Hey smokin, since

[Blown 472]

you are with it, perhaps you could explain to me why the gubment refuses to do something about the cost of perscription drugs.

[canuck1]

Spice Boy gettin all serious and shit......

[mickeyfinn]

What would you have the "gubment" do? Take over the drug industry? It works this way. It may not be fair, but it is the way it works. I have several friends in the drug business (not the kind you are used to, but the legitimate ones).
Drug companies spend a LOT of money on R&D to invent new drugs. A lot of this is funded by the "gubment" but a lot of it is not. We are talking billions of dollars in order to bring a new drug to market. The companies have to make their R&D money back somehow, including that spent on drugs that don't pan out. Since the entire world does not happen to believe in our intellectual property rules and if the drug companies try to get the R&D money back world wide, little copycat businesses in other places begin to reverse engineer the drug and will manufacturer it at a fraction of what the developing company could sell the drug for. So, now they are forced to recoup their R&D costs strictly from us, the good ole U S of A. This makes our drugs cost more than they would anywhere else in the world. The fact that the company makes the same drug and sells it elsewhere in the world at very close to what actual cost to manufacture is the company can also manufacture the volume it needs to get the per pill cost down. This keeps out the reverse engineers for the most part, since they can not reverse engineer the drug and manufacture it for the price it is being sold at on the world marketplace. This volume production allows us to at least see that reduction in cost on the per pill price. Like I said, not fair, but no one ever said life was fair. The gubment could regulate the pricing of these new prescription drugs, but then the companies would really pare down the amount of R&D work they are doing and the drug market would begin to stagnate and no new drugs would come to market.
The only way to fix this is to greatly reduce the numbers of trials and other costs associated to bringing a new drug to market. These checks and balances are what helps to insure that the new drugs are safe to use, with a few exceptions. Once the patent runs out 20 years I believe then the drug is free to be produced in a generic condition.

[Rexone]

I for one have no problem with the price of drugs. One that costs almost a grand a month (without insurance) keeps me alive. Without the high buck R&D mentioned above this 5 year old drug would have probably never been produced or researched. Then I wouldn't be here entertaining you all with my overbearing moderator type posts. :)
I guess until you actually need one there's little appreciation for them and viewed simply as greed by the drug makers. Good stuff costs money. Someone has to pay or there won't be good stuff. It pretty much boils down to that.

[YeLLowBoaT]

My mother ( who lives with me, very bad lung probs) is On 35-43 Rx a month. Luckly her retirement( disapiblaty thru the state) covers her medical cost other then a 5- 15 co pays.( name barnd or generic) If she did not have medical INS she would be DEAD, The retail on her Rx is about 15k a month.
Some of these "wonder drugs" have some very nasty sideeffects. Infact about half of the Rxs my mother is on are to counter act the sideeffect of the drugs she needs to breath.
( just some back ground...)
I do beleave that some of the costs are relevent. I also think that some of the drugs are the high cost of Profit. Then there is also the money they waste designing drugs for "minor Issuses". Just open up any magaizne ( that does not have boobies in it) and you will see adds for every prob you could think of and more that you never heard of. Lots of them "work better" or so they say then thier older counter parts. Its also strange that when a Drug company comes out with a new product that is "better" then there old one they drop the old one... then new one is "better" its just 5x the price....When in fact all they did was increase the strength or add/ remove something. Still works the same, just cost more. It always seem to happend right around the time that other companys can start making generics....

[SmokinLowriderSS]

you are with it, perhaps you could explain to me why the gubment refuses to do something about the cost of perscription drugs.
Maybe you'd care to explain to me why the government doesn't do something about the high price demanded for coffee and Quick Trip stores?

[Rexone]

As long as we're bitching about high prices I'd like to know why the gubment doesn't demand the price of aluminum and stainless steel be reduced. Aluminum has gone up 30-40% in the last 6 mo. alone.
Oh and about gasoline and seedless grapes..... :cry: :rollside: :rollside:
They should also hit Starbuck's hard. Same coffee available at 711 for 1/5 the money. It's just not fair. :cry: :rollside:
I guess you could always move to a socialist country where everything's provided free.... :)

[SmokinLowriderSS]

I guess you could always move to a socialist country where everything's provided free.... :)
That would be the $0.15 PER GALLON gasoline in Venesuala.
'Course, if you have a nice boat, It'll instantly belong to El Presidente Chaves by decree.
Wasn't that Soviet Traban the neatest car? Almost anyone could get one in the old USSR, gov provided. :rolleyes:

[Blown 472]

[QUOTE=Rexone]As long as we're bitching about high prices I'd like to know why the gubment doesn't demand the price of aluminum and stainless steel be reduced. Aluminum has gone up 30-40% in the last 6 mo. alone. /QUOTE]
You can thank outsourcing for that, rock on wall mart and china.

