Pharmaceutical research
Re: “How beneficial is corporate role in medical research?” Feb. 25 Perspective article.
Contrary to Mark Yarborough’s claims, America’s pharmaceutical companies invest far more on research and development than on promotion.
In 2005 alone, pharmaceutical companies spent more than $51.3 billion on R&D for potentially life-saving medicines, versus just over $11.4 billion on marketing and promotion activities, which include direct-to-consumer and medical-journal advertising as well as outreach to doctors, hospitals and pharmacies.
This extensive R&D investment – nearly double the National Institutes of Health’s entire operating budget for this fiscal year – is a major reason why America leads the world in developing new cures and treatments and why American patients often gain access to new medicines well before patients in other countries.
Recent research from Columbia University shows that new medicines accounted for 40 percent of the two- year gain in life expectancy achieved in more than 50 countries from 1986 to 2000. And since the debut of effective medicine cocktails, the number of AIDS-related deaths in the U.S. dropped by 70 percent in the past decade.
How can you possibly measure what this means for patients and their families in dollars and cents?
Ken Johnson, Senior Vice President, Communications & Public Affairs, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, Washington, D.C.
Colo. judicial retention
Letter-writer Chris Cousineau (Feb. 25 Open Forum) states that the reason Colorado’s judges have such a high retention rate is that the voters are satisfied with them. The only thing I can say in response is to ask Mr. Cousineau if he remembers which judges were up for retention. What were their good points and what were their bad points? What cases did they decide, and how did they impact the interpretation of the law? I don’t think Mr. Cousineau can answer those questions, but even if he could, I know that most Colorado voters couldn’t. Retention remains so high because most people don’t know who is running in the first place or where they stand. You really can’t take a position against something that you aren’t informed about. Does that mean John Andrews is right? Maybe yes and maybe no. But saying that the judges are good because they keep getting retained is like saying anybody who isn’t fired is a model employee. There’s a whole lot of room between employee of the month and out on the streets with no job.
John Meyer, Pueblo
Which one is Goliath?
Re: “Focus on the Family foes have work cut out,” Feb. 25 Cindy Rodríguez column.
In her column, Cindy Rodríguez uses the biblical analogy of David and Goliath: Focus on the Family is Goliath and the gay-rights organizations are David. Doesn’t she have the analogy mixed up? The movie industry (“Brokeback Mountain”), the courts (overturning Amendment 2, mandating civil unions) and the media (such as her column) are the giants. Focus on the Family is a small voice for life-long, monogamous heterosexual union or celibacy. Even with such backing, Soulforce and others promoting homosexuality do not want acceptance but approval. They will use any measure to justify their ends, including disrupting a ministry by [allegedly] trespassing illegally. With the backing of the powerful media, the giants of homosexuality who put themselves in the victim role will not abide by any small dissent.
J.D. Moyers, Centennial
Training future workers
Re: “Training future workers,” Feb. 25 Perspective article.
Better training, more funding and higher starting salaries for scientific, technical and engineering jobs may not be enough to entice smart people into these fields. As former geologist John Hickenlooper will tell you, the unemployment risk for many technical occupations is relatively high.
Like investors, workers seek to maximize rewards while minimizing risks when deciding where to devote their efforts in our economy. Unlike investors, workers cannot diversify their risk by maintaining a “portfolio” of careers: We generally pursue one at a time. Investors gauge a stock’s risk by measuring its volatility. Similarly, some occupations feature higher fluctuations in unemployment rates than others. Between 2000 and 2005, for example, government data show that unemployment fluctuations for engineering and computer occupations were between six and seven times greater than those for legal occupations and more than 400 times greater than those for health care occupations.
Shifts in government spending priorities, economic conditions and technological innovations have led to abrupt unemployment and skills obsolescence for many technically trained professionals.
The end of NASA’s moon program and the 1980s energy bust are just two examples that hit Colorado hard in the past.
If we want to attract more workers into science and engineering careers, we must focus on the risks as well as the rewards associated with such careers.
Brian Kirk, Englewood
Colo. Iraq resolution
Re: “Iraq-troop resolution,” March 1 legislative brief.
