According to our dear friends over at Wired, we are losing the war on science. This interview with Shawn Otto, author of The War on Science [no-script hostile] ranges from the American presidential election to Albert Einstein:
His new book The War on Science explores ways that citizens can fight back against a creeping tide of anti-science nonsense promulgated by everyone from postmodern academics to greedy oil companies to nature-loving hippies. An important step is to make journalists understand that science and opinion should not be given equal weight.
"The purpose of a free press in a democracy is to hold the powerful accountable to the evidence," Otto says. "Journalists have really lost sight of that purpose, of their entire reason for being."
Fair enough. But things have gotten worse?
He fears that the war on science will only intensify once Donald Trump takes office in January. "I'm very concerned, as is the rest of the global scientific community," Otto says.
As a personal aside, I find it unlikely that the public, those who executed Socrates, burned the Library of Alexandria, and imprisoned Antoinio Gramsci, could fall for such a diaphanous fraud as the Republican attack on science! People back then were truly and profoundly stupid. But people today have the internet, and facebook, and a total misunderstanding of science, politics, ethics, and math. So, this will not end well? Help me, Soylentils, give me hope.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Azuma Hazuki on Friday December 09 2016, @06:13AM
Why is it the only people who say "virtue signalling" are the ones who have no virtues to begin with? Back to the depths of hell with you.
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday December 09 2016, @02:53PM
Why is it that you find it important to attack people whom you know nothing about?
Would you like to elaborate on your statement? How do you know that "all" people who ever said "virtue signalling" are without virtues themselves. Making a positive statement to increase goodwill and understanding is a virtue and you don't have it.
(Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Friday December 09 2016, @06:46PM
Simple: the term "virtue signalling" has become, ironically, a signal beacon itself, same as the word "cuck." Its use nearly always identifies a certain ideology (fascism, of the neo-Nazi...excuse me, "alt-right" flavor) which itself can only take hold in people lacking the virtues of common humanity.
tl;dr: cry harder. you don't fool anyone but yourself.
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...