Bush Administration Accused of Putting Ideology Above Science

seisen · 07-18-2007

WASHINGTON - Testimony from President George W. Bush’s former surgeon general last week has fueled charges that his administration has trumped science in favor of its political and religious ideologies.

Bush Administration Accused of Putting Ideology Above Science - CommonDreams.org

Charbucks · 07-18-2007

That is really quite frightening. Maybe it's because science is quite important to me, but I think that scientific censorship for any reason, be it politics, religion, or greed is the worst kind. Hopefully this turns into more than just an accusation.

Charbucks · 07-18-2007

Hmm, I just found this - Wall Street Journal's take on the matter. Doesn't seem like they like Dr. Carmona all that much. I'll copy and paste the text, because you need a subscription to read it (let me know if this is violating copyright).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wall Street Journal

Surgeon Corporal
July 12, 2007; Page A14

Iraq aside, the big political story of the week seems to be that Richard Carmona believes he was gagged, if not bound, by the Bush Administration during his tenure as Surgeon General from 2002-2006. Dr. Carmona made his case before Henry Waxman's never-sleeping House Government Reform and Oversight Committee on Tuesday, and most media outlets played it up.

At the beginning of his tenure as the country's top doctor, he "was still quite politically naive in the ways of the Beltway," Dr. Carmona said. "As I witnessed partisanship and political manipulation, I was astounded and unsure of what I was witnessing . . . [and] whether this was the norm for all Surgeons General." Cue the ominous music.

We hate to ruin a political scandal, but isn't this a tad overwrought as a story line? Let's assume that Bush officials did tell him to keep mum on such issues as embryonic stem cell research and sex education. This is what appointed officials of any Administration are expected to do -- support the policies of an elected President. If Dr. Carmona really thinks that the Surgeon General should be above politics, "naive" is not the first adjective that comes to mind.

Dr. Carmona says he was especially offended that his voice wasn't welcome on matters of "science." He misses a critical distinction: Science may inform policy, but it's no substitute for the political judgments that properly play a role in guiding public policy. In the area of stem cells, for instance, there is no ban on debating the science -- only a question of whether and to what extent it should be publicly funded.

In any case, Dr. Carmona was not an indentured servant. If he disagreed so profoundly with President Bush's policy, he could have resigned. Honorable people do it all the time, and no one should take a job in Washington unless he is prepared to resign to defend his principles. That Dr. Carmona failed to resign over so long a period suggests that his personal moral agony was rather less tortured than he now makes it seem.

Alternatively, the good doctor could have done what some of his predecessors chose to do: Speak up anyway, and face the consequences, such as being fired. C. Everett Koop did that on AIDS during the Reagan Administration and became a hero to the media establishment that had once dismissed him as an anti-abortion zealot. Joycelyn Elders also chose to use her pulpit to endorse creative sex education in public schools, at least until the Clinton Administration asked her to resign.

Either decision would have been more honorable than the one Dr. Carmona chose to indulge -- which is to engage in a late hit on the President who appointed him, and only now that he will pay no personal price and it is politically fashionable to do so.

bns · 07-18-2007

Ideology should come before science. I just don't like his ideology. But how would you feel about doing experiments on living people against their will? I think we'd all agree that's bad. Even though science would benefit, it's a crime against humanity.

That said, what Bush is doing is putting politics above science, and I don't like that one bit.

Charbucks · 07-18-2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by bns

Ideology should come before science. I just don't like his ideology. But how would you feel about doing experiments on living people against their will? I think we'd all agree that's bad. Even though science would benefit, it's a crime against humanity.

I'm not so sure it wouldn't be a bad idea - say, people could choose between death sentence/prison and being the subject of potentially harmful experiments? That's totally O/T though. You're right, of course, science should not harm people willingly. However, I think the major problem arises when, as you say, politics is put forth, because this results in harming people through misinformation or withholding of information. According to Specific Examples of the Abuse of Science, there are several cases that I see as being harmful, such as "the CDC was ordered to change its website to raise scientifically questionable doubt about the effectiveness of condoms in preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS."

Jasper84 · 07-18-2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by bns

Ideology should come before science.

Well, i think ethics is more important then pursuing science; and ethics is a sort of ideology, i guess. However i would try to not let my ideology affect the results. Let alone what they are doing, purposefully altering results to fit their results. That is a polar opposite of The Principle of Self-Scrutiny, in this really cool website i found today.

bns · 07-18-2007

I guess I really agree with the point of the OP. I think "ideology" is a very broad word. As Jasper said, ethics is before science. But part of my ideology includes intellectual honesty. That's where the problem comes in. The Bush administration is altering facts to support their agenda. That's dishonesty of the highest order.

07-18-2007	#1 (permalink)
seisen Humanitarian Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 723	Bush Administration Accused of Putting Ideology Above Science WASHINGTON - Testimony from President George W. Bush’s former surgeon general last week has fueled charges that his administration has trumped science in favor of its political and religious ideologies. Bush Administration Accused of Putting Ideology Above Science - CommonDreams.org
seisen Humanitarian Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 723

07-18-2007	#2 (permalink)
Charbucks Needs a new custom title Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Onterrible, Canada Posts: 557	Re: Bush Administration Accused of Putting Ideology Above Science That is really quite frightening. Maybe it's because science is quite important to me, but I think that scientific censorship for any reason, be it politics, religion, or greed is the worst kind. Hopefully this turns into more than just an accusation.

07-18-2007	#4 (permalink)
bns Moderator Join Date: May 2007 Location: Indiana, USA Posts: 1,648	Re: Bush Administration Accused of Putting Ideology Above Science Ideology should come before science. I just don't like his ideology. But how would you feel about doing experiments on living people against their will? I think we'd all agree that's bad. Even though science would benefit, it's a crime against humanity. That said, what Bush is doing is putting politics above science, and I don't like that one bit.
	"Give a man fire, and he will be warm for a day; set a man on fire and he will be warm for the rest of his (short) life."---Wofl

07-18-2007	#7 (permalink)
bns Moderator Join Date: May 2007 Location: Indiana, USA Posts: 1,648	Re: Bush Administration Accused of Putting Ideology Above Science I guess I really agree with the point of the OP. I think "ideology" is a very broad word. As Jasper said, ethics is before science. But part of my ideology includes intellectual honesty. That's where the problem comes in. The Bush administration is altering facts to support their agenda. That's dishonesty of the highest order.
	"Give a man fire, and he will be warm for a day; set a man on fire and he will be warm for the rest of his (short) life."---Wofl