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Governor Newsom announces California will make its own insulin

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Re: Governor Newsom announces California will make its own insulin

#111
post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

California schools system is not good.

Some of the best public elementary, middle/junior, and high schools in the country are in California. Some of the worst are as well. California as a whole has a pretty good public school system. There are certainly issues. But many of them are really just debatable trade offs. For example, the whole San Francisco ed board recall. The main issue (aside from the renaming, which really was a side show to the main event)…

The rankings beg to disagree - https://www.niche.com/k12/search/best-public-high-schools/. Even the best schools in California are not as good as the other state's top schools. It doesn't help that 18%!!! of students in California's public education system are ESL. That's not due to Visa & green-card immigrants.

Re: Governor Newsom announces California will make its own insulin

#112
post #96
post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don’t think that’a entirely fair. California is the product of good governance during the 1950s-1980s. There is public infrastructure, like good schools and universities, that needs to be laid to attract industry in the first place. California probably wouldn’t the what it is without the UC system, for example. Of course that was a very different California.

The period you mentioned is one of the most prosperous periods in history. It is easy to look good with everything in your favor.

Then why didn’t other states also do as well with everything in their favor?

Re: Governor Newsom announces California will make its own insulin

#113
post #82
post #67

Quoted post unavailable.

Poor choice of example. Oracle is still very much in California. Literally zero offices have been shuttered and they've been hiring like crazy. Austin is an expansion .

Openworld will never be in California again.

https://www.oracle.com/openworld/

Re: Governor Newsom announces California will make its own insulin

#114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Yeah, everything in Canada is cheaper than the US…oh wait I don't understand the point you're trying to make.

hiddencost said something very stupid and kcplate mocked him for saying something that stupid. The specific stupid thing hiddencost said was that capitalism was inefficient.

Mocked is probably a bit strong,. I was definitely pointing out the irony a bit sarcastically that virtually everything (excepting healthcare) in Canada is more expensive than the US. Right now, at least 31% more expensive.

Re: Governor Newsom announces California will make its own insulin

#116
post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because pharmaceutical research is hitting a wall in many areas, and companies are “catching and killing” generic manufacturers specifically to extract more revenue from long invented products. Government should absolutely play in this space. Hell, one of the primary anti-fungal creams (NYStatin) was developed by a female researcher and state employee in the 1960s.

But it’s not a new insulin, it’s just some manufacturer. Plenty of generic insulin’s exist already. Why build a new plant just to make something that’s already sold?

Because California wants to drive the price down. With this system there will both be more supply in the California market and as an investor and part owner, the state can influence the price much more directly.

Whether or not it works remains to be seen. But driving down the price, both for the end consumers and California state insurance providers is the goal.

Re: Governor Newsom announces California will make its own insulin

#117
I'm quite liberal on most topics, but I dreaded expecting to read that California state government was going to spin up some office of pharma manufacturing with all the state employees that entails.

Thank god it's only talking about hiring a contract manufacturer to do this.

Next, the question is, will it institute enough protections that someone doesn't take advantage of the cheap prices and sell them for profit elsewhere...

Re: Governor Newsom announces California will make its own insulin

#118
post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Pretty wishful thinking indeed. It's already losing population (down two years running), probably due to a bunch of factors. My guess it's being driven by the obscene cost of living (housing, taxation, energy) and the declining quality of life (worsening air quality, growing petty crime and homelessness, creaky infrastructure). Most of these are uncomplicated policy problems, yet solutions seem out of reach. Do you t…

The last time we "reformed" CPUC so that energy markets could be more competitive and reliable, we essentially rendered the whole thing subject to the free markets. Immediately, both PG&E and SoCalEd teetered on the edge of bankruptcy due to corrupt energy traders (e.g., ENRON, but not just them) manipulating the markets. Sometimes, regulation is a good thing.

Reform is not as simple as 'more' or 'less' regulation. A web of rules and processes can be quite permissive yet so complicated as to cause gridlock. Or they can mess up markets, create perverse incentives, or drive up (or down!) costs.

https://twitter.com/oboylemm/status/1541472199235710976?t=bD...

Regardless of what you think about how to manage going forward, it's hard to argue that current policies are working well. PG&E sells electricity to residential customers in Northern California at approximately 3x the national average price. By comparison, if you're in Oregon (right next door with similar climate, resources, and topography) your power is typically right around (or even slightly cheaper) than the national average. And it's less likely to go out in windy weather. As far as I can tell, PG&E is precisely the company you would expect to get out of the regulatory environment in which it operates (e.g., you guarantee fixed margin on opex and a larger fixed margin on capex, obviously the power company is driven to maximize costs and minimize maintenance). So I blame the regulators more than PG&E.

Re: Governor Newsom announces California will make its own insulin

#119
post #86
post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

California schools system is not good.

They used to be good.

+1. Georgia has homes selling for 500k in the Walton School district. It's ranked higher than Palo Alto's High Schools.

Let that sink in.

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/georgia/d...

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/californi...

Re: Governor Newsom announces California will make its own insulin

#120
post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can’t relate at all to that sentiment. California has got to be one of the most bloated and wasteful state governments in the entire US. High taxes and nothing to show for it. The entrenched far left seems bent on destroying the middle class, driving out business, regulating everything to death and displacing merit as a selection factor. Whatever glory Cali has— tech, entertainment, farming, weather, natural beauty…

I don’t think that’a entirely fair. California is the product of good governance during the 1950s-1980s. There is public infrastructure, like good schools and universities, that needs to be laid to attract industry in the first place. California probably wouldn’t the what it is without the UC system, for example. Of course that was a very different California.

Don’t forget about massive defense spending, and middle class relocations to California.
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