You've got that right, I am virulently pro science and pro growth for pharmaceutical research, etc. So many people have no idea how much money and time go into developing new drugs. Drugs have gotten better and better and the opposition to the companies have gotten louder and louder, go figure. I might be taking a position with a company that helps promote new drugs which have gotten to stage 3 in development. You work with the leading doctors in the field and science to determine the benefits and detriments of the drugs and comparison to similar drugs, etc. I would like to specialize in one of the last great frontiers in science and medicine, the human brain. Before anti-depressants etc. many lived horrible lives before these drugs were developed. Most people who are "homeless" are struggling with undiagnosed mental problems. I'm interested in doing a study with some of these people and seeing how many who have mental issues can become productive members of society with the proper medication.
It is absolutely marvelous to see the suffering modern pharmaceuticals have alleviated -- all the way from Pepcid for tummyaches and Claritin for sniffles up to the major psychiatric drugs. My son has severe ADHD (he's not one of the kids in the penumbra whose teachers THINK he has it) and he can actually function in school with the help of one of the new non-amphetamine medications. My husband was a martyr to asthma - nothing really worked - until the new Advair inhaler came out. Now he can run with the dogs, ride his bicycle, and practice aikido without fear of bringing on an attack. He still carries his old inhaler "just in case" but he's never needed it. It's like a miracle!
And you're right - the human brain is the great frontier right now. I have friends who would be dead if it weren't for anti-depressants . . . I know sometimes they're misused and have serious side-effects, but people forget the great benefits. Like folks railing against vaccinations who don't remember the polio or measles epidemics and all the poor kids born deaf or blind because of German measles . . .