To the Editor: No taxes, no regulation, no surprise (" The New Wild West: Texas Experiments With Raw Capitalism," Cover Story, Aug. 7). The taxation and regulations in California are going to get worse, not better, and the move to Texas is only going to accelerate for businesses, and yes, for Silicon Valley tech bros, too, who will pretend to be in "Hipster Town" but will run much of the business in the Lone Star State.
Ray Noack On Barrons.com
To the Editor: I see plenty of reasons why Texas is the place to work and settle down. Avi Salzman may have convinced some people, but I'm not packing my bags just yet. Texas has heat, humidity, drought, thunderstorms, tornadoes, and hurricanes. That's not a weather forecast -- it's a survival plan. At 85 years old, I'll stay up north, where we have four seasons. We may complain about the weather, but at least we get a break between disasters.
Martin Blumberg Melville, N.Y.
A Biotech Win-Win
To the Editor: I'm a big fan of and investor in Novartis, in large part due to its development of a treatment for elevated lipoprotein(a) (" These New Drugs Could Fuel Fresh Highs for Biotech and Pharma Stocks," Aug. 7). This drug will hopefully prove to be a lifesaver for the 20% of the population that has elevated lipo(a) levels and currently no way to lower them. Since the condition is genetic and the only treatment will be via drugs, a Food and Drug Administration approval of injectable pelacarsen will save countless lives as well as generate $3 billion to $5 billion in annual sales for Novartis. A true win-win situation for both the patient and the shareholder.
Bruce Green On Barrons.com
Assets and Liabilities
To the Editor: There's an important but often overlooked lesson here: It's the nature of one's liabilities that dictates which assets one needs (" To Understand the Yen's Plight, Look to the Bond Markets," The Economy, Aug. 7). Life insurers can buy bonds because they must only pay fixed nominal death benefits. Those of us who have to eat and otherwise live need assets that pay out in current purchasing power.
Larry Fellman On Barrons.com
A SpaceX Rival
To the Editor: AT&T, Verizon, and many other phone companies have agreements with AST SpaceMobile, which is putting up satellites to solve the dead-zone issue (" SpaceX Won't Destroy Telecom -- It Will Just Reinvent It," Aug. 6). AST's proprietary software connects to garden-variety cellphones -- and its service should be up and running early next year. So, frankly, who cares about Starlink and its dishes?
Martin Goldman On Barrons.com
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