Whereas state Sen. Ron Tupa and his ilk believe they know more about the Iraq war than the experts who are running it; and whereas Mr. Tupa and his ilk do not recognize a lot of facts about this war; and whereas Mr. Tupa, et al, do not understand that if we do not fight terrorism in the Middle East we will be fighting it here in America; and whereas Mr. Tupa, et al, continue to use the war for political gain, be it resolved that this confirms our opinion that Mr. Tupa, et al, are exceedingly ignorant and should keep quiet.
Alan Culpin, Denver
The arts in Denver schools
Re: “Elite or elitist?” Feb. 25 news story.
The Denver School of the Arts student body more closely reflects the true population of Denver than many other schools in the district. According to the 2000 Census, as posted on the Piton Foundation’s website, only 14.3 percent of Denver’s population lives in poverty and 51.9 percent of the population is white.
In the article with the inflammatory headline “Elite or elitist?” The Denver Post implies that because the other schools in Denver Public Schools have 65 percent of the students coming from impoverished homes and 76 percent of students are minorities, then DSA must be doing something wrong by serving the true population of Denver’s kids.
I contend the other DPS schools should face scrutiny and disdain for not recruiting and adequately serving the middle-class students who make up the majority of Denver’s population. For years, middle-class families have been shoved out of their local schools due to lack of adequate academic rigor while the truly elite have been dismantling funding for public education. Your article pits the middle class against the poor, when these groups should unite for a better future for all, including the elite.
Elisa Cohen, Denver
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I am a Denver resident and parent of two girls, one who attended the Denver School of the Arts and one who is currently there. I am disheartened by the tone of this article characterizing one of Denver’s premiere public schools as underserving its population. Missing from the article is the fact that DPS has cut or diminished its arts programs city-wide, creating a loss of opportunity for students to experience and develop an interest in the arts. Where is the raw material and background expected to come from for those who cannot afford the luxury of private lessons?
Also missing is the fact that one has to maintain a 2.5 grade point average to stay in the school. Potential, desire and work are requirements that contribute to the school’s standing academically.
DSA would love to increase its population, and as all schools within the system, budget constraints do not allow for the necessary increase in staff. I am tired of the education system and the press neglecting and undermining the children who have great potential by taking the inflammatory stance that those who wish to nurture them are elitist.
Lisa Scribner, Denver
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Thank you for your article on the Denver School of Arts. It presented the uniqueness of the school and the conflicts regarding admissions in a personable, balanced and articulate way. My daughter is a cello player at DSA, and her artistic temperament and talent have been wonderfully enhanced through the teaching, culture and peers there. The Post’s article highlights the need for greater opportunities in arts education for DPS students. I hope that such attention will jump-start a drive to open or convert more schools to a DSA model.
Drew Loizeaux, Denver
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The Post’s feature on the Denver School of the Arts showed that it is indeed a fine institution and a gem in the Denver Public Schools system. Perhaps the school’s population doesn’t reflect the ethnic and economic demographics of the Denver Public Schools, but it does reflect the talents and drive of students who will have a competitive edge in real-world arts. The problem is that students from families who can’t afford the private lessons and related support can’t compete with those who do. However, it is no secret that an emphasis on equality, rather than excellence, will only dilute the end product and diminish the opportunity for all students in the school.
So rather than whining about those inequalities, which are certainly a reality, why not provide the private lessons, ballet shoes, rehearsal pianos, transportation, and all the other resources provided by parents of means, to low-income students who can be identified as having the interest and the talent? Yes, it would cost a lot of money and require many volunteer hours, but the wealth is here to support it, and the investment would yield a much greater return than, say, a bullish stock market. Even the children who persevere with the lessons and rehearsals but don’t make the DSA cut would receive a gift that would reap positive results in other areas of their lives.
Margerie Hicks, Denver
As a Denver resident and parent of a DPS student, I am troubled to learn that Denver residents are being turned away from the school that they are paying for in favor of students who do not live here. The role of any DPS school is to educate and serve the DPS population. As the article pointed out, those students are not competing on an even playing field with students who can afford private lessons and who have had instruction from an early age. It’s unethical for a school system to take money to educate a population of students and then spend it on someone else. I hope your paper will explore this issue at length.
