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Profit drives quality of life

The Spokesman-Review

On Aug. 14, Larry Winters wrote a letter to the editor in which he said that, “The rest of the world has largely decided that being sick is not the place for amassing wealth.” I would like to point out that if that line of thinking is followed through to its logical conclusion, then companies should not be able to “amass wealth” by providing for any of our basic needs.

What about food? Isn’t it basically a pay-off to those companies to keep us alive? What about energy? Heat keeps us alive in the winter. What about, gasp, pharmaceuticals? American pharmaceutical companies provide medicines that have extended our lives and made our quality of life much more than it used to be. Shouldn’t that all be free?

It’s just naive to think that we can continue to produce life-changing innovations while doing away with the one thing that drives innovation: profit! Larry, maybe you should reconsider who wins.

Tom Johnston

Spokane

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