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So hermit, I take it you live in a bare one-room apartment with no TV, computer, or radio?
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Ok, I'm really tired of hearing that line from the laissez faire types. People do what they can. They provide for themselves, advance themselves, try to etch out a bit of a life for themselves. So I try to be a conscientious citizen; recycle, reuse and all that; I donate my time to causes and charity when I can. Is that enough? I'm a college student, working 60 hours a week to pay the bills so that one day, when I work my way up through the State Dept., I can make sure these things don't happen. Which, in the long-run is more noble than giving up all my posessions to help a few people out for a little bit. But of course, we live in a short-term, instant gratification society. So I wouldn't expect anyone to understand that. But why would I post this? Maybe I think it would be a better world if more people, especially those in the position to do something about it, actually cared.
What I DON'T do is watch my millions increase while people in less developed nations die from diseases that it is within my power to help them with - just by giving, or subsidizing, some drug. Look into the flap about Nevirapone in Africa, and the various generic variants that the patent holder is trying to keep off the market. And to the one who said that the pharmaceuticals donate to third world nations: yes, there is some of that. But the brevity of the diseases of the less developed world is staggering. A few tax write-offs aren't going to cut it.
All I'm saying with this is simple: You don't see too many pharmeceutical companies going belly-up these days. They're in the business of saving lives, so the industry should get some responsibility and actually do so.