Text of Comments from John M. Simpson of Consumer Watchdog

Here is the full text of the remarks from John M. Simpson made by email for the overview piece today on the California stem cell agency.

"It’s a slick (annual) report that allows CIRM to put its best forward as it its leadership tries to make a case for future funding, quite possibly another bond issue.  I’d be interested in knowing how much the annual report cost to produce and how many copies have been printed.

"CIRM’s fundamental problem is that supporters of Prop. 71 wildly oversold what passage of the measure would deliver.  Voters were led to believe that miraculous cures were just around the corner if only the proposition passed.

"CIRM-funded research has made important contributions to science, but has yet to deliver what voters were promised.

"Agency management has improved under the Thomas-Mills regime and the most blatant conflicts of interest were mitigated after the scathing Institute of Medicine report.

"The CIRM annual report cites the number of  'inventions' CIRM has funded — more than 180.  What share of royalties have taxpayers received as a result? Anticipated revenue from CIRM-funded inventions was a big selling point for Prop. 71.

"No doubt CIRM-funded research has made some important contributions to scientific knowledge. The results, however, in no way justify another bond issue to fund the agency.

"If CIRM continues after the current funds run out, it should be financed like any other state agency— out of the states’s operating budget approved by the Legislature on annual basis. CIRM’s operating budget could also be augmented by private contributions."

A Critical Perspective: Klein's $100 Billion Stem Cell/Genomics Plan 'Boggles the Mind'

The San Diego U-T newspaper today reported the first criticism of the $100 billion stem cell/genomics research plan being floated by the former chairman of the California stem cell agency, Bob Klein.

The challenge to the proposal came from John Simpson of Consumer Watchdog of Santa Monica, Ca., in an article by reporter Bradley Fikes.

Simpson, a longtime observer of the agency and once heavily involved in formulation of its intellectual property rules, said the proposal for the international consortium “boggles the mind.”

Fikes reported that Simpson found the international plan flawed on several counts: It would lock money into specific areas of research regardless of the state of the science; it would be cumbersome to run, and it would be expensive because it would use borrowed money.

Fikes wrote,  

"’I don't understand how this could possibly work,’ Simpson said in a Monday interview. ‘The logistics of getting together such a (15 nation) coalition boggles the mind.’”

Simpson said Klein, a real estate investment banker who left the agency in 2011, was peddling illusory benefits. Fikes reported,

"'That's the same premise as he's tried to argue with Prop. 71, and I don't think that's been true at all,’ Simpson said. While the (California stem cell) program has resulted in some major research advances, it hasn't yet generated enough of an economic return and proven treatments to justify it, he said.

"'Pay as you can afford to pay,’ Simpson said. ‘I think that's a better approach to research, generally. That's what democratically elected governments are supposed to do, is come up with appropriate funding for the various things they're faced with. If you had this kind of money to throw at certain problems, it's not entirely clear to me, by any means, that stem cells would have the biggest impact. You might do a hell of a lot more with simple things like malaria eradication.’" 

Fikes wrapped Simpson’s critique into the earlier version of his article on Klein’s plan.

Longtime CIRM Watchdog Expanding Beyond Stem Cells

Zach Hall, the first president of the California stem cell agency, once called John M. Simpson a “constructive critic” of the state's $3 billion stem cell research effort.

Today Simpson still monitors CIRM but he has other responsibilities that have put him on the front page of the business section of the Washington Post. One week ago the newspaper described him as a “thorn” in the side of a $162 billion corporation called Google.

Simpson's prickly Google performances have surfaced in other media outlets as well. They are all part of an effort by Consumer Watchdog of Santa Monica, Ca., (Simpson's employer) to hold Google to its promise “to do no evil.”


In addition to Simpson's forays, Consumer Watchdog has mounted a major Internet push on an investigatory Web site it calls “Inside Google.” It includes articles ranging from antitrust concerns to privacy to Google's search performance.

Last Sunday's lengthy piece on Simpson(pictured) and Google, written by Cecilia Kang, garnered 98 comments and 140 Tweets. She wrote that Simpson's “singular focus is turning up the regulatory heat on Google.”

Kang reported,

“With its brand appeal, (Simpson) says Google is an ideal target. He's turned the tables, digging up data on the giant that tracks every move its users make and collects information without their knowledge. Also, he said, the company unfairly uses its size to barrel into new businesses.”

One might think Simpson has wandered far afield from CIRM. Not entirely so. Google has a $100,000 connection to CIRM. Sergey Brin, Google's co-founder made a loan in that amount to the Prop. 71 campaign, which was directed by Robert Klein, who is now chairman of CIRM, which was created by the proposition.

Brin's wife,  Anne Wojcicki, has a strong interest in biotech. She co-founded 23andMe, a genetic testing firm that was initially backed by Mohr Davidow Ventures of Menlo Park, Ca., one of whose partners, Michael Goldberg, is a member of the CIRM board. Mohr has since sold its interest in 23andMe and invested in a rival, Navigenics of Foster City, Ca.

Google's new venture capital arm has also started to make investments in biotech companies and has expressed an interest in regenerative medicine. It could only be a matter of time before a Google-backed company applies to CIRM for some of CIRM's billions.