[SmokinLowriderSS]

[QUOTE=Rexone]As long as we're bitching about high prices I'd like to know why the gubment doesn't demand the price of aluminum and stainless steel be reduced. Aluminum has gone up 30-40% in the last 6 mo. alone. /QUOTE]
You can thank outsourcing for that, rock on wall mart and china.
Nice claim you can't back up of course. :rolleyes:

[Blown 472]

Nice claim you can't back up of course. :rolleyes:
Yup, that is why steel prices are so high now too, and when I talk to the supplers about the cost they tell me that china is buying up everything they can. You just keep your head in the sand.

[Steve 1]

Yup, that is why steel prices are so high now too, and when I talk to the supplers about the cost they tell me that china is buying up everything they can. You just keep your head in the sand.
Did they tell you the Gubment/Bush wanted a quota on steel imports but the steel workers voted for Kerry!
How about; Fuel costs, hurricanes and raw material demand here and abroad are driving up prices among other things and China is buying all our scrap steel, which hurts our own scrap recycling here!
We still have a production of around 100 million tons and import 25% of our needs.
And I would be the first to agree that it is vital and should be protected.
Tell you what Bent Just write a letter to the steel workers union suggesting they should work for $.50 a day with no benefits and No safety program and PLEASE tell us the reply!

[schiada96]

The price we pay for steel cold rolled sheet has risen from .43 a pound to .49 a pound over the last year. 5052-H32 aluminum has gone from 1.53 to 2.01 a 2024T-3 2.25 to 2.68 6061-T6 2.12 to 2.55 a pound. It is a increase but not that bad. We use a lot of material here. Oh 304 stainless sheet 1.75 lb hasen't risen in more than a year.

[schiada96]

what a waste that was my 1000th post!

[SmokinLowriderSS]

Yup, that is why steel prices are so high now too, and when I talk to the supplers about the cost they tell me that china is buying up everything they can. You just keep your head in the sand.
Blown, you bitch about the trade deficit because we buy too much stuff from companies in foreign countries, especially Communist China (I'll make the distinction for you from the DRC).
You bitch about us selling things like steel, wood (it happens), oil (yep, that too), Big Macs, and other items TO foreign nations including China which help to offset the trade deficit mentioned above.
That's trying to play both sides against the center, which is assanine. Pick one and stick with it for a crusade.
Which one would make you happiest if we were to stop? The other one is going to continue.
PS, Steve is right again (Sux don't it blown). Union membership by and large (but by no means all union members) buy into, lock, stock, and barrell the liberal slant crap about how much the democrats care about their jobs and how they need to follow the union's advice which is nearly ALWAYS to vote democrat. Their being bedfellows is easilly proven.

[Old Texan]

Blown, far be it from me to suggest how you should spend your time, but if you would follow true business sites rather than far left blogs and diatribes, it may become apparent that the business climate in the US is not in the deep pit portrayed by the doom and gloom media.
Let's take the power industry for instance. Planned power generation from nuclear, coal, gas, and wind are being planned and being built at an all time high. LNG, Ethanol, and biofuel product plants are being built throughtout the US and Canada.
Our steel and pig iron industries are running full tilt with export business drivng them.
The automotive industry in the southern US is booming with new tier 1 suppliers and assembly plants being built as we speak. Check the Auburn/Opelika, AL Chamber of Commerce reports on how their economy is going. It's booming.
AL and SC for instance have lost a tremendous number of jobs in the textile industry but both states economic growth is phenomenal due to the new south auto industry and other higher tech business development.
Our economy is growing and prospering in spite of the whining from the left.

[Seadog]

Look at copper, if you want to see the real jumper in prices.

[centerhill condor]

and molybdenum... we've cut it from our list of components...
the rumor is that PRC uses sooo much stainless that the chemical components are going up quite a bit... the latest stats I heard was that PRC uses 1/4 of the world's production of concrete.
Then there's the PRC defense build up!
No small wonder why hi perf parts are so high!

