Biotech-The Next Killer App
Posted by LK on 1/15/09 • Categorized as Featured, Health Care, Health and Science, The Economy and Markets
Biotech, and specifically genetic mapping, marking, and diagnostics, is the silver bullet.
Like Windows in the ’80’s and the web in the ’90’s, biotech will open the way to an expanding economy, in this case due to a massive reduction in health care costs. Early diagnosis of existing conditions and even earlier detection of an individual’s predispositions will preclude the expenditure of overwhelming amounts of resources (and it is overwhelming us) , whether in the form of time, energy, or cash.
A stitch in time will save 9. Trillion that is. An ounce of prevention will be worth a ton, not a pound, of cure.
Biotech as described above will free up the funds to make alternative energy conventional, which will then eliminate our dependence on foreign oil, as well as on foreigners who insist on remaining hostile, and are able to remain so because their ace in the hole is a blackgold hole in the ground.
Europe is even keener than we are on biotech, mostly because their leaders don’t have nearly as many evangelical special interest groups to cater to. Their diversion of resources from the old to the new world of health care, leaving them with an excess to spend on new forms of energy for the new century, will cut the cord that forces them to play nicely with Mad Vlad and his Russian gas station.
Our quality of life and the pace of our productivity, which increased exponentially through the use of the computer and the web. but is now showing signs of slowing, will pick up once again as more prevention means fewer sick days, more focused workers, and perhaps less emotional trauma from losses that come before their time.
Take a hefty chunk of the monies that had been going to Medicaid and Medicare, but would no longer need to, and use it for eduction and re-education, since the aging population will be healthier of body and clearer of mind. The wisdom gained by the older demographic can be passed along and used to pave the way for the young ‘uns.
So before we spend too much TARP, TARG, and other stimulus acronym funds on band-aids, let’s set aside a hundred billion or two for the next killer app.
editor’s note: this piece will be expanded upon, but LK found the concept important enough that he wanted to get the rough sketch out there post haste.
1 Comment
Leave a Response
Additional comments powered by BackType
I don’t see anything wrong with genetic mapping, it provides a wealth of info about us as human beings, diseases, etc…etc.. Problems arise when medias don’t know how to properly vulgarize science and you see headlines such as”We’ve found the gene that causes schizophrenia/aggression/homosexuality/ or whatever”