Susan Gamble, Denver
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Speaking as a lower-income single mother of a mixed-race student who has attended the Denver School of the Arts from outside the district for five years, we are fortunate to have access to the only magnet school for the arts in the Rocky Mountains. But assuming such magnets were designed to create opportunities for success for the serious artist, then DSA must by definition be elitist, since our culture unfortunately offers limited support for those in the arts.
To achieve success in such a field, a huge commitment is required by student and parent. In the competitive world of dance and music, intensive training is absolutely essential. Because my son showed an early gift for music, I somehow found the means to afford lessons. In turn, he has practiced hours a day for years.
The student who truly works to get into DSA will get there – the department heads do recognize talent and perseverance. However, budding artists would be better served if DPS offered arts exploration at a younger age in magnet elementary schools where younger students might check out their talents/interests in the arts before having to make the serious commitment that high school arts require.
What makes DSA a special school is that the students are dedicated to their art. Parents, too, are willing to commit their full resources; some, like myself, may drive an hour just to get there because it is a place where the quirky creative kid can thrive. DSA has offered my son a niche that was essential to his development – musically, academically and socially – and I would hope that other out-of-district students who truly need this school will not be denied.
Patricia Wafer, Evergreen
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I find it offensive that The Post chose to slant the story on Denver School of the Arts, placing district- wide problems on the school, rather than focusing on the incredible miracles that the school is creating. In a sea of schools across the region that are exponentially slashing their arts programs, DSA has managed to provide a place that not only nurtures these talents, but also excels their students into renowned conservatories and universities, preparing them for high-level professional careers.
Elitist? If The Post had dug deeper into the real story, it would have taken a look at the underfunded inner-city schools in DPS that do not offer arts programs to its students. How are impoverished students who are not exposed to the arts in their schools to begin with supposed to discover, much less develop, a talent in music, theater, dance or art? Of course, DSA’s lower-income student percentage is less than that of other schools in the district. Is that DSA’s fault? Of course not. Ultimately, it’s the taxpayers’ fault for turning a blind eye to our decaying schools.
Until we begin funding DPS schools properly, let’s not attack one of the few schools in our community that has successfully made a difference for our kids.
Chris Silberman, Executive Director, Denver Young Artists Orchestra, Denver
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I am a senior at the Denver School of the Arts, where I have been a student for the past seven years. In that time, I have rarely seen the school as alive with discussion of race, wealth and privilege as it has been this week. If nothing else, The Post’s thoughtful article has shed needed light on the often overlooked issue of diversity in our school community.
However, I hope that readers inside and outside the school will not come away from this article believing that Denver Public Schools would be significantly improved if only DSA better reflected the racial and socioeconomic makeup of the district as a whole. After all, it’s no secret that magnet schools with rigorous admissions will attract a city’s most affluent students, who have the most artistic and academic resources at their disposal.
Why not look instead at why DPS can only retain affluent, white students through magnets like DSA, or why its elementary schools are by and large without the arts opportunities necessary to prepare a student for artistic success, at DSA or elsewhere? These are the kinds of questions that school administrators will have to eventually come to terms with if they want to truly address the inequities in Denver schools. DSA is only a peripheral issue.
Ryan Brown, Denver
TO THE POINT
Plagiarizing Molly Ivins: The legislature has convened in Denver, and dozens of Colorado villages have lost their idiot.
John Davoren, Denver
Giving George W. Bush credit for anything positive that might now happen in Iraq would be like praising an arsonist who hung around to help put out the fire he started.
Ray Yedinak, Highlands Ranch
I’m proud our boys will stand up for us. If we won’t die for the United States, it’s a meaningless name. If you wouldn’t die for freedom, why would you serve it as a pacifist? Be sober, not naive.
Lisa Arata, Greeley
The administration’s budget for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (NPR and PBS) proposes a 23.9 percent cut. Seems the best way to disguise the absence of a viable foreign policy is to keep Americans isolated and ignorant.
Greg Scott, Evergreen
It seems that England’s Prince Harry has much more respect and honor for the military than our own “King George” has.
Dave Darling, Aurora
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