Playing politics with science is nothing new in Washington. Way back President Nixon shut down his White House science office because he didn’t like the advice he was getting on arms control and the supersonic transport. Since the end of World War II, political manipulation of scientific evidence in the interest of ideological convictions has been a commonplace of the U.S. democracy. “Epidemic of politics” have reached a new high in US and now fed up with political interference some 10,000 US researchers have signed a statement protesting about political interference in the scientific process. Leading scientists both inside and outside the administration have rightly said politics is getting into previously protected areas. It can only be said that the fragile advisory system of US is at its best and that it cannot withstand purposeful efforts of the scientific community that are doing their best to upgrade US at almost every field.
Nevertheless, scientists are fiercely defensive of their intellectual independence, but the financing of most of their research depends on maintaining the confidence and support of Congress and the President. Several science-policy experts argue that no presidency has been more calculating and ideological than the Bush administration in setting political parameters for science. President Bush’s blunt rejection of the Kyoto Protocol on global warming, and his decision restricting stem-cell research are only the most obvious and widely publicized examples of what has become a broader pattern across the administration.
The politicization of US science was natural for the leading scientific journals to catch attention and more importantly when the Bush administration sees scientists a threat to America who in the most of our their scientific lives did their best to serve the people. It looks like Bush administration is in the habit of making things worse.
Dr Peter Gleick said,
“It’s very difficult to make good public policy without good science, and it’s even harder to make good public policy with bad science.”
Unless scientists and policymakers learn to work together effectively, both domains will suffer, that’s for sure but most importantly, the consequences for the functioning of U.S. democracy will be hard hit if this situation cannot be resolved.
Via: Dvorak