[Blown 472]

Blown, far be it from me to suggest how you should spend your time, but if you would follow true business sites rather than far left blogs and diatribes, it may become apparent that the business climate in the US is not in the deep pit portrayed by the doom and gloom media.
Let's take the power industry for instance. Planned power generation from nuclear, coal, gas, and wind are being planned and being built at an all time high. LNG, Ethanol, and biofuel product plants are being built throughtout the US and Canada.
Our steel and pig iron industries are running full tilt with export business drivng them.
The automotive industry in the southern US is booming with new tier 1 suppliers and assembly plants being built as we speak. Check the Auburn/Opelika, AL Chamber of Commerce reports on how their economy is going. It's booming.
AL and SC for instance have lost a tremendous number of jobs in the textile industry but both states economic growth is phenomenal due to the new south auto industry and other higher tech business development.
Our economy is growing and prospering in spite of the whining from the left.
Didn't say anything about the economy just said that outsourcing is coming back around to bite us in the ass.

[Steve 1]

Didn't say anything about the economy just said that outsourcing is coming back around to bite us in the ass.
You JUST don't get it do you??

[Blown 472]

You JUST don't get it do you??
Perhaps you could splain it to me.
Oh and I see your boy is trying to skirt another issue by bringing up the gay marriage thing again.

[Old Texan]

Didn't say anything about the economy just said that outsourcing is coming back around to bite us in the ass.
Try to focus on each line and think through the statements. Now read it again: "AL and SC for instance have lost a tremendous number of jobs in the textile industry but both states economic growth is phenomenal due to the new south auto industry and other higher tech business development."
Since textiles moved out of country, that could be considered a form of outsourcing. Simple concept, we send off low paying jobs and create higher skilled ones at home. This corresponds with the National Unemployment stats. But I guess your sources don't look at those, huh Blown?

[SmokinLowriderSS]

Didn't say anything about the economy just said that outsourcing is coming back around to bite us in the ass.
Too bad you don't know what you are talking about.
Try this on for size.
The Boeing 787, being partly subcontracted to China ( Don't know if it's mainland or Tiawan as the press rerely specifies). They are subcontracting parts of THAT work out elsewhere. Care to guess where????
Wichita Kansas, location of about 6 or 7 aircraft manufacturers and a ton of support businesses/subcontractors.
I guess the Chinese should not have hired US eh??

[Blown 472]

Try to focus on each line and think through the statements. Now read it again: "AL and SC for instance have lost a tremendous number of jobs in the textile industry but both states economic growth is phenomenal due to the new south auto industry and other higher tech business development."
Since textiles moved out of country, that could be considered a form of outsourcing. Simple concept, we send off low paying jobs and create higher skilled ones at home. This corresponds with the National Unemployment stats. But I guess your sources don't look at those, huh Blown?
Duh what, since we had to cut a 700k po to cover the cost of copper wire for a project I guess this outsourcing is a good thing. Do you guys ever stop and think for yourselves?

[SmokinLowriderSS]

Do you guys ever stop and think for yourselves?
Yea, we do. To bad you don't ever RE-think anything you've found on a "the world is gonna end" blog someplace.

[Blown 472]

Yea, we do. To bad you don't ever RE-think anything you've found on a "the world is gonna end" blog someplace.
what is a blog?

[SmokinLowriderSS]

Yea ...................... Just like "what is a liberal"....... sheesh!

[Old Texan]

Duh what, since we had to cut a 700k po to cover the cost of copper wire for a project I guess this outsourcing is a good thing. Do you guys ever stop and think for yourselves?
Now it's time for your to 'splain what the H you're saying. Copper at 700k as opposed to what and caused by what?
Be specific, we're slow you know. :rolleyes:

[Old Texan]

Hey Blown check this out about Copper prices
http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/business/story.html?id=f274edc2-f9d2-4a87-b9f4-b840abac2f9d

[Blown 472]

Now it's time for your to 'splain what the H you're saying. Copper at 700k as opposed to what and caused by what?
Be specific, we're slow you know. :rolleyes:
We are installing a new machine line and that is the extra cost just for the wiring.

[SmokinLowriderSS]

We are installing a new machine line and that is the extra cost just for the wiring.
So since you had to watch your boss spend 700 large on wiring, what would he have spent a year ago, since you say it is sooooo much more?