Deadly avian flu. Over the last week, that phrase or one like it has made a splash in headlines and on the evening news. The intent is to create, if not panic, then deep concern about an impending, worldwide wave of disease. A pandemic. The Spanish flu of 1918 that killed tens of millions is often held up to us as a stark reminder of how serious this threat is. [Read more…]
The Baltimore Sun carried an article last week titled “Learning the hard lessons of Vioxx: All drugs pose risks, experts warn, and newest products demand extra caution.”
The gist of the article is that, despite what you might think the FDA is supposed to be doing regarding drug safety, you’re pretty much on your own. There’s a concept in economics for this: caveat emptor. Buyer beware. [Read more…]
Last Friday the San Francisco Chronicle carried a front page, above the fold article about Google, the Internet search provider offering to install wireless broadband Internet service (WiFi for short) for all of San Francisco for free. The offer didn’t come out of the blue. It was in response to the first phase of the City of San Francisco’s TechConnect program, a program intended to provide WiFi access anywhere in the city. [Read more…]
