Posted by
Frigglesnitz on Saturday, February 23, 2008 11:31:31 AM
The threat of being sued out of business is very real.
Do you remember the Topps company (right here in the U.S.)? It made hamburgers sold all over the place which were found to have been tainted.
Topps is no longer in business. The fact that they allowed a situation to exist that caused their hamburgers to be tainted was a very good reason for them not now to be in business. I have no idea if they were sued out of business or if they simply folded by reason of the fact that they could no longer sell their products.
The advantages of relocating to a "free zone" are certainly tangible; the non-necessity of the "trifles" like Social Security taxes and cheap labor are likely quite enticing. As you said, if if were not so, no corporation would go anywhere else to set up shop. Safety concerns should be paramount to them, however.
With respect to your "corporate write-off," with all due respect I believe we're comparing apples and watermelons.
While not having actual facts in front of me -- I admit it -- I doubt seriously that a corporation having nothing to do with prescription drugs or the healthcare industry can get away with advertising write-offs and R&D write-offs and manufacturing write-offs -- even when the drug manufacturer is manufacturing offshore and his R&D is helped along very nicely by the taxpayer.
I also agree with you that the FDA has a huge burden. It's a burden they cannot meet. If you don't believe it, please read the 1/29/08 GAO testimony by Marcia Crosse, Director, Health Care, before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Inestigations, Committee on Energy and Commerce, House of Representatives. It's GAO-08-428T.
The fact that the FDA can't meet that burden is unacceptable to me and should be to everybody. After all, we're paying them to do so, and they've asked for kazillions more for the '09 budget.
Where does that money come from? Trees? Don't we wish.