Losing Trust - John Huntsman and Others Call Out Politicians Who Pretend There are Scientific Controversies
Funny how things work out. This morning's first post addressed scientific research, data sharing and full disclosure as a means for corporations and governments to acquire trust, and change minds. The post was written last week and scheduled to appear this morning.
The point was further highlighted over the weekend by a series of events tied to politics and science. Specifically, John Huntsman went on national media shows to call out some other Republican candidates as "anti-science." Why ? Because some of the candidates are following the tobacco industry tactic of proclaiming there are "issues" about science when in fact there are no real issues. Think global warming, and think evolution. He did not raise it, but also think stem cells. The raw video is here. A YouTube version is here. Paul Krugman then piled on with his NYT opinion piece titled "Republicans Against Science." Even Karl Rove is offended by Mr. Perry's extreme statements, as explained here.
Ignoring data and reality should not work. Ultimately, the tactic failed the tobacco industry. Time will tell whether the tactic works for polticians.
