[Williams]

You certainly have an interesting batch of theories, I especially liked the one about China will cure everything because there is no profit motive. Problem is, we have had communist China and the Soviet bloc for many decades and they are not known for medical cures. IF China gets up the wherewithal to cure anything, it will result from the rise of capitalism there, which puts you back at square one.

Communist countries are notorious for considering their people expendable, so there is no reason to believe the communist rulers will put workers' health above a good cruise missile and the chance to reduce over population.

You say we would have cured cancer in the old days - but we didn't. Still, you are correct that the profit motive can have an insidious effect. For example, the pharma industry will not go down certain research roads unless they can hope to turn a profit in X years. And I wouldn't completely put it past them to hide a cure that would render their market obsolete.

[sten]

I agree that China doesn't care about it's people, and therefore may not work on the solution. But it would only take the folks at the top to wake up one day and say "hey.. let's do something the US won't..." and then a cure may be in the mix.

Having witnessed the atrocious conditions of American military cancer facilities, I can tell you that it needs a LOT of work. It may even be better to shut down the VAs and push the money saved into insurance plans with commericial doctors. That way, the soldiers could get top notch care and the government could demand better pricing due to the volume.