On March 5, in London, GalaxoSmithKline (GSK) CEO Sir Martin Locke spoke to an invited gathering
of international GSK executives and research directors.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The issue of children as test subjects in drug and vaccine trials has become a problem for us.
It is a problem of perception.
We do drug studies so we can market new products. The safety of these drugs, in the final analysis, is merely a convenient point of attack for our opponents. We live in a dangerous world, and there is nothing we can do to change that fact.
While the public and press may whine about children who fall ill or die in clinical trials, we do not share their concern. We are spending between 75 and 200 million dollars to develop a new medicine. Once we are embarked on that road, we cannot allow distractions to turn us from our course.
We spend such enormous sums for one reason: it gives us perceived legitimacy. Who would dare question our motives?
Whether a drug performs up to expectations is a matter for regulatory agencies of government.
We present our best face to these agencies.
What studies we choose to publish; what studies we bury; what numbers we offer; what changes we make; what omissions; what adverse events we downplay or conceal; what public statements we issue; what fines we pay; what chances we take; what toxicities we induce; what hypotheses we assert; what advertising fees we allot---all of this is directed at one and only one objective. Sales. We are a sales organization. That is how we pay the freight. That is how we live. That is how we can live.
Am I making myself clear?
Since the dawn of modern civilization, no commercial organization of any size has thrived without developing a singular and ruthless attitude. The rules of society have never applied to such organizations.
I am talking here about what it takes to survive. And I assume you are all interested in that desirable condition.
Do not be swayed by the so-called humanitarian concerns of the press. They have their job to do. They feed the eager maw of the increasingly angry and callow public. We have our job to do. We are all in a struggle to endure.
This is competition. Who will win?
Are we prepared to pull back our horns because a few hundred or a few thousand children are dying? Do we draw the line somewhere? Do we say we will all turn in our badges if thirty thousand children die? Is that the dividing line?
Are we in the business of making fine ethical distinctions, or are we in the business of occupying greater territory?
Imagine, for a moment, that every single drug we sell is dangerous. They all produce serious symptoms. Generally, these symptoms are diagnosed as new and unrelated illnesses. How have we come to such a positive plateau? How did such a boon occur? Do you think it is an accident? Do you think it happened overnight? Decades of hard work have gone into creating such magnificent cover. Men and women have given their careers to establish our hegemony. Are we going to go soft and give it all up now?
I walk our halls and I see people who are in a state of fear. They are literally waiting for reprisals. They are waiting for the ax to fall. Who is going to sue us now? Who is going to investigate our practices? Are you one of those frightened people? Do you want to fall by the wayside? Is your moment of surrender coming?
There was a time when England found a way to force the Chinese population, against their wishes, to buy and consume opium. Do you remember your history? Do you think anything has changed?
We are at helm of the ship. We have the fleet. Are we going to turn around and go home just as we are entering the harbors?
I want to hear nothing about safety issues. I want to see strong and resolute faces. I want to see optimism. I want to see positive outcomes from clinical trials.
My own mother had to have two hip replacements because of prednisone damage. My cousin tried to commit suicide after a reaction to Paxil. One of my closest friends from university died as a direct result of chemotherapy. My sister’s son was ravaged by AZT. Do you see me wavering? Do you see me wanting to resign my commission?
We have all been close to such tragedies. It is part of life. People die for many reasons. We are still here. We are the living, and to us falls the responsibility to carry on.
Do you want history to look back at you and say the empire crumbled under your charge? That you were the ones who became weak and gave in to those who had already fallen? Do you want to be the deserters?
I will not take on that burden. I will not sign my name to that declaration. I will not go down on the list of traitors. And as your leader, I am here to see that you do not meet that fate, either. By whatever means, I will do my job. And you will do yours as well.
Rulers never submit to the rabble.
Jon Rappoport is the author of the 1988 book, AIDS INC.,
Scandal of the Century.
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