Why punish a scientist for defending science?
https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/why-...ng-science-
EXCERPTS: For background, Professor Cooper is about as eminent as you can get in his field. He is professor of biochemistry and clinical biochemistry at the University of Auckland, where he also leads the Proteomics and Biomedicine Research Group. [...] So why is this distinguished scientist at risk of being expelled from New Zealand’s most prestigious academic society?
Several months ago he was one of seven signatories to a letter in the New Zealand Listener that took issue with a proposal by a government working group that schools should give the same weight to Maori mythology as they do to science in the classroom. That is, the Maori understanding of the world — that all living things originated with Rangi and Papa, the sky mother and sky god, for instance — should be presented as just as valid as the theories of Galileo, Newton and Darwin.
The authors of the letter, ‘In Defence of Science’, were careful to say that indigenous knowledge was ‘critical for the preservation and perpetuation of culture and local practices, and plays key roles in management and policy’ and should be taught in New Zealand’s schools. But they drew the line at treating it as on a par with physics, chemistry and biology...
[...] In a rational world, this letter would have been regarded as uncontroversial. ... But the moment this letter was published all hell broke loose. The views of the authors, who were all professors at Auckland, were denounced ... Two of Professor Cooper’s academic colleagues, Dr Siouxsie Wiles and Dr Shaun Hendy, issued an ‘open letter’ condemning the heretics for causing ‘untold harm and hurt’.
... The witch-finders disregarded several principles of natural justice in their prosecutorial zeal.... (MORE - missing details)
MIT's ideological trend - Merit vs. Wokeness: Universities Must Choose.
https://humanevents.com/2021/12/02/merit...st-choose/
EXCERPTS: Today, the 160 year-old-institution, once a bedrock of science and innovation, has caved to the demands of “wokeness.” In autumn of 2020, MIT sent an email to students, including those already registered and attending, informing them that if they failed to undergo instruction in “diversity, equity, and inclusion,” and “sexual assault prevention ongoing: healthy relationships,” they would be unable to register for spring classes. “You will have a registration hold placed on your account and will be unable to register for [Independent Activities Period] and/or spring 2021 classes if you do not complete both trainings by the November 2nd deadline,” the email read.
Portions of the actual training materials are available here. The training turns out to be what you would expect: a bunch of compulsory videos that cannot be fast-forwarded, containing deftly-worded but fatuous questions that let you know (without coming right out and saying it) that straight white males are the “intersection” of all oppressive behaviors. Everyone else is an oppressed victim of some sort, with extra victimization points for being a member of multiple minorities. (Fortunately, the passing score is zero, so most students will be allowed to resume their studies.)
This new policy is just one instance of a dangerous trend: MIT’s administration is acting in ways that we consider unfair, hypocritical, and harmful to the university, its student body, and academic freedom generally.
[...] the university’s negligence permits egregiously unethical and dangerous writing and speeches by some of its staff. For instance, MIT computer scientist Stephanie Seneff, who alleges that prescription drugs and genetically engineered crops paired with the weedkiller glyphosate (Roundup) cause autism, ADHD, and other maladies. Seneff has long made inflammatory, inaccurate, and baseless claims about crop biotechnology and pesticides, and the causes of COVID-19.
Most pernicious of all, she has charged that the COVID-19 vaccines are dangerous and cause “a wide range of blood disorders, neurodegenerative diseases, and autoimmune diseases,” and that they “could modify the DNA of those receiving the vaccination”—although she acknowledged herself that there was no evidence to support this speculation. Seneff’s baseless criticism of the COVID-19 vaccines has made her a prominent figure in the anti-vaccine movement. During an appearance on a television program sponsored by the notoriously unethical Children’s Health Defense (CHD), Seneff warned the audience not to “go near” the mRNA vaccines.
These actions alone cross the line of acceptable behavior and protected speech and, arguably, for a university scientist, constitute professional misconduct. And yet, MIT has tolerated Seneff’s anti-social antics for years—all while punishing Father Moloney and Professor Dorian Abbot for speech that is not remotely unethical or problematic.
[...] PRINCIPLES OF FAIRNESS VS. PRINCIPLES OF WOKENESS
Complaining without offering a solution (beyond ceasing financial support to the offending institution) is not enough, and we would like to suggest a way for MIT to return to our good graces. We suggest adoption of the following Principles of Fairness:
(1) Facts are not racist. Stating facts is not racism.
(2) A person’s ethnicity or skin color does not make him or her a racist, oppressor, or victim.
