Top AIDS researcher lured away by Florida

One of Canada's top AIDS researchers is moving to the United States, taking as many as 25 scientists on his team with him.

The University of Montreal's Rafick-Pierre Sékaly says he is leaving in part because of federal cuts in science funding and hopes his departure will be a wake-up call.

“I hope it will trigger some kind of movement that will foster a deep soul searching and investment,” he said in an interview.

He expects to more than double his $3.5-million research budget in his new position as scientific director of the Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute in Florida, but will also keep a lab going at the University of Montreal.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20090504.waids04/BNStory/National/home

The movement has started. Ontario can try, but they can't outspend the US.

This is not an isolated event. The Harper government wants to make politics the ruler of research. There is no advisor on the topic to the government. They have a panel that advises. Which means they feed back what the rulers want to hear.

It is all PPP now.
Well good bye to the new economy. We were born to a resource economy and we will die to a resource economy. On top of that we have a leader who has someone telling him that evolution means that we now have running shoes.

So suck it up and accept it. We don't have any party that has a definite plan for us other than platitudes.

On the one hand, brain drains suck. On the other hand, if someone scores a treatment/cure for AIDS because other people dropped the ball, there's still a cure out there.

I don't like feeling torn on this sort of thing. ;P

We are not talking about stopping a discovery.

We are talking about who benefits from the discovery.

If we want an economy built on knowledge then we should invest and encourage it.

If we want an economy built for bankers then we don't have to invest. We just have to produce.

is what Mr Stephen Mediocrity wants us to remain as.