Looks like someone in Congress has finally gotten as annoyed as I am with the Bush Administration’s near-constant science manipulation and an investigation is being launched:
WASHINGTON (AP) – Two federal agencies are investigating whether the Bush administration tried to block government scientists from speaking freely about global warming and censor their research, a senator said Wednesday.
Sen. Frank Lautenberg, (D-N.J.), said he was informed that the inspector generals for the Commerce Department and NASA had begun “co- ordinated, sweeping investigations of the Bush administration’s censorship and suppression” of federal research into global warming.
“These investigations are critical because the Republicans in Congress have ignored this serious problem,” Lautenberg said.
He said the investigations “will uncover internal documents and agency correspondence that may expose widespread misconduct.” He added, “Taxpayers do not fund scientific research so the Bush White House can alter it.”
About damned time. Don’t know anything will actually come of it, but hope springs eternal.
I hate Politics, But I love to study Science. Global Warming is becoming another political scandal. I do not doubt for a minute that the Earth is undergoing a huge change, I question what is bringing about the change as a whole. For instance no-one has studied ( Termite Farts )seriously.
They contribute as much damage as we do. And when they banned DDT the problem got worse.
These Scientist should not be silenced, but they should be encouraged to look at the problem other than through a political agenda. The Lobbyist who petition the political powers, and then seek monetary gain as a fix.( Gagit’s ) The problem is simple science for the most part, STOP using fossil fuels, seek alternatives. Take responsibility and act responsible in matters concerning lesser animals. Animal populations as well as insects need to be studied. Both how they contribute, and harm to bring about balance. There is also many unknown factors that are contributing to the problem of Global Warming. Bloodletting our pocketbooks is not the answer. Scientist will tell you that the Earth went through a similar scenario about 75,000 years ago. But wait…That was before GM and Ford. Is there is an unknown factor in the equation missing?
The Ice Age is comming!
The Ice Age is comming!
Gotta love how the Bushistas insist we “need more study” of the global warming issue. Oh, but we’ll start a war because somebody in some department mighta said in a report somewhere that there could be WMD in Iraq.
No doubt that more study is always needed. But when you’re contravening the National Academy of Sciences AND saying that Intelligent Design should be taught as actual science, AND pushing abstinence-only training on the basis of cherry-picked right wing think tank “studies”, you’re left with SQUAT for scientific credibility.
More to the point, the motivation for politicizing the issue is so glaringly obvious. Cui bono? Why, it just so happens to be the energy companies to whom the Bush/Cheney regime is beholden. What a coincidence! I understand that if the Dems. take the House next week, Pelosi has promised an investigation into Cheney’s private little pow-wow with the energy execs. Even if I had a shred of loyalty to the GOP left in me from my Reagan Youth days, I’d still vote Dem. for that reason alone. Turn on kitchen light—I wanna see the cockroaches scurry before the can of Raid is unloaded on them…
Bush constantly manipulates science not merely because he doesn’t understand it, but more importantly because he is terrified of it. Scientific evidence consistently reveals realities that Bush simply does not like (i.e. evolution, the failure of abstinence-only sex education, a biological basis for homosexuality, the reality of global warming, etc.). I agree that it’s long overdue for a thorough investigation to take place.
I agree with you in general Sadie as regards your comments about evolution and abstinence only education. The reason I agree: The science is actually there. The folks doing a lot of the studies on abstinence based education are worth noting should their work crop up again.
Remember the Yalie Sadie. Remember the Yalie.
Just over 2 years ago, there was a great article in the Skeptic about the way the Bush administration has tried to bend or suppress scientific evidence for political purposes. I think the best reasoning behind this “Politicization Of Science” within the Bush administration is described here:
Obviously, you don’t need science to tell you what you already know. This is especially true if your world is populated with fantastical and magical beings that can do all sorts of supernatural things.
Oh – one more thing – for my fellow scientists. Years ago my multivariate stats professor gave me this gem, which I always remember, and I think it’s particularly apt in this discussion:
Whatever, Consi. I wasn’t much of a sorority girl, though. And as for Yalies, well, you won’t find that I’m part of their clique. I was a Jayhawk.
I’m just pointing out that the position against abstinence based education is founded in large part by Bruecker and Co. Reliance upon Bruecker and Co. is worth noting. You know, should their work appear in a future thread.
You’ve piqued my interest. Is there a reason to expect that their work will appear in a future thread? The names are familiar, yet I find only scanty information about them on the Web.
Double-dipping: I hope all is well with you too, Consi.
Well, the ‘earth is only 6000 years old’ IDiots won’t be able to exploit that one.
There is a very good reason that the full data regarding the Global issue of (Planetary Warming) is not be disclosed. No one has found the words to tell the human race just how fucked they are. The human race could very well find itself on the near brink of extinction by the year 2050. If the diseases don’t kill us all, the lack of clean drinking water will, or perhaps we will discover that we are even bigger monsters than we thought, and begin eating each other as a food source. Hopefully we will not be here to fuck this place up much longer, and the earth can get back to being what it once was, A nice place to live. If your a Bug. But until then just worry about your own ass. And your immediate families asses. It’s probably too late to do anything about it.
