These people do much more harm than good for science: "Top Psychiatrist Failed to Report Drug Income"

One of the nation’s most influential psychiatrists earned more than $2.8 million in consulting arrangements with drug makers between 2000 and 2007, failed to report at least $1.2 million of this income to his university, and violated federal research rules, according to documents provided to Congressional investigators... In one telling example, Dr. Nemeroff signed a letter dated July 15, 2004, promising Emory administrators that he would earn less than $10,000 a year from GlaxoSmithKline to comply with federal rules. But on that day, he was at the Four Seasons Resort in Jackson Hole, Wyo., earning $3,000 of what would become $170,000 in income that year from the British drug giant — 17 times the figure he had agreed on.

Even if we set aside the dishonesty involved here, we can't ignore the fact that conflicts of interest distort people's judgment. Even talented, highly trained people who sincerely think that they are still being objective. Something's going to hit the fan if scientists (physician-scientists mostly) don't get their act together and change this culture.