Posted on 10/20/2005 6:17:41 PM PDT by furball4paws
http://www.waronscience.com/excerpt.php?p=1
Chapter 1: The Threat IN THE SUMMER OF 2001, long before his reelection and even before he became a "wartime president," George W. Bush found himself in a political tight spot. He responded with a morsel of scientific misinformation so stunning, so certain to be exposed by enterprising journalists (as indeed it was), that one can only wonder what Bush and his handlers were thinking, or whether they were thinking at all. The issue was embryonic stem cell research, and Bush's nationally televised claim—that "more than sixty genetically diverse" embryonic stem cell lines existed at the time of his statement—counts as one of the most flagrant purely scientific deceptions ever perpetrated by a U.S. president on an unsuspecting public. Bush's assertion, made on August 9, 2001, came as the president sought to escape a political trap of his own making. Campaigning in 2000, Bush told the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops that taxpayer money "should not underwrite research that involves the destruction of live human embryos." The statement threw a bone to Bush's pro-life followers, who view the ball of about one hundred fifty cells constituting a five-day-old embryo as deserving of the same moral and legal protections as fully developed human beings. Accordingly, these religious conservatives consider embryonic stem cell research—the study of excess embryos donated for research from in vitro fertilization clinics—ethically abhorrent. But some prominent Republicans, such as Utah senator Orrin Hatch, favored the research because of its scientific promise. As the issue came to a head in the summer of 2001, Bush publicly agonized over what to do. Finally, he opted for a supposed compromise: he would allow federal funding, but only for research on preexisting cell lines.
(Excerpt) Read more at waronscience.com ...
I ask you to reconsider your view that it is not big. Creationists/ID people are hanging on the trial. If the School Board wins they will trumpet it and push the same into every School System they can find. BTW the attack isn't just on Evolution, although it gets the brunt of the attack. It also concerns almost every field of science, since the literal reading of Genesis conflicts with almost every area of science. It also opens the door for an American Theocracy. Something we should all fear.
Scientist are generally a very quiet lot, politically. They prefer to chase their pet ideas in a lab. But this assault could well bring them out into public focus and then people will then see rational, experimental science vs. faith. Will this affect a "swing" voter? I think it will.
Did you miss that part? Or is it perhaps that you believe that the left is synonymous with scientific rationality? That must be, since I haven't a clue as to what else you must be getting at.
Of course there is especially with the Greenies. But the MSN won't blow that horn. How many people do you think are still pushed around by the MSN?
The Crazy Years are upon us.
Can Nehemiah Scudder be far behind?
[To All: In Robert A. Heinlein's early writing, Scudder was a religious demagogue whose followers overthrew the United States government and instituted a theocracy; if you don't know the Crazy Years, you should look 'em up.]
Neither can I. The Libertarians are pretty pitiful right now.
Scientific Conservatives
SciCons?
Yikes! I'd forgotten about that. Prescient?
Yeah, that's the ticket!
I advocate homeschooling for everyone...regardless of their religious beliefs. I don't think anyone should leave their children to the pubic schools (this from someone who will probably end up as a public school teacher after college)
If creationists are so scary that non creationist conservatives are willing to side with leftists or become Libertarians in protest then I would say that the conservative movement is in trouble.
Let me try to assure you that creationists are just like everyone else if we passed in the street I don't think that you would see anything out of the ordinary about me...wait maybe that is the scary part.
As far as this "war on science" I am not against science. As someone who as benefited from the labors of an orthopaedic surgeon I am greatful for those willing to work in a lab all day. I do recognize however, that scientists are not perfect, nor are they unbiased. If the existence of God were proved tomorrow, there would be many who would still insist he does not exist.
I like it better than neo cons, or movement cons (which leaves me with an impression of something scatalogical.)
Seriously, it might just be a good idea.
I accidentally stumbled on this magazine Seed in the library and on its front cover is a headline about the attack of Creationists on Science. My blood went cold. A leftist rag, surely, but those people are on to the problem and they're good enough politically to make it work for them.
Of course since the MSM hates the Bible also, they would not touch this 'soft underbelly' of the Left.
True conservatives will never side with Liberals. They might with Libertarians. But more likely, they will stay home. No vote is also a vote.
How about PsiCons? Sounds better for Halloween.
It'll scare the pants off the libs...sounds like a secret Defense Agency.
BTW, I' m think of writing a piece for American Scientist to "announce" the concept of (whatever we call it) "PsiCons."
Funny, I never thought I'd see the day when "conservatives" advocated lowering educational standards and replacing science with emotionalist wishful thinking.
Strange days, I guess.
Dittoes.
What the heck is going on?
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