Slashdot Mirror
Scientists Challenge U.S. on Scientific Distortions
rocketjam writes "The Union of Concerned Scientists, an independent organization which includes 20 Nobel laureates, issued a statement accusing the Bush administration of distorting scientific fact and supressing findings to fit administration policy decisions on the environment, health, biomedical research and nuclear weaponry. They also issued a 37-page report detailing the accusations. Bush's science adviser, John Marburger, called the report biased and said he was troubled that some very prestigious scientists had signed the statement. Numerous complaints from the scientific community about the administration's scientific policy-making prompted the The Union of Concerned Scientists to begin investigating the issue last summer. As an example, the group noted the panel that advises the Centers for Disease Control on lead poisoning had been prepared to recommend strengthening regulations due to new findings on lead toxicity, but had their recommendation rejected by the administration and two panel members replaced by individuals with ties to the lead industry." Other articles: Sydney Morning Herald, New York Times, The Guardian.
Ooooh! Well look at Mr. 7-0-7-9-6-0! He read the article, he's so smart!
Well listen here Mr. Smartypants, we at Slashdot don't NEED to read the article to make wiseass comments! That's the way it's been since day 0, and that's the way it's gonna stay!
If you don't know what AltaVista is (was), get off my lawn.
>giving them all green cards and free transportation to the states
Leave their ancestral home because some psycho is in power in their country? Hell no. Also the U.S. can't handle 24M more people coming here. We are having problems with immigration already.
>It also concerns me that there are many people who agree with you that we should go to war with a country before trying to solve these problems peacefully.
We did try peaceful negotiations for 8-10 years. If I remember correctly UN inspectors never got co-operation and they routinely fired on our planes enforcing a no-fly zone.
As for the 12K lives, yes it is tragic. Of course it is. However if we can start spreading Democracy in the middle east using Afghanistan and Iraq then the millions of people there will benefit. Bringing Capitolism and Democracy can potentially revolutionize the whole area, and bring prosperity.
Imagine you lived in a shack, in a desert without running water, and had the equivalent of a bagel to eat every day, with no education, etc. (not to mention the possiblilty of toture, rape, etc ) and I tell you, you have a choice. 1) continue living like you are, with poverty, starvation, etc all around you for you and your family with no hope in sight. 2) A war in which 1/40th of 1% of your people will die(assuming 1/2 of the number you gave were from Iraq, you can adjust a little if my assumption was off), which would result in freedom, democracy, education, improvement in standard of living, etc. for you, your family, and your entire country. Which would you choose? I don't know about you but for the sake of my children and family's future I would choose war.
-Comedian