The federal government is spending a lot of time and effort on a federal bailout or stimulus package. Some of this stimulus package money is going to medical research. Over ten billion dollars is allotted to the national institutes of health to fund medical research projects. This money is grant funding that is being done by individuals who spend their lives working to help people. This is not corporate America driven by profit, but some of this work will save lives and almost all of it is for improving the health of Americans.

Why is it that the funding comes with more strings attached and oversight than banks and companies like AIG, or GM? There are no multi billion dollar bonuses for the scientists who make the next cancer drug. However the person designing the latest methods for preventing leukemia will spend half their time trying to get less money than a bank executive’s bonus. To put it simply the salary for GM’s CEO could be given to a quality research today and they will discover a way to save your child’s life tomorrow.

The smartest people in the world used to be rocket scientists or brain surgeons. But if you look at the best and brightest in American universities now, what they are going to do is move money around to put money in their pockets. If you want to know why we are in the financial situation we find ourselves in now it is because of a culture of greed. We rewarded greed and that bred mutual reinforcing of more greed by others. Meanwhile we can’t find good people to train to be the next generation of researchers and technology developers. We have money transfer experts.

Mr. President, if you want to stimulate the economy, save the intellectual base of America or the technology sector for the world economy will be moving off shore and we will need the Chinese federal governments permission to buy their guidance systems for our national defense.