Justice is a beautiful thing isn't it?

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The drug giant Merck has been held liable by a Texas jury in the first lawsuit involving it's former blockbuster pain killer drug Vioxx. Plaintiff Carol Ernst has been awarded a staggering $253 million in damages!

Let us all pause for a long moment and digest that huge figure, whilst bathing in the beauty of justice, before our bubble bursts in the knowledge that the amount, which largely consists of punitive damages, will be substantially reduced according to Texas law. Oh well, the moment was good while it lasted...

However if it is indeed true, as the Plaintiff's lawyer Mark Lanier alleges, that Merck concealed information about the health risks associated with the drug in order to protect sales, the allegations are serious indeed. But serious to the tune of $253 million, and with the bad omen of another four thousand lawsuits pending, on a sure path to bankruptcy for Merck, perhaps not. There are not enough pharmaceutical giants out there to carry us through the perills of the health hazzards ahead. Oh well..... as Mark Lanier said to a reporter following the verdict: "Justice is a beautiful thing, isn't it?"

Famous last words of the social conservative trial attorney, who according to the New York Times today, is contemplating a 2008 Texas Senate run. Really? Hasn't he learned yet that the American political system resists even modest efforts at reform and accountability. Or was that the 'legal' system, I always get the two confused... Still, he'll feel right at home, amidst the beauty of it all.

Comments

[Alexandra]

You are quite right Semanticleo, an astute and thoughtful observation. But life, as you well know, is full of reasons to quote a statement like yours! I always keep an open mind, and justice of all subjects is dear to my heart. Welcome, and see you again, but as you quite rightly said in "a less hostile, and gender-free environment", and yes I am more liberal in my train of thought than I appear to be at first glance! LOL!!!!

[Semanticleo]

This is a conservative position? All is not what it appears to be