Slashdot Mirror
Dr. Frances Kelsey, Who Saved American Babies From Thalidomide, Dies At 101
circletimessquare writes: Plenty of regulations are bad (some because big business corrupts them) but the simple truth is modern society cannot function without effective government regulation. It keeps are food safe, our rivers clean, and our economy healthy. Passing away at age 101 Friday was a woman who personified this lesson. In 1960 the F.D.A. tasked Dr. Frances Kelsey with evaluating a drug used in Europe for treating morning sickness. She noticed something troubling, and asked the manufacturer William S. Merrell Co. for more data. "Thus began a fateful test of wills. Merrell responded. Dr. Kelsey wanted more. Merrell complained to Dr. Kelsey's bosses, calling her a petty bureaucrat. She persisted. On it went. But by late 1961, the terrible evidence was pouring in. The drug — better known by its generic name, thalidomide — was causing thousands of babies in Europe, Britain, Canada and the Middle East to be born with flipperlike arms and legs and other defects." Without Dr. Kelsey's scientific and regulatory persistence in the face of mindless greed, thousands of Americans would have suffered a horrible fate.
I'm not implying it, I'm saying it. When I look at the US and then at most of (socialist) Europe, I can't really say with a straight face that I think our "socialist" ways are bad.
The key is moderation. Unfettered capitalism is as devastating as a rigidly planned economy.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
The real thing that should have happened is everyone involved should have been tried and executed. That would be a better deterrent than some supposed market force that doesn't really work since all these assholes have golden parachutes. Every single person behind covering up the continuing damage, not the initial mistake but the coverup once it was clear what was happening is a hideous monster and should be permanently removed from society. The real reason people keep doing this evil shit is that it pays and society should make it unmistakably clear that we wont tolerate it.
I would say RFA completely invalidates your point. Governments did act relatively quickly and didn't try to shield the producers.
By comparison, the free-market+lawsuits route was used for asbestos, tobacco, and leaded gasoline. In all three cases, eventually the government had to step in, after decades of inaction and of legal routes going nowhere and making little or no difference.
If something is shown to be harmful, the government has a right to step in. We shouldn't have to wait for lawsuits - which can take decades, which address only specific issues, which can cost less to the manufacturers than ending the businesses that cause the problems, which can fail for reasons entirely unrelated to the harm causes to the victims - to somehow shut down the worst offenders.
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.