Why all medical research should be publicly funded

Much so-called "medical research" is simply corporate PR. Or, it if is not that, it is at least biased - and is therefore not really scientific.

For a good explanation of why this is so, see the article, "Medical researchers face conflicts of interest", at: http://www.reuters.com/article/scienceNews/idUSTRE5391L820090413

The only solution, as I have argued elsewhere, is that all medical and other fundamental research should be publicly funded, with all resulting IP in the public realm, along with much more real competition at the level of medicines and other products and applications.

Scientific research is at present driven either by defence considerations (which we can let pass for the present) or simply by what will make money. And what makes most money is cures for the diseases of the rich. That is why there is so little research into the diseases that affect most people.

What should drive medical and other scientific research is the public interest - and that will not happen unless research is exclusively publicly funded.

How do we prevent that from ending up in a government monopoly? By ensuring that anyone and everyone is free to use the resulting intellectual property to make any and all applications, products, medicines, et al - which then have to compete freely in the marketplace.