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April 03, 2004
20 Nobel Laureates and One Political Hack
The Washington Post has a piece in this morning's edition regarding the Bush Administration's response to the Union of Concerned Scientists Report on the administration's mis-use of science. This part in particular was so over the top I nearly fell out of my chair:
As with the UCS document, Marburger's rebuttal is a blend of footnoted scientific documentation and personal assertions. Together, the two documents offer a reminder that science is a mix of fact and interpretation -- and that at times it can be difficult to tease the two apart.
Here is a little perspective on the respective authors:
President Bush's chief science adviser fired back yesterday at a scientists' advocacy group that had accused the administration of distorting facts to support a conservative political agenda.In a statement released with a 17-page, point-by-point rebuttal, John H. Marburger III, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, said the response aimed to "correct errors, distortions and misunderstandings" in the Feb. 18 report of the Washington-based Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS).
...
The UCS report gained extra attention because its release was accompanied by a supporting letter signed by more than 60 scientists, including 20 Nobel laureates. Although Marburger initially dismissed it as "a collection of more or less disconnected cases" -- and suggested that some scientists had simply had "their feathers ruffled" -- he also promised the detailed response that came yesterday.
Yep, Bush's political appointee hack gets the same "equal" consideration as 20 Nobel Laureates.
Posted by jkleissler at April 3, 2004 12:52 PM
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