Category: Politics – Miscellaneous

Betrayers of the Truth

The Book of the Week is “Betrayers of the Truth– Fraud and Deceit in the Halls of Science” by William Broad & Nicholas Wade, published in 1982.

Scientists have always emphasized that their ilk are “a rational, self-correcting, self-policing community of scholars.” They consider themselves to be superior because they believe their field of work is more “factual” and requires more education than other kinds of work. Yet even they behave in unethical ways– likely in the same proportion as the population at large– because they too, possess the unattractive traits of human nature.

The authors remarked that even some of the most famous scientists in history (such as Ptolemy, Galileo and Netwon to name just three) have fudged data, plagiarized, or lied about performing experiments they didn’t actually perform. The scientists wanted the data to fit their theories; they were lazy, greedy or glory-seeking, or a combination of those.

The authors lamented that the scientific community’s culture encouraged an atmosphere in which fraud could be perpetrated and perpetuated easily, and not be discovered for decades. In fact, the authors provided numerous, specific examples in which fraud flourished.

The reason scandals of misrepresentation in science are so dangerous is that they have a ripple effect on so many other areas of life– testing of food and drugs, matters of class and race, immigration, and education– to name a few.

At the book’s writing, publishing articles about their new discoveries in professional journals was the major way scientists furthered their careers. There was an avalanche of publications. The obscure publications had a decided lack of fact-checking of article-contents.

In 1962, and again in 1973, researchers sought to test honesty in the community. The results were less than stellar. “Fewer than one in four scientists were willing to provide raw data on request, without self-serving conditions, and nearly half of the studies analyzed had gross errors in their statistics alone.”

As is well known, science in academia has a hierarchical structure. The elitism feeds on itself. Big-name scientists at prestigious universities are necessarily trusted more for integrity than nobodies are, so their articles and grant applications are less carefully vetted, and they therefore get more prizes, editorships, and lectureships. Their reputations as “experts” become even more widespread.

However, history is rife with stories of nobodies who fought fiercely for recognition because they knew their methods or theories were superior. And often late in their careers, or posthumously, their contributions were recognized. Such greats included, but were certainly not limited to: George Ohm, Gregor Mendel, Alfred Wegener and Sister Kenny.

Sadly, it seems as though, now more than ever, many “science” shows on once-reputable cable-TV channels purport to educate viewers, but at best, convey trivia put out by profiteers, propagandists and attention whores.

Another indication of ignorance of science was highlighted during the coronavirus pandemic in America. Government at all levels ordered masking of all individuals while its propaganda machine squelched the fact that:

covering one’s face with non-sterile fabric and breathing in one’s own toxic exhalations more likely propagates illness rather than minimizes the spread of it!

According to NIH News, “Your mouth is home to about 700 species of germs, like bacteria, fungus, and more.”

Read the book to learn a wealth of additional details on how the scientific community takes care of its own, and other reasons dishonesty in science is actually more prevalent than it appears to be.

On and On

On and On

sung to the tune of “On and On” with apologies to Stephen Bishop.

There in D.C. they got lots of, witch hunters who,

steal your data, and they, abuse their power.

Nothing new in the world of political man.

James Bond wannabes and-the, prez’s evil plan.

On and on, they just keep on spying,

and they attack when they get caught lying.

On and on, on and on, on and on.

Much of history is fraught with vengeance,

audits, tapes, hard-drives and cams.

So they lawyer up when their plots come to light.

Get all righteous and childishly fight.

On and on, they just keep on spying,

and they attack when they get caught lying.

On and on, on and on, on and on.

Well, they act like, it’s the first time. They’re so shocked and appalled.

But they know how, to show it. The not-too-bright give them votes on election ni-i-ight.

Got the idiot box off and my nose in a book.

Won’t give the tabloids a second look.

Ah, but I’ll ignore the noise, I’ll just read and close-my-ears,

‘stead of fretting over their stupid smears.

On and on, I just keep on learning.

And I smile when others are burning.

On and on, on and on, on and on.

On and on, on and on, on and on.

On and on, on and on, on and on. Ooh, Ooh.

Appointment at the Ends of the World

The Book of the Week is “Appointment at the Ends of the World, Memoirs of A Wildlife Veterinarian” by William B. Karesh, published in 1999.

The American author traveled to exotic locales to participate in conservation projects for the Wildlife Conservation Society and other international aid organizations, which manage and study animals and their habitats and resources in tens of countries. He got special permission from governments to bring a vast quantity of supplies and equipment to jungles, savannas, forests, etc.

