American businesses just can't catch a break. Consider this story about pharmaceutical companies data-mining physician prescribing practices. As usual, the typical bugaboo of patient privacy rights is used to attack drug company efforts to better understand their market--in spite of the fact that patient privacy is clearly and carefully being protected.

If government or a Leftist non-profit were to perform such research to show evil-doing on the part of drug companies, nothing would be said. Much would be made, though, of the value of such information in understanding the cost and efficacy of the heathcare industry.

Not so much, however, when private enterprise does it.