Good ideas in government are hard to keep:
There was a time when our congress thought facts were important enough to have reliable experts on hand with whom they could consult... Hmmm. That's not the case today. The Office of Technology Assessment is no longer funded thanks to Newt Gingrich and his 1995 Republican congress followers.
There's little doubt that our elected officials, no matter how smart they may be, are less than versed on all aspects of science and technology. Having experts to turn to for advice and understanding on complex subjects made good sense. Gosh! What happened?
Concerned scientists are now asking for a return to those better days of reason. They want to help. They want the Office of Technology Assessment funded once again and I hope congress is wise enough to recognize that help from science experts is needed - really needed!
I stand with the concerned scientists on this, and I'll take a parallel step on a related issue... history.
There's a heck of a lot of "history twisting" happening today; almost all of it revolving around questions of "American Christian heritage". The actual facts of history (as it is with the actual facts of science issues) seem unimportant to those congress men and women who are currently waiving the American flag in one hand and and the Christian cross in the other.
We need an Office of Historical Assessment as desperately as we need to reestablish the office of technology. It's time to set BS aside, folks. Let's all get behind truth and give it a shove in the right direction... Tell congress we want them to have the facts. They can keep their opinions and their skewed musings for Sunday meetings if they'd like - its their right - but when it comes to law-making, facts are what matter.
The good of America depends on reason. Let's have more of it.
.
There's little doubt that our elected officials, no matter how smart they may be, are less than versed on all aspects of science and technology. Having experts to turn to for advice and understanding on complex subjects made good sense. Gosh! What happened?
Concerned scientists are now asking for a return to those better days of reason. They want to help. They want the Office of Technology Assessment funded once again and I hope congress is wise enough to recognize that help from science experts is needed - really needed!
I stand with the concerned scientists on this, and I'll take a parallel step on a related issue... history.
There's a heck of a lot of "history twisting" happening today; almost all of it revolving around questions of "American Christian heritage". The actual facts of history (as it is with the actual facts of science issues) seem unimportant to those congress men and women who are currently waiving the American flag in one hand and and the Christian cross in the other.
We need an Office of Historical Assessment as desperately as we need to reestablish the office of technology. It's time to set BS aside, folks. Let's all get behind truth and give it a shove in the right direction... Tell congress we want them to have the facts. They can keep their opinions and their skewed musings for Sunday meetings if they'd like - its their right - but when it comes to law-making, facts are what matter.
The good of America depends on reason. Let's have more of it.
.
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