And by the way there is a cure.
Stop Fucking, Driving, Fishing, and anything that uses a power grid. It will be a bit ugly for a while, but as a (species only) and still present on the earth, we might make it if several people could start all over.
Is that what you wanted to hear?
It’s about bloody time.
You can do it with the lights off, or by moonlight, you know. And don’t put the batteries in.
uh, I think it’s time to take your meds, Don.
Actually, he goes by the shorthand KPG, and I can only question whether or not anything more than 4 letters shows an idiot, because I’m certainly not, and I rather suspect most of the board has more than 4 letters.
As far as “sense for conversations”, KPG didn’t quite hit the point of saying you’re rambling, which you are. The simplest solution is to keep brevity – make the statement (or argument) you want to make and not more. For instance, I don’t think anyone needed to define mature humans as “featherless bipeds with more than rocks and hammers in their heads”, and I doubt that we’d be able to operate on such a definition for conversation.
You may not like KPG’s response (or mine), but I’m confident in their grounds. Following my advice would likely free up time to respond to more bastards more succintly.
Mr. Nail, say hello to Mr. Head.
Paul, I believe that we do have real problems with global warming, fish depletion, pollution and some other things. Personally, I am not sure what I am willing to do to help mitigate the situation.
Alternative energy is extremely expensive and it is inconvenient to produce and use. I want nothing to do with handling used fryer oil. Cars that get the best fuel economy are expensive, silly looking crapmobiles. I lived through the “energy crisis” of the 1970’s and saw the silly things that were done to “conserve energy”, including cutting off water cooler power cords. I would like to replace my 20 year old heat pump and refrigerator for more energy efficient appliances, but the cost of the new appliances will not be offset by lower energy costs. I have learned to reduce and reuse many things. I live in a small condo, recyclable collection is once a week and trash collection is three times a week. I don’t have the space to store recyclable garbage for up to a week. I am also aware of instances where “recycle” collection trucks have simply dumped their contents into landfills because it cost more to sort the recyclables than it did to dump it.
Another problem is that the gloom and doom people have been warning us about impending disaster since the 1970’s; humans have been able to mitigate much of the damage and mother earth has shown herself to be more resiliant. We had an ozone depletion problem, CFC’s were banned/reduced and the problem seems to be resolving itself. Automobile exhaust is cleaner than ever. I believe that the smog problems in major cities are getting better, even though the populations in those cities are growing. America’s lakes and rivers have been largely cleaned up. We were warned several times that by certain years and certain population levels that we would not be able produce enough food to feed the population; we have passed those population milestones several times and we still have enough food.
At first, most people didn’t believe the gloom and doom predictions, and nothing bad happened to most people. Gloom and doom predictions have become passe’ and most people believe that any of the forcast calamities will be resolved, just like the smog problems and the ozone hole problems have been largely resolved.
Don, you have a mighty ego. Everything with you is me, me, me. and do you really think everyone has nothing better to do than read your ramblings?
My advice is slow down, make some friends here and try to enjoy your stay. We’re not just imagining that you’re being annoying.
Don, I can’t possibly respond “intellectually” to a post that is so garbled that after three readings I still can’t figure out what side of what arguement you’re on. Is English you’re native language? If so, the school system here has obviously failed you.
Um, it’s really not that difficult…unlike transforming your thoughts into coherent, concise words and sentences, which is clearly not your forte.
There are strange, as-yet unexplained things in this universe, one of which, I suspect, is that Don is really Rose Wise, returned without the “god bless you all”s in all caps.
Don’t be so harsh on the school system. It takes two to tango. Even so, Don’s prhasing, broken diction, and failure to end simple interrogatives with a question mark are classic markers of foreign speakers trying to master English. I gotta give him his props, though, since he’s displaying great courage in attempting flame-bait folks on a discussion board such as this so ill-armed.
I’m glad I’m not the only one who has trouble figuring out what point, exactly, Don is trying to make with half of his comments. At this point I’m pretty much skipping over them as pointless drivel.
I don’t know…for me there are uncanny parallels between Don’s comments and those of the late, unlamented Godless Raven. This becomes especially evident when I look at Don’s tendency to post too much at one time, his failure to clearly state his position on a given topic, his fairly massive ego, and his degeneration into babbling nonsense whenever a nerve has been struck.
Don, if you want us to take you seriously, I suggest you try to be more concise and to-the-point when you type. It would also help if you didn’t take such a know-it-all stance when you clearly don’t know what you’re talking about (as is the case with your comments in the gay marriage topic).
I vote to nominate Don as the Official SEB Resident Nutcase. The position has been vacant since Godless Raven left, who, of course, took it over from Rose Wise.
The quality of unmedicated whackjobs seems to be slipping around here.
I second Les’s nomination.
I’d really rather you didn’t.
Damn, Sadie. That’s hysterically funny in its simplicity!
And Don….who took yours away?
Those people are my clients, you jackass.
Anybody have a butterfly net? Haldol?
Don spews forth with the following…
Never claimed I was an example of anything worth following, that’s just your assumption. It’s also not true that anyone who expresses themselves is a nut case in my eyes as there are plenty of people here expressing themselves that I have yet to call a nut case.
