"It's not surprising that John McCain thinks there is no point to studying the DNA of bears, but even as he denounces its funding as frivolous, Obama and Clinton should then be as fervent in their support of such initiatives."
It has not been lost on me that Democrats are trying to reclaim some electoral territory once dominated by Republicans by touting their faith cred. In fact, as appealing a candidate Barack Obama is, I have for years been uncomfortable with the degree to which he espouses his belief in religious tenets (contrary to popular opinion, I think it is relevant to ask any presidential candidate how their religious or dogmatic beliefs will affect their decision making in office, but that's for another entry). I understand that the whole point is to prevent Democrats from ceding the religious vote, especially considering that not all (or even most?) religious people are conservative nutbags.
I would be much more appeased if all the talk about Jesus and faith could be balanced with discussion of issues relating to science and technology. The subject of scientific research is usually a throwaway comment as part of a laundry list of solutions meant to reduce foreign oil dependency, and sometimes when the stem cell debate perennially heats up. But there is very little substantive discussion about the impact our species has on the planet, long-term human sustainability on Earth, telecommunications policy (and access), the merits of research-for-the-sake-of-research, etc. It's not surprising that John McCain thinks there is no point to studying the DNA of bears, but even as he denounces its funding as frivolous, Obama and Clinton should then be as fervent in their support of such initiatives.
A recent Wired posting bemoans this very situation in the specific, as Obama and Clinton put their fingers in their ears and cry "la la la I can't hear you" to the scientific community:
The two remaining Democratic presidential candidates recently agreed to participate in the Compassion Forum, scheduled for April 13 at Messiah College in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Billed as a conversation on faith and values, the event will be broadcast by the Church Communication Network. It also comes five days before a proposed science debate that was canceled after the candidates refused to participate.
The would-be debate was organized by Science Debate 2008, a coalition of scientists, academics, business leaders and citizens who've pushed the candidates to talk about scientific issues that -- despite their critical importance to America's well-being -- have been downplayed during the campaign and within the nation's political discourse.
What are they afraid of? Surely, two people as intelligent as they are not ignorant of the salience of scientific issues. Do they fear that by attending such an event they will offend believers? Are those who would be offended by such a move likely to vote for them in a general election in the first place?
Their avoidance troubles me, and I would very much like to see the media press them on this. If they feel there's no room for it in the waning primary season, I'd like to see them commit to such an event with Sen. McCain in the fall. Get them on the record as to why they believe a discussion on science and technology is not worth their time.
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Feel free to yell at me over at Near Earth Object.