Saturday, December 12, 2009

The Death of Science

Supposedly, 1/10th of 1 percent of all individuals will reach the lofty benchmark of a doctoral degree in their chosen profession. Surely an erudite establishment if ever there were... right?

Then consider, if you will, America. Land of the free, home of the brave and whatnot. In the history of the world, has there ever been a place where one could enjoy such an enormity of freedom? Freedom of speech, of thought of religion.... you name it, we've got it....right?

So shouldn't America be a scientific utopia?

A paradise of ideas and intellect, where the mind is free to follow ideas and research where they will, unrestrained by dogma or institutionalized bias...

not so much..
not even close.

Science is no longer the realm of rich, brainy aristocrats who studied whatever they found important - it is a multibillion dollar industry and as such, subject to the capricious whims of those holding the purse strings. In other words, science has become a 'pay and play' arrangement where research is payed for hence designed for a specific purpose. Think tobacco research, pharmaceuticals, etc.

It is more than just money though - were it only dollar signs, I would be less concerned. Much of this scientific oligarchy unites behind a singular banner, 'the establishment'

I laugh/vomit a little in my mouth every time I hear some talking head science-idiot describe 'consensus' in science and the 'debate' over a certain subject being 'over'. Newtonian science was the consensus prior to Einstein, Ptolemy's earth centered universe was consensus prior to Copernicus, an atom was the smallest unit of matter prior to Max Plank or Einstein or whatever super egghead figured it out... the point being is science is rarely if EVER settled. When a better descriptor comes along, that is reproducible - then bingo, we have a new leading theory.

Like high school, science has been relegated to a popularity contest. You had better study black holes or string theory, man made global warming or Darwinian evolution if you want to be popular (and if you are unpopular, good luck getting a job by the way)

Science has become proclamation. One need go no further than global warming to understand this. It is the ultimate scientific establishment. The money and subsequent power that resides behind this badly flawed theorem is staggering. Careers are made or destroyed by either kneeling at or daring to question this particular thug-ocracy. Despite solid evidence of tampering (see Climate Gate emails, etc) the Global Warming Establishment is unfazed and continues it's relentless march - fueled by a self-righteousness unparalleled in most of our lifetimes. The inexorable assault on our liberty follows in it's footsteps - 'legitimized' all the while by 'science' to protect us from ourselves.

Science IS dead
Can it be resurrected?

Only if debate is encouraged and flourishes
Only if the 'establishment' can either accept competing ideas, or is removed
Only if science can commit to an open dialogue allowing for an open forum of ideas
Only if science becomes decoupled from politics

and monkeys might fly out of my ass..

In this current climate, science (and the rest of us for that matter) are completely screwed - I can only hope that a tipping point has been reached, where enough rational people have seen through the veil of hypocrisy and stupidity and insist upon (and fight for) a better tomorrow.

Pessimistic about today
Hopeful for tomorrow

Long live science

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Random Rantings 2, Electric Boogaloo

Cold medicine makes me slightly more ADD than normal - as such, coherent thought and I are more at odds than normal.

Which essentially leaves us with the week in review, on a Tuesday....

Feel free to bite me if this is an issue.

Yet I digress......

Random Rantings follow...
  • Dear God in heaven, Harry Reid is such an enormous jackass! Is there anyone but the most partisan of brain dead liberal hacks that actually buys in to the argument that voting against healthcare 'reform' is akin to voting against civil rights? Of course, the irony that it was largely Southern Democrats that voted against Civil Rights reform seems regrettably lost on this most monumental of douchebags (I apologize, gentle reader, for unleashing the 'D' Bomb so early in my rantings.... truly..). Further lost on this brain-dead embarrassment to the senate is that healthcare 'reform' will decrease choice (and as such, personal liberty)... so using his jackass logic in an unjackass-like fashion, voting against would be more in line with civil rights legislation, not for it.
  • Chris Matthews is wasting valuable oxygen. His whole 'West Point / Enemy Camp' and subsequent non-apology is worthy of a junk punch with a lead pipe assist....and yet... people still watch him. Perhaps the junk punch should be served to his viewing audience instead just on general principles....
  • 18(ish) days and NO reporting by the legacy / state-run / mindless sycophant media on Climategate.... Then again, this is the same august journalistic body that failed to report on Acorn until the cat was so far out of the bag that it got knocked-up, had a litter, got caught by Bob Barker, was neutered, had a reversal, had another litter and died during labor...
  • The 'Jobs' Summit. I am literally biting my tongue here...desperately trying to avoid a grossly descriptive modifier to this....but I shall resist! In his introduction, President Obama essentially said that he had done all that could be done and that any persistent difficulties with the economy (specifically job creation) was the fault of businesses, 'squeezing' productivity from workers..... growing fat off of profit, instead of creating new jobs. Almost forgot, there was only token small business representation present and the Chamber of Commerce was not invited (although not forgotten)
  • And bringing up the rear.... we have Kevin Jennings, President Obama's 'Safe School Czar' promoting 'fisting' to 14-year olds... a practice which one would assume would not be particularly safe, as anatomically speaking, a rectum is not designed for such activity...
Such rantings could go on ad nauseum, but my typing skills are weak and my eyelids heavy as the decongestants further kick in....

Besides, after all of that, do you really need more things to be irritated about?

and for the record, Harry Reid is a larger douchebag than Dr. Phil.....barely.