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I'm not a researcher or a scientist (though I have dreams of lab coats and pipettes and whatnot sometimes), However, even I understand that research on insects and animals is very important to scientific discovery. You can argue that it's wrong to do research on animals, etc etc, but that's not anything like what Sarah Palin said in a policy speech:| "For many parents of children with disabilities, the most valuable thing of all is information. Early identification of a cognitive or other disorder, especially autism, can make a life-changing difference. |
What does she blame for what she sees as a lack of funding for autism research?| "Where does a lot of that earmark money end up anyway? […] You’ve heard about some of these pet projects they really don’t make a whole lot of sense and sometimes these dollars go to projects that have little or nothing to do with the public good. Things like fruit fly research in Paris, France. I kid you not. [Audience Laughter] |
She kids you not! It's true! Those stupid scientists - they're actually funding research on fruit flies! What idiots!
Oh, wait, what? ThinkProgress points out that UNC researchers don't find fruit flies quite so hilarious... and neither should Sarah:"[S]cientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine have shown that a protein called neurexin is required for..nerve cell connections to form and function correctly.
The discovery, made in Drosophila fruit flies may lead to advances in understanding autism spectrum disorders, as recently, human neurexins have been identified as a genetic risk factor for autism. |
Open mouth, insert Alaskan foot in ridiculous, mind-blowingly stupid mouth. Dr. Myers has a few things to say as well and has a great video by Dr. Manzoor Bhat and Joseph Piven, M.D. of UNC
I'm not surprised to hear this kind of talk from Palin, but what everyone wants to know is if this is another case of Palin going rogue or if some speechwriter is actually stupid enough to put this kind of idiocy into a major policy speech. Maybe this is the beginning of the cornerstone of Palin's 2012 Presidential run: "Palin 2012 - Science Is Stupid"
UPDATE: Dr. Myers points out that this is a pattern with McCain and Palin that leads to a disdain for science spending overall. McCain is also making fun of bear DNA studies to which"McCain introduced three amendments to reduce funding for other projects. But he didn't vote to cut the bear study. In fact, the study cost more than he says it did -- about $5 million, not $3 million. Maybe McCain voted for the study because, as much as he may get a kick out of ridiculing it, it is not some frivolous exercise in furry forensics. Nor is it partisan. Its funding was originally championed by Republican lawmakers, and its goal is one that both conservationists and "Drill, baby drill" cheerleaders can get behind.
The Northern Divide Grizzly Bear Project attempts to answer basic scientific questions about one of the largest populations of grizzly bears left in the lower 48 states. How many grizzly bears live in a 12,000-square-mile area in and around Glacier National Park? What is their distribution? What's their gender breakdown? Are they breeding with bears from Canada? |
Also, let us not forget the overhead projector McCain so spitefully laughed at during the debates was actually | "Adler’s Zeiss Mark VI star projector: a venerable piece of precision fabricated equipment that projects the stars, constellations, and other objects inside the planetarium dome. Adler’s Zeiss is 40 years old, and desperately needs replacing. These machines are pricey, and replacing them difficult. |
The venerable Christopher Hitchens has a great article at Slate:| "This is what the Republican Party has done to us this year: It has placed within reach of the Oval Office a woman who is a religious fanatic and a proud, boastful ignoramus. Those who despise science and learning are not anti-elitist. They are morally and intellectually slothful people who are secretly envious of the educated and the cultured. And those who prate of spiritual warfare and demons are not just "people of faith" but theocratic bullies. On Nov. 4, anyone who cares for the Constitution has a clear duty to repudiate this wickedness and stupidity. |
The hatred of science evidence in this malarky is sad and makes me angry. Luckily, these bastards are losing.
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