Comments on: Canada to science: Drop dead

By: Ryan Lenethen

Ryan Lenethen — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 14:43:00 +0000

So, not a big fan of Harper, the Conservatives, or “muzzling” scientists however:

“Canadian journalists have documented several instances in which prominent researchers have been prevented from discussing published, peer-reviewed literature.”

So apparently they are still publishing and having literature peer reviewed, etc… I am sure they are not the first scientist that had their government clamp down on information.

Anyway it is deplorable, and Harpar has to go etc.. yadda yadda yadda, but I don’t think this one is as big as it is being made out to be.

By: Ant

Ant — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 22:51:00 +0000

What’s up with the world not supporting science?

By: TimRowledge

TimRowledge — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 23:12:00 +0000

And while we’re at it, stop govt. funding of armies, naives and other military forces. And police. And no more govt. funded govt.! It’s *just wrong*!

By: AnthonyC

AnthonyC — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 15:51:00 +0000

Is there any law to prevent a scientist from making a quick trip south and talking to the press here? Except, you know, potentially sabatoging their ability to get finding in the future.

By: msbpodcast

msbpodcast — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 11:52:00 +0000

Like politicians at several points in history tried to pass laws making π = 3, which just doesn't work. (See the Incomplete Book Of Failures by Stephen Pile ISBN: 978-0525475897) Sorry politicians but science strives to describe how things actually work, not what would be more convenient for your party. To politicians and lawyers it often seems like science is always hedging its bets because they never come out and say something is absolute and unquestionable. That's because nothing is absolute and unquestionable. Engineering is also a question of precision to within certain tolerances. Politicians and other lawyers demand Euclidian precision when the world is fractal and the length of a beach depends on the size of the ruler used to measure it.

By: digi_owl

digi_owl — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 06:55:00 +0000

Makes me wonder if dark ages are a cyclical thing.

By: Hakuin

Hakuin — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 01:40:00 +0000

Iceland is nice.

By: Bob N Johnson

Bob N Johnson — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 01:03:00 +0000

Let me get this straight, they are attempting to curtail and control the one characteristic that allows humans to be human, for better or worse.

And what is that characteristic?

The single most important characteristic of humans is cumulative culture, our ability to learn, share knowledge, and build on the lessons of others.

In other words stop being human.

Nuts.

Imagine a world where every newly minted human had to rediscover fire.

By: theophrastvs

theophrastvs — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 00:43:00 +0000

yes of course, straight from the constitution act of 1982, but its application is far more easily abridged – and that was the point of the British-Columbia story. for instance: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/story/2008/08/08/westboro-protest.html?ref=rss …this “freedom of speech” issue, which is required to be tolerated in the states is fairly easily halted in Canada as “hate speech”. mind you, i dislike this particular church even more than you do; but as they say, sometimes you have to let the nazis march, or someday you won’t be allowed to.

By: RuthlessRuben

RuthlessRuben — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 00:28:00 +0000

Show me the country filled with geniuses and I show you Utopia.

By: recceninja

recceninja — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 00:17:00 +0000

From the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (emphasis is mine):

Fundamental freedoms

2. Everyone has the following fundamental freedoms:(a) freedom of conscience and religion;

(b) freedom of thought, belief, OPINION AND EXPRESSION, INCLUDING FREEDOM OF THE PRESS AND OTHER MEDIA OF COMMUNICATION;

(d) freedom of association.

By: Antinous / Moderator

Antinous / Moderator — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 23:47:00 +0000

So you’re saying that science should not only drop dead but burn in hell?

By: frozenintime

frozenintime — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 23:39:00 +0000

Harper has to go. Let this be a fortaste of what the US govt. will be like if the republicans take control.

By: Hakuin

Hakuin — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 22:46:00 +0000

“Ack ack ack! , we come in peace!” Sigh… Canadians are collectively such idiots.

By: salvodan

salvodan — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 22:42:00 +0000

I find it disgusting that they would schedule a free feed to conflict with the Panel.
That sort of blatant subterfuge paints a very poor picture of the government.

By: Tynam

Tynam — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 22:18:00 +0000

Nice idea, but who pays? Hint: Privately funded research ~= short term concentration on things that show immediate profit potential.

Wide-ranging research is like transport: a public good that can never get enough funding in the right places from private donations alone.

By: theophrastvs

theophrastvs — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 22:11:00 +0000

There wouldn’t even be an internet for you to have written this if we depended purely on private research.

By: anonymity86

anonymity86 — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 22:06:00 +0000

The solution is stop government sponsored scientific research.

The government should not be doing science for precisely this reason. Politicians should not control scientists. They should not determine what they research, how the research it, and who they tell about it. Politicians control the government therefore science should not be done by the government.

Scientific research should be done by (private) universities, think tanks, research institutions, and corporations, but not the government.

Whatever Canada spends on government research should be deducted by the government and sent back to the tax payers as tax refunds, they can donate the money to a research institution if they so choose. That is freedom.

By: Romeo Vitelli

Romeo Vitelli — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 21:58:00 +0000

Unfortunately, the Harpocrats have a clear field to do whatever they want until the next election. I kind of miss the days when Canada had an effective opposition…

By: theophrastvs

theophrastvs — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 21:46:00 +0000

It might be notable to consider that Canada has no “1st Amendment” protections. (yes yes, it’s not a super well protected or clearly interpreted law in the U.S. either) A case in point occurred in southern British Columbia a couple years ago. It seems that some Pakistani born folks had leased a radio station in the states just south of the Canadian border from which they were broadcasting some fairly annoying and probable lies about the British Columbian government. “Why can’t you just shut them down?!”, demanded a British Columbia M.P. to the Washington State officials. “Well, they’re protected under the 1st Amendment”, said the Olympia bureaucrats. “That’s ridiculous! freedom of speech doesn’t mean the freedom to lie, in Canada!“, was the response. So there are still some significant differences between; and it isn’t always the case that it’s worse to the south ;)

By: Jupiter BFPOE

Jupiter BFPOE — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 21:39:00 +0000

Of course the conservative government want’s to block science. Science is concerned with facts and facts are notoriously liberally biased.

By: Daniel Wright

Daniel Wright — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 21:36:00 +0000

Power Corrupts… yeah, you got it.

By: B E Pratt

B E Pratt — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 21:29:00 +0000

What? Fascist-like stupidity is not embarrassing? Essplain, Lucy!

By: davegroff

davegroff — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 21:29:00 +0000

Thanks for keeping a spotlight on this Maggie!

By: freshacconci

freshacconci — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 21:16:00 +0000

This is not embarrassing at all.