The author spent part of the year at the Bronx Zoo. In 1995, he flew to northeastern Zaire to treat an infection in one okapi, and was driven hours to enter a safari park to study white rhinos. His luggage weighed 220 pounds. It was full of sampling supplies (tubes, racks, pipettes, towels, etc.), drugs for the animals, immobilization / capture equipment (like oxygen and carbon dioxide tanks, cartridges and numerous accessories), animal-handling and marking equipment (clips, cards, etc.), books, cords, converters and other miscellaneous items, and camping gear. Not to mention, clothing.

In Bolivia, the author performed various tests to measure the amount of environmental contaminants in the bodies of wild caimans because they live thirty to forty years. Examining the reptiles at intervals can indicate changes in their aquatic habitats.

In Cameroon, the author encountered shenanigans. For, he had to hire local guides; the leader (a native Nigerian) was fluent in the English language, and allegedly skilled at finding forest-elephants. The leader led the group on a “wild-goose chase” for weeks. When the group finally got close enough to one animal at which to shoot a radio-transmitter dart and a tranquilizer-dart, the leader missed twice shooting the former dart. The adrenaline was pumping in the people too, because the territorial elephants can crush humans to death.

The author conceded that he was doing an extremely controversial job. He and his employers threw vast amounts of resources at animals to save their lives or help them survive. He behaved like a Darwin-award candidate at times, and at other times, ironically, over the long run– made conditions worse for his charges. Ecotourism, too, whose goal is profiteering (rather than sincere concern for endangered species)– has taken its toll on disrupting animal habitats.

The phrase “white savior complex” could now be applied to the way wealthy people condescendingly think that saving a few individuals will solve the extremely complex problems of survival faced by all of the earth’s organisms. It is fair to say that in recent decades, money has actually corrupted global efforts to save lots of them.

To boot, the decades wasted searching for aliens and Bigfoot have just muddied the waters more. Incidentally, as is well known, on the TV show Star Trek, the aliens always speak perfect American English. Lastly, people who bother animals to get attention are still a “thing” on the idiot box, despite Steve Irwin’s cautionary tale. Anyway, read the book to learn a wealth of additional details on the author’s career, and how it shaped his lifestyle.

Ghosts of the Tsunami – BONUS POST

The Bonus Book of the Week is “Ghosts of the Tsunami, Death and Life in Japan’s Disaster Zone” by Richard Lloyd Parry, published in 2017.

As is well known, cancer cases will cluster among residents near even peacetime nuclear facilities that are working properly. Sadly, Japan’s poor foresight on its energy policy turned it into a boatload of misfortune waiting to happen.

In March 2011, an earthquake and tsunami in Japan reminded the world yet again how one disaster can lead to another, especially when it comes to the use of nuclear energy. After radioactivity (colorless and odorless) from its three melted-down nuclear reactors spread across Japan’s countryside, leaving a huge number of people sick and dead, it closed its remaining fifty reactors. Taking a lesson,–Germany, Italy and Switzerland stopped their nuclear energy programs.

The author, however, focused mostly on the no less traumatic deaths (some of them needless) and destruction in one small place, caused by the disasters. He spent an extensive amount of time corresponding with victims in the fishing village of Onagawa on the island of Honshu, where there occurred a large percentage of needless drownings at the local elementary school: 74 of 108 kids, and 10 of the 11 teachers.

The Kitakami river overflowed its banks, but school administrators failed to take precautionary measures to evade the flooding. “Within five minutes– the time it had taken them to evacuate their classrooms– the entire school could have ascended hundreds of feet above sea level, beyond the reach of any conceivable tsunami.”

Read the book to learn about the victims’ families’ quests for finding their loved ones and for the true details of how they died, and whether their deaths were preventable.

Our Iceberg is Melting

The Book of the Week is “Our Iceberg is Melting, Changing and Succeeding Under Any Conditions” by John Kotter and Holger Rathgeber, published in 2005.

SIDENOTE: Candice Bergen was the daughter of the world-famous ventriloquist, Edgar Bergen, whose dummy was named Charlie McCarthy. Born in May 1946, Bergen was just as angry about what the older generation was doing with her world as Millennials are today, with what their elders are doing.

