From: Jei (jei@cc.hut.fi)
Date: Sat Feb 21 2004 - 13:24:54 MST
Nice going...
http://www.kuro5hin.org/story/2004/2/20/62720/7491
Report: An Investigation into the Bush Administration's Misuse of Science
By leoaugust
Sat Feb 21st, 2004 at 07:16:47 AM EST
A scathing report from the Union of Concerned Scientists on the misuse of
science and scientific process by the Bush Administration for political
purposes has capped probably the most dismal six weeks for the presidency
of George W. Bush. The report has won endorsements from many luminaries,
and it provides a chilling insight into how the Truimph of The Bush
Political Philosophy has put into danger the lives of the public, and that
of the planet itself. In other words, President Bush and his
Administration may itself be the ultimate Weapon of Mass Destruction.
The report opens with a quote that describes the vision of the current
president's father, and ends with damning evidence of the son's misdeeds
by the standards set by his own father. This is probably not surprising as
GWB has tried to do almost everything differently from his father, the
41st and one-term President of the United States.
In its conclusion the report seeks to strongly reprimand the president
himself asking him to change course dramatically and immediately,
chastises the almost pliant Congress, exhorts the Scientists to speak up,
and asks for help from the public.
The report begins with a quote from the 41st US President, George H.W.
Bush, in 1990 that sets the vision of how science must be used by
government.
Science, like any field of endeavor, relies on freedom of inquiry;
and one of the hallmarks of that freedom is objectivity.
Now more than ever, on issues ranging from climate change to AIDS research
to genetic engineering to food additives, government relies on the
impartial perspective of science for guidance.
The report ends with an dismal report card on the 43rd President actions
so far.
Scientists no longer have the freedom of inquiry.
Subjectivity has trumped Objectivity, and the freedom of inquiry has been
curtailed
by the distortion of scientific process, addition and deletion of facts
that manage to distort conclusions, detrimental influence of campaign
donors to the federal bodies that are supposed to stand up for the public,
subjection of scientists not to peers but to people without sufficient
credentials, use of bogus science to justify the Iraq war, and injection
of bogus facts into controversial issues like teen pregnancy.
The government no longer relies on the impartial perspective of science
for guidance, but relies on guiding science and scientists to its on
partial perspective of politics and policy.
How has the Bush Administration managed to achieve this dubious
distinction? The report shows this to be a 3 part opera.
Part I - Suppression and Distortion of Research Findings at Federal
Agencies
Mark Twain said that "Get your facts first, and then you can distort them
as much as you please." This is a 2 step process. First, get the facts.
Second, distort them as much as you please. The second step of distortion
has been a part of politics for ever, and the report does acknowledge that
administrations do distort facts. But, "there is a crucial difference
between political fights over policy and the manipulation of the
scientific underpinnings of the policymaking process itself," and the
distinction of the Bush Administration is that they have managed to
corrupt the first step also - i.e. of first getting the facts right.
One of the four findings of the investigation is that "There is
significant evidence that the scope and scale of the manipulation,
suppression, and misrepresentation of science by the Bush administration
is unprecedented."
Another finding of the investigation is that There is strong
documentation of a wideranging effort to manipulate the government's
scientific advisory system to prevent the appearance of advice that might
run counter to the administration's political agenda.
Part II - Undermining the Quality and Integrity of the Appointment Process
Harry Truman said that "We must have strong minds, ready to accept facts
as they are." It seems that the Bush Administration is not willing to
accept the facts as they are, but is choosing minds to staff federal
agencies that not strong, and those who are willing to ignore the facts.
Roughly 1,000 committees, panels, commissions, and councils advise the
federal government on everything from how to allocate federal research
dollars to what should be considered permissible levels of pesticide
residue on produce.
"The administration has picked candidates with questionable
credentials for advisory positions, used political litmus tests to vet
candidates for even the least political of its government review panels,
and favored the candidates put forward by industry lobbyists over those
recommended by its own federal agencies. This last charge of favoring
candidates put forth by industry is particularly troubling, as executives
from these industries are quite often large campaign contributors."
To cap it all, the report points out that Mr. Russell, who holds the
most senior White House advisory position devoted specifically to
technology, has only a bachelor's degree in biology, no graduate or
professional training of any kind, and no experience in a
technology-related industry.
The report shows that the philosophy of putting the "wrong" people
incharge of "right" science is a very wide spread phenomenon. It goes on
to bluntly state that "at high levels of government, the administration's
political agenda has permeated the traditionally objective, nonpartisan
mechanisms through which the government uses scientific knowledge in
forming and implementing public policy."
Part III - An Unprecedented Pattern of Behavior
Sherlock Holmes has been attributed with saying that, "it is a capital
mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist
facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts."
Insensibly, it seems that the theory to which all facts are being
subjected is the Theory of Mr. Bush's mind. In Professor Miller's case,
"his 2002 interview for a slot on a National Institute on Drug Abuse
advisory panel included questions about whether his views were congruent
with those held by President Bush and whether he had voted for Bush in
2000. Presumably based on his answers, Miller was denied the appointment."
"Miller, a distinguished professor of psychology and psychiatry, the
pioneer of a leading substance abuse treatment, and author of more than
100 articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals."
A finding of the investigation is that "there is a well-established
pattern of suppression and distortion of scientific findings by
high-ranking Bush administration political appointees across numerous
federal agencies. These actions have consequences for human health, public
safety, and community well-being."
Finally, consistent with the nature of this "secretive" Whitehouse,
that is fighting a secretive war on terror, the report has "provided
substantial evidence that objective scientific knowledge is being
distorted for political ends by the Bush administration, and
misrepresented or even withheld from Congress and the public at large."
Part IV - The Final Grade
The report calls for immediate action. To call for something like this, in
defiance of the Whitehouse, especially in an election year, shows that
that the authors and endorsers of the report have either gone nuts to take
on the President, or they feel so strongly about it that they believe
immediate action must be taken to avoid the impending disasters if the
current road is not changed.
The report brings to task the President of the United States George
Bush,
"the president should immediately request his science advisor to prepare a
set of recommendations for executive orders and other actions to prohibit
further censorship and distortion of scientific information from federal
agencies, and put an end to practices that undermine the integrity of
scientific advisory panels.
chastises the Congress, and says
"Congress should ensure that this administration should ensure that this
administration and future administrations reverse this dangerous trend."
exhorts the Scientist to fight for the freedoms, including freedom of
speech,
"Scientists must encourage their professional societies and colleagues to
become engaged in this issue, discuss their concerns directly with elected
representatives, and communicate the importance of this issue to the
public, both directly and through the media."
and asks the public for help
"the public must also voice its concern about this issue to its elected
representatives."
--- To unsubscribe from the Virus list go to <http://www.lucifer.com/cgi-bin/virus-l>
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Sat Feb 21 2004 - 13:27:23 MST