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| Intimidation... | | Date Created: Jul 21, 2005, 09:20 AM |
Let's say you're a Republican representative from the state of Texas with close ties to the oil industry. And let's say that you've decided that all those scientists talking about global warming could put a slight dent in your wallet (yeah right, as if). What would you do? The answer, according to Rep. Joe Barton a mouth-breathing Republican from Texas, is obvious: Investigate the scientists.
Take a look at his responses to his fellow Republicans. This guy is a real peach. To paraphrase Jeff Foxworthy, "if even other Republicans think you're a nutcase, then you might be a redneck."
On the surface, I have no problem with elected officials examining the scientific conclusions funded by public dollars. (However, I was under the impression that was what the NIH, the NSF, and other government agencies were for.) The real issue here is how, exactly, does a wacko like Barton propose to evaluate the scientific merit of the research of Drs. Mann, Bradley, and Hughes? I'm not saying that he's too stupid to understand the science but assessing the scientific merit of this work should be more than simply saying, "Duh...um...I don't like your fancy scientific idears."
I'm not sure I understand the point of this probe anyway. Haven't we already found out that the White House simply changes the conclusions of scientific reports that it doesn't agree with? |
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