[ExI] thiel goes south

[Giulio Prisco]

Good article:
http://reason.com/blog/2017/09/01/vaccines-peter-thiel-and-a-journalistic

On Sat, Sep 2, 2017 at 6:55 AM, Giulio Prisco <giulio at gmail.com> wrote:
> I agree with Giovanni. Let's show nanny-state regulators the mid
> finger and do financial business in Singapore and medical development
> in third world countries.
>
> Sorry if I sound too cynical, but I find it very easy to explain
> over-regulation. It is big business for the bureaucrats who can enrich
> themselves taking bribes. When a person does in it's called blackmail,
> when the mob does it it's called protection racket, when the
> government does it it's called regulation.
>
>
> On Fri, Sep 1, 2017 at 8:23 PM, Giovanni Santostasi
> <gsantostasi at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Too much regulation.
>> It is obvious.
>> Same thing happens with cryptomarkets.
>>
>> What are supposed to be well intentioned laws end up to do exactly the
>> opposite of what they laws were intended for. Unless the intention was
>> really different from what the appearances tell.
>>
>> So let's do financial business in Singapore and medical development in third
>> world countries. America will catch up eventually, in particular when
>> business is hurt.
>>
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Sep 1, 2017 at 9:38 AM, spike <spike66 at att.net> wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Big news story today about one of Peter Thiel’s ventures.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> http://www.thedailybeast.com/authorities-launch-investigation-of-unethical-offshore-herpes-trial-backed-by-peter-thiel
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> He wanted to test a vaccine for herpes, but in the USA, any such drug test
>>> costs billions to control and jump through all the government hoops.  This
>>> means that any treatment which cannot make back that initial investment can
>>> never be approved by the FDA.  So the protections put in place by the US
>>> government prevent new therapies and drugs.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Since many countries do not have anything analogous to the US FDA, they
>>> can just use the drugs developed and approved by the US.  The staggering
>>> expense of FDA approval prevents new medications all over the world.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Thiel was being himself: he went to Mexico and Australia where they don’t
>>> worry too much about these kinds of things and tested the vaccines without
>>> all the costly control and oversight required by the FDA.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The big deal is that they used test subjects in the Caribbean in St.
>>> Kitts, including (drum roll) American citizens.  (“GASP!” they gasped.)
>>> Thiel’s detractors are saying this is unethical (What is the unethical part?
>>> (Going around the American FDA or experimenting on actual (gasp!) Americans?
>>> (Would it be an ethical experiment had it disallowed US citizens?)))
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Thiel’s argument: the volunteers who took the vaccines already had herpes
>>> and did not have access to treatment.  So the worst that could happen is
>>> nothing.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> What happens if Thiel discovers this vaccine works, but declines to do FDA
>>> testing?  Then do we have a drug which can be used overseas but is illegal
>>> in the USA?  Would it then be kinda like cocaine except that it actually
>>> prevents disease instead of getting the user stoned?  Imagine if other
>>> investors recognize that there are markets for drugs outside the USA and
>>> that the approval process here has gone from difficult to absurd.  Then they
>>> follow suit and create new classes of drugs and therapies using populations
>>> willing to take chance.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Ethics hipsters among us, do offer your insights please.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> spike
>>>
>>>
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>>
>>
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