“In six months, mine [Bergen’s parents, by 1968] had seen me go from socialite to socialist; had listened to my sermonizing them on American militarism, the massacres of the American Indian, their destruction of the ecosystem, their invention of plastics and their introduction to pesticides and preservatives.” Even so, Bergen realized she still had so much to learn, even though she had all of the advantages a child of a celebrity receives from birth onward.

Anyway, despite the unrealistic title-subhead (“… Under Any Conditions”), this fable provided a simple framework of actions to take in order to effect change on a system, whether it be overturning an oppressive situation, reversing the destruction of the environment, improving a healthcare system, or protecting everyone from cyber-attackers or other social ills.

The story started when one alert penguin informed others in his colony that their lives were endangered by an environmental threat. Other penguins helped him by convincing the community that there was a clear and present danger that needed to be dealt with as soon as possible.

The colony’s leaders formed a committee (whose members had diverse talents and skills but were still able to maintain civil discourse when they disagreed) to decide what to do. They propagandized early and often, and made everyone feel empowered by getting everyone to take action. They achieved a small victory to show the colony that the problem could be solved. Then they went at the problem whole hog, and didn’t let up– kept propagandizing and empowering to ensure that the major change stuck.

Read the book to learn of specific examples of how a group of people can learn to do the same. Of course, their experience won’t be so cut and dried as this penguin fable, as human beings and their problems are more complex, and there are always going to be some who get greedy and /or power-hungry, or angry and vengeful at those who do.

Surviving the Extremes – BONUS POST

The Bonus Book of the Week is “Surviving the Extremes, A Doctor’s Journey to the Limits of Human Endurance” by Kenneth Kamler, M.D., published in 2004.

The author, a medical doctor, described people’s experiences: in the Amazon jungle, while deep-sea diving, on Mount Everest, in the desert, on the high seas, and in a spaceship. The adventurers were subjected to life-threatening conditions at every turn (by choice— they were Darwin award candidates), but possessed expertise and technology that bettered their chances of survival. Their local-area employees possessed the physical characteristics advantageous for survival because those employees had become adapted to the harsh conditions over the course of generations. Some people did die, though. However, the author failed to specify the time-frames of the above scenarios. The introduction of new technologies, and discoveries have probably prevented or mitigated some of those kinds of disasters, since the book’s writing.

One point the author made, concerns the relationship between the human brain and society. A society can regress when an influential leader in a position of power breaks a taboo. His followers will copy him and rationalize away the sin. It then becomes easier to break additional taboos. Eventually, fairness and morality go out the window, because human brains actually adopt a more primitive way of thinking.

The cerebral cortex of the brain guides the ethics of behavior, but the amygdala takes over when tempers flare, and impulse control decreases. If the amygdalas of a significant portion of the population are activated via vicious political rumors, such as:

  • Biden’s going to pack the U.S. Supreme Court!
  • Medicare’s going to be privatized!
  • Biden’s senile and Harris is going to take over the country!
  • The Republicans are going to win back the House in the 2022 midterm elections!

the nation’s behavior regresses. Enough said.

Anyway, read the book to learn a lot about the roles physiology, biochemical processes, psychology and man-made resources play in survival when humans are present in places that tax their limitations.

L.A. Justice – BONUS POST

The Bonus Book of the Week is “L.A. Justice, Lessons from the Firestorm” by Robert Vernon, published in 1993.

In 1954, the author joined the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). Through the decades of his career, he watched the LAPD become corrupted by the worst aspects of human nature. By the early 1990’s, the department had scrapped the civil service system in favor of using patronage in awarding promotions. This necessitated pleasing local politicians. Always a bad idea.

So at the tail end of April 1992, when the verdict was announced in the Rodney King legal case, law enforcement was unprepared for the rioting that broke out in South-Central Los Angeles.

The author, lately named assistant chief of police of Los Angeles, bragged about helping start a community program in 1990– successful at the book’s writing. It was called “Operation Cul-de-Sac” and involved transforming a high-crime neighborhood into a gated community. It was implemented in about seven hundred households in South Central Los Angeles. The author wrote, “… changing behavior must begin by influencing a belief system.”

The program must have done so, as it created support networks of families and friends, significantly reduced crime, and significantly increased school attendance.

Unfortunately, despite its success, the program was not to last much longer. The reason? It was funded by the LAPD– not special-interest political groups in the community. So local politicians were left out of the loop– unable to hand out patronage jobs.

Read the book to learn of all kinds of other frustrations suffered by the author in his experiences with the LAPD.