Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Lawrence Krauss: Congress Is Trying To Defund Scientists At Energy Department

Posted by samzenpus on from the let-the-science-flow dept.

Lasrick writes Physicist Lawrence Krauss blasts Congress for their passage of the 2015 Energy and Water Appropriations bill that cut funding for renewable energy, sustainable transportation, and energy efficiency, and even worse, had amendments that targeted scientists at the Department of Energy: He writes that this action from the US Congress is worse even than the Australian government's move to cancel their carbon tax, because the action of Congress is far more insidious: "Each (amendment) would, in its own way, specifically prohibit scientists at the Energy Department from doing precisely what Congress should mandate them to do—namely perform the best possible scientific research to illuminate, for policymakers, the likelihood and possible consequences of climate change." Although the bill isn't likely to become law, Krauss is fed up with Congress burying its head in the sand: The fact that those amendments "...could pass a house of Congress, should concern everyone interested in the appropriate support of scientific research as a basis for sound public policy."

4 of 342 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Price of using scientists as political pawns by jythie · · Score: 4, Informative

    Not thriving? The energy industry in the US is insanely profitable. Profitable enough that they do not want to risk new technologies and the companies that support them taking off, so they push this crap you are spewing.

  2. Re:Someone has an agenda to push by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

    "It was a horribly broken system that didn't work."
    Quite the contrary. It worked quite well - emissions dropped 12% since it came into effect.

  3. Re:Price of using scientists as political pawns by geekoid · · Score: 5, Informative

    This administration has never tried to kill fracking.

    You are a fucking liar.
    "The EPA and similar organizations have been trying to stop and forbid fracking for years."
    false.

    "The DoE was used as a tool to hurt people."
    nonsense.

    It's a political fight becasue the pubs made it one. The DoE funding wasn't political.

    You should actual learn history and mission of the DoE, you fucking limp wristed cum stain.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  4. Re:Good by oursland · · Score: 5, Informative

    From the last time we had this discussion: http://i.imgur.com/sjH5r.jpg