Dave writes, “You were kind enough to post my round-up of Canadian politics’ dumbest moments last year. Well, this year it seems things have gotten even crazier as we head towards Banana Republic status. Senators taking the country for a financial ride. A government spending millions on self-serving advertising campaigns. We even have some good old fashioned book-burnings!”
Read below for just the War on Science bit. But get a tissue first, as it’s enough to make you cry.
It’s getting so bad that scientists are actually starting to march in protest. Prompting our “Science Minister” to send out fundraising letters to combat “radical ideologue” scientist.
Not all science is bad though. When you can re-purpose a Federal Research Organization (The NRC) to do science on behalf of industry, that’s good science! When you can just sort of make some shit up about polar bears to forward your climate change denying ideals, that’s good science! When you can use “science” to determine when life begins, that’s good science!
Unfortunately, most science in Canada is bad science, and needs to be scrapped. Research into the effect of lead bullets and shot? Scrap it! Fisheries libraries with irreplaceable documents (many fisheries libraries…and apparently not just libraries but budgets and jobs at the DFO as well…and perhaps proof that it’s been done to “cull materials” rather than “save money”)? Scrap them! Protection for endangered freshwater fish? Scrap it! A program that has greatly reduced heroin overdoses on the Downtown East Side? Better try to scrap that! Doctors trying to reduce heroin dependency using prescription heroin? Scrap it! The UN Drought Convention? Scrap it!
And this is how crazy it has gotten. Can you believe that Statscan is actually putting disclaimers on it’s data due to scrapping of the mandatory long form census? Our Environment Minister has doubts about climate change! Gee, can’t imagine why they are so afraid of admitting that climate change is real?
(Image: Stephen Harper, Flickr)