The Moral Gyro

[jporter]

There is more on the outskirts of Nutley, N.J., than toy companies- U.S.A.
corporate headquarters for Hoffman La Roche pharmaceuticals, for one. (This
is not the firm that perfected synthetic ergotamines, although the "Hoffman"
is the same. Roche gave us the benzodiazapines, e.g., valium. The ergotamine
company would be Sandoz- now known as Novartis- and originally having its
U.S.A. headquarters slightly up stream, along the Passaic River.) The
confluence of Standard Oil and plenty of petroleum derived organic
chemicals, a good water supply, and close proximity to good transportation
and communications systems all came together to allow NJ to become "The
Little Switzerland" of America, vis a vis pharmaceuticals, with most of the
major corps having headquarters here.

But all that aside, there are certain principles of gyroscopic guidance
which are of interest, especially in comparison to the less reliable
compass, and given the uncertain and relatively uncharted landscape toward
which we are hurtling. More later.