jumps out for me is that none of this would have happened under a GOP Congress. Congresswoman DeGette and her Democratic colleagues are doing exactly what we want Congress to do. The Republicans were fine with letting people like this exec produce potentially dangerous if not illegal products. The GOP was always so focused on how they could help characters like this instead of American families. Even now as we watch the economy go down because of bad Republican policies, think about how a Republican Congress would have handled this meltdown. Would I like to see more from Democrats? Of course. It seems obvious that we need more DeGettes and fewer Steve Mendells and friendly Republicans shaping our future.
As if it's not bad enough that Big Pharma has a compliant FDA that allows anything that fails to kill people, immediately, at least. Big Pharma is supposed to publish test results though they don't unless they are the results they want published. Big Pharma is supposed to stay away from patients but again, they dive right into patient visits to sell their snake oil of the month. Now despite jury rigging the system to their benefit in almost every possible way, that's not enough. Pfizer is now suing the New England Journal of Medicine to reveal their confidential reviewers. Pfizer wants to break the long respected confidential peer review process that has helped raise questions when others were afraid to speak out.
The US courts are due to rule on this case later in the week and despite the obvious blow to confidential peer review, this also once again shows that it's not just consumers who are launching lawsuits, driving up costs. What about the countless lawsuits Big Pharma initiates? How much will this end up costing everyone - including possible lives - if confidential reviews are struck down and a drug kills people? Perhaps Big Pharma ought to move back into the business of helping people instead of only helping their bottom line.
The sooner, the better. The same needs to be done elsewhere because in one department after another, there's much too much concern for what industry wants without any consideration for consumers. Pick any industry and it's always the same. The Republicans have been more than content to have this system in place but thankfully Democrats are finally standing up and taking action. Well done by Congressman James Oberstar who is chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
Oberstar also said he believes similar violations may have occurred involving other airlines, but that those who have such evidence are afraid to come forward.
"Complacency has likely set in to the highest levels of FAA management," the Minnesota Democrat said in a Capitol Hill news conference. "I think we have seen the pendulum swing away from vigorous enforcement of compliance toward a carrier-favorable, cozy relationship with the airlines."
This in response to deaths and an inability to prosecute GlaxoSmithKline in relation to those deaths allegedly linked to the GSK drugs because there were no specific laws related to the alleged actions by the company to hide test results. Interesting how those laws work in the favor of such companies though it's good to see the UK cracking down. My only caution is that ethics have little to do with this industry so until you speak to the almighty bottom dollar profit, they may not listen.
GSK could not be prosecuted for concealing results which proved the antidepressant Seroxat caused children to become suicidal because the law only obliges companies to hand over safety data from trials when drugs are being licensed. That loophole will now be closed.
Woods said yesterday he could not rule out the possibility that other companies were sitting on unpublished data that could cause them commercial damage.
"I think there is a tension between marketing considerations and the ethical dimension of making health products," he said. "We have to look again at that. The pharmaceutical industry has to look again at that. You could even say there is a positive disincentive to explore the data as fully as it could be explored."
The "free market" Republican program comes back to bite America in the ass, exactly as predicted. Nice. Like most Americans I grew up understanding that the free market meant natural market forces would intervene to impact prices. In the Republican model, this means setting up a comfy sofa with lots of cushy pillows for business and tying two hands behind the back of consumers. Maybe it's his own free market experience of dad using his influence to gain admission into Yale and Harvard that has led him and the Republicans to mistakenly believe that Big Pharma would be reasonable or that somehow the "market" would be involved. Then again maybe AARP who supported Bush at election time (which helped tip the balance) was just plain stupid and believed Bush would do the right thing. There is no precedent for Big Pharma doing the right thing.
Drug makers increased their prices last year by an average of 7.4 percent for brand-name medicines most commonly prescribed to the elderly, according to the advocacy group AARP.
The increase was about 2.5 times overall inflation, continuing a long-standing trend.
Yesterday the bank reported impressive profits for 2007 despite writing down $17 billion of bad (subprime) debt. Today, the story is a bit different though all too common. Bank fees have been receiving special attention in the UK lately and now the issue is starting to be raised in the US as well. The banks overcharge because they can so easily get away with it. When the money was flowing, no one paid much attention but now that times are tightening up, $600 million just might be enough to make governments move. Perhaps.
The industry self-regulation game has been played and has failed. The trust-but-verify system implemented by the GOP no longer includes trust, nor do they have the budget to verify. Industry and their GOP lapdogs in Congress are completely uninterested in protecting the food source for Americans. Their policy is to churn out product as quickly as possible for as little as possible all with the understanding that the Republicans have stripped resources from the FDA, making it impossible to provide acceptable levels of monitoring.
Industry calls the downer cow video an anomaly though that doesn't explain the all too regular recalls across the factory food industry, does it? Industry knows that it has gamed the system and was not planning on Democrats stepping up pressure or dragging industry in front of Congress to explain their actions. At a very minimum we need what Congresswoman DeGette is asking for in Congress, which is to allow the US government to issue food recalls. Food safety is much too serious to be left to self-regulation.
It's refreshing to hear a voice of reason on such a critical issue Congresswoman DeGette may finally be helping Congress turn the corner on food safety. The current system has been cracking for a long time courtesy of the GOP "let industry self regulate" programs. Even the USDA and FDA are unable to make food recalls and instead, rely on the violators themselves to do this. Amazing, isn't it? To compound the problem, the Bush administration has equipped those federal agencies with industry people who are more interested in letting business do as they please rather than think of consumers. Budgets have been slashed, regulation has disappeared and the problem gets worse every year despite big talk by industry and their friends in the GOP.
DeGette's call for federal mandatory recall authority is the right thing to do for painfully obvious reasons. While I don't see the current administration showing any interest in taking action even if they did have the authority, we are only months away from a new administration that hopefully will care about consumers. The Big Food execs will continue to tell everyone that they are in control but history tells us something different. Providing regulation authority is a great first step.
Considering the widespread use of anti-depressants this is big news. As a person who tries to do just about anything to avoid pharmaceuticals (I don't react well to them) I wonder if the medical community will start promoting alternative treatments such as diet change and other natural remedies. The problem, according to the pharma industry, is that it is difficult to run tests on alternative treatments and have mathematical results as you can with modern medicine. Perhaps. I also believe that all too often Big Pharma cherry picks data or entire studies, as this new report suggests. One could easily view this as falsely overcharging insurance companies and consumers and another reason why health care is so expensive.
Prozac, the bestselling antidepressant taken by 40 million people worldwide, does not work and nor do similar drugs in the same class, according to a major review released today.
The study examined all available data on the drugs, including results from clinical trials that the manufacturers chose not to publish at the time. The trials compared the effect on patients taking the drugs with those given a placebo or sugar pill.
When all the data was pulled together, it appeared that patients had improved - but those on placebo improved just as much as those on the drugs.
