One of the items of faith of Good Government types is that the FDA is an example of government protecting us. They usually point to the 40 year-old Thalidomide case as the ultimate example. Oddly enough, it's also the only example they ever seem to have. I often wonder if they've considered whether there were other ways to address that problem, and whether that one incident makes up for all the problems the FDA creates.

What problems? Every year some new scandal comes out regarding the FDA's foot-dragging on treatments that could save lives, cruel denials of treatments that might offer hope for the otherwise hopeless, taking treatments off the market because they're "too dangerous" instead of letting doctors and patients make free and informed choices, creating miles of red tape preventing doctors from doing their jobs, and generally raising the costs of medicine for everyone.

The Wall Street Journal has one such tale, from a woman who is dying of cancer. The FDA, in its mindless cruelty, is increasing her misery and shortening the time she has with her family. It's quite horrible, really. Read it, and you'll start to understand why at least some people often refer to it as the Federal Death Administration.