Hate to tell you this, but you haven’t shut down anything. You did blather on at length about how gay marriage is illegal because it’s against the law, but that doesn’t answer my challenge at all.
The other’s are right, you do have quite the ego. I’ve not seen much sanity in your writings to date. I have seen a lot of incoherence coupled with narcissism, arrogance and hubris. It’s amazing you can get your head through a doorway.
No hypocrisy here. Just me stating my opinion based on the evidence at hand. I don’t claim any special authority nor that I’m more sane than anyone else, but I sure do seem to have hit a nerve with you here.
How’s the old joke go again? Ah yes! A criminal sits in a jail cell pondering his situation. The speech bubble over his head says: “Nineteen arrests. Nineteen convictions. Maybe it’s me.”
Have you considered that the reason you’ve had to deal with this “BS” many times might be because it’s you?
I’m wordless? You weren’t seriously expecting me to break into your comment with a reply while you were typing it, did you? That’s a sure sign of your craziness if you did.
Never claimed you had hurt me. The rest of that paragraph makes no sense.
Dude, I don’t think you could even find the rug let alone rip it out from under me. But good luck with trying.
I especially liked this bit of your reply to Cindi:
Are you certain that English is your first language? If not then the above mangling of syntax is understandable, but if it is then that has to be some of the funniest shit I’ve read in awhile.
“Behold, the nonsensical ravings of the lunatic mind…”
Don, nobody has really disagreed with any of your points. There’s a reason for this. We don’t know what any of your points actually are. Do you understand what I’m saying? If so, it’s because I’m using actual sentences to communicate. Notice little things like the nouns and the verbs. Ones that actually go together and make some sort of sense.
We’d all love to debate you, but we can’t until we can figure out what your fucking saying.
I’ve run across people who speak like you before. Most of them wore tinfoil hats and ended up on thorozine.
Please, get help.
“Stop hurting America…”
It appears to me that Don thinks he may be some sort of a god. Of something. Maybe he’s just not from our dimension and that’s why nobody here can make out a fucking thing he’s talking about.
I’m not even sure I could twist my mind such that I could make up shit like what he’s writing.
Yeah, there are probably quite a few good references for Don. Although I do see the similarity between Don and GR, I nominate John A. Davison as my candidate for “guy behind the Don”.
Oh my, Diet Coke came out my nose on that one.
You’re right Don – everyone here except you must be retarded. This is obviously the key to your thesis that it’s high time the Bush Administration were held accountable for it’s objectionable misuse of scientific evidence for political purposes. Either that, or my bag-o-hammers is rattling overmuch.
Interesting that you mention bull.
I want some of whatever drugs Don has been taking. In some ways he sounds like a bot.
Les, I too was wondering why you didn’t butt in and respond right then and there in the middle of his contribution.
Don, people generally don’t respond well to lectures that aren’t well thought out and presented point by point – rambling doesn’t do anything but amuse … for a moment.
Coupla days ago I watched Pink Panther 2006 then read some of your posts in another thread – there were distinct similarities of insanity and I laughed.
As an observation, I see flashes of Og Mandino in some of the stuff you write and the manner in which you write it but, Og learnt to curb his enthusiasm and make his stuff logically meaningful before he published.
Settle down mate; we are not the enemy.
I take medication for my insanity; sometimes it helps.
Cool – I want some of your meds, LJ!
Dammit, LJ! I’m geting lazy. I’m so used to all the helpful links you usually put into your posts and this time, nothing!
Blah!
Now I have to google Og Mandino on my own…..
KPG:
Og Mandino wrote several books. He is most famous for the God Memo. See http://www.wowzone.com/godmemo.htm
Sorry KPG – this bloke was around for so long I didn’t realise anyone had not heard of him.
I read most of his books in the 80s.
The Greatest Salesman 1 & 2, The Ten Scrolls and The Ragpicker are ones I remember and another where there was a daily diary to fill in.
I didn’t think it made much of a difference in my life but …
Sorry Consi – a story.
Back in 91 I was a branch manager of a very successful branch (I had excellent staff) and got the award for the branch of the year and salesman of the year – 43pcGP on $5mil sales – $1mil on the bottom line.
I’d never felt comfortable speaking in front of people higher up the food chain than me. I read these books and did another coupla courses and at that particular Branch Manager’s conference we all (10 + of us) had to give a talk; the best talk would get the 2 week holiday in Hong Kong.
I gave a pretty good talk but I came 2nd to a bloke who was dying of cancer – he was a bit of a hero to me.
We had some time left after it had been awarded to Peter and ‘anyone want to give an impromptu talk?’
Pick me, I heard myself say – I had ‘em in the palm of my hand for 15 minutes and afterwards several people compared me to Tom Peters.
The boss said I’d have been going to Hong Kong if I’d done that one first.
That was good enough for me.
Could I do it again? Doubt it.
It’s all in the level of self-belief and the sincerity you can impart.
The secret to success is sincerity – once you can fake that you’ve got it made.
I went in to a book store in town a coupla years later and asked where the self-help section was and the lady said: If I told you that it would defeat the purpose.