Rumsfeld's Financial Killing on Bird Flu Virus

I do find it interesting that there’s so much attention to Bird Flu these days on the part of the government. Especially with all the news stories breaking out (82,600 of them) about Donald Rumsfeld’s extremely lucrative connection with the company that developed it. Rumsfeld has never impressed me as being particularly concerned about human life–certainly not in Iraq–or about doing the right thing (he seems remarkably unconcerned about the torture of prisoners that has occurred on his watch).

But he took quite a bit of stock in Tamiflu developer Gilead Sciences when he left his position as Board Chairman to take his current job in the Bush cabinet. The stock had appreciated to $30 million worth, so he sold off some shares and took a $5 million capital gain.

In this administration, one does have to ask if it’s a coincidence that this firm gets to develop the virus drug and sell it to the government.

And I further submit that this gang of rich rogues is completely out of touch with the needs of working Americans who don’t have a few extra million around with which to wheel and deal.