(3) Intellectual ability and achievement are the principal requirements for admission to our (or any) university and for faculty hiring and promotions.
(4) Diversity of opinions is desired and supported.
(5) A just, democratic society requires equal opportunity, equal justice, and equal responsibility. It does not require equal outcomes.
(6) Adherence to the statements above must not be sacrificed for political, social, or public relations considerations. (MORE - missing details)
https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/why-...ng-science-
EXCERPTS: For background, Professor Cooper is about as eminent as you can get in his field. He is professor of biochemistry and clinical biochemistry at the University of Auckland, where he also leads the Proteomics and Biomedicine Research Group. [...] So why is this distinguished scientist at risk of being expelled from New Zealand’s most prestigious academic society?
Several months ago he was one of seven signatories to a letter in the New Zealand Listener that took issue with a proposal by a government working group that schools should give the same weight to Maori mythology as they do to science in the classroom. That is, the Maori understanding of the world — that all living things originated with Rangi and Papa, the sky mother and sky god, for instance — should be presented as just as valid as the theories of Galileo, Newton and Darwin.
The authors of the letter, ‘In Defence of Science’, were careful to say that indigenous knowledge was ‘critical for the preservation and perpetuation of culture and local practices, and plays key roles in management and policy’ and should be taught in New Zealand’s schools. But they drew the line at treating it as on a par with physics, chemistry and biology...
[...] In a rational world, this letter would have been regarded as uncontroversial. ... But the moment this letter was published all hell broke loose. The views of the authors, who were all professors at Auckland, were denounced ... Two of Professor Cooper’s academic colleagues, Dr Siouxsie Wiles and Dr Shaun Hendy, issued an ‘open letter’ condemning the heretics for causing ‘untold harm and hurt’.
... The witch-finders disregarded several principles of natural justice in their prosecutorial zeal.... (MORE - missing details)
MIT's ideological trend - Merit vs. Wokeness: Universities Must Choose.
https://humanevents.com/2021/12/02/merit...st-choose/
EXCERPTS: Today, the 160 year-old-institution, once a bedrock of science and innovation, has caved to the demands of “wokeness.” In autumn of 2020, MIT sent an email to students, including those already registered and attending, informing them that if they failed to undergo instruction in “diversity, equity, and inclusion,” and “sexual assault prevention ongoing: healthy relationships,” they would be unable to register for spring classes. “You will have a registration hold placed on your account and will be unable to register for [Independent Activities Period] and/or spring 2021 classes if you do not complete both trainings by the November 2nd deadline,” the email read.
Portions of the actual training materials are available here. The training turns out to be what you would expect: a bunch of compulsory videos that cannot be fast-forwarded, containing deftly-worded but fatuous questions that let you know (without coming right out and saying it) that straight white males are the “intersection” of all oppressive behaviors. Everyone else is an oppressed victim of some sort, with extra victimization points for being a member of multiple minorities. (Fortunately, the passing score is zero, so most students will be allowed to resume their studies.)
This new policy is just one instance of a dangerous trend: MIT’s administration is acting in ways that we consider unfair, hypocritical, and harmful to the university, its student body, and academic freedom generally.
[...] the university’s negligence permits egregiously unethical and dangerous writing and speeches by some of its staff. For instance, MIT computer scientist Stephanie Seneff, who alleges that prescription drugs and genetically engineered crops paired with the weedkiller glyphosate (Roundup) cause autism, ADHD, and other maladies. Seneff has long made inflammatory, inaccurate, and baseless claims about crop biotechnology and pesticides, and the causes of COVID-19.
Most pernicious of all, she has charged that the COVID-19 vaccines are dangerous and cause “a wide range of blood disorders, neurodegenerative diseases, and autoimmune diseases,” and that they “could modify the DNA of those receiving the vaccination”—although she acknowledged herself that there was no evidence to support this speculation. Seneff’s baseless criticism of the COVID-19 vaccines has made her a prominent figure in the anti-vaccine movement. During an appearance on a television program sponsored by the notoriously unethical Children’s Health Defense (CHD), Seneff warned the audience not to “go near” the mRNA vaccines.
These actions alone cross the line of acceptable behavior and protected speech and, arguably, for a university scientist, constitute professional misconduct. And yet, MIT has tolerated Seneff’s anti-social antics for years—all while punishing Father Moloney and Professor Dorian Abbot for speech that is not remotely unethical or problematic.
[...] PRINCIPLES OF FAIRNESS VS. PRINCIPLES OF WOKENESS
Complaining without offering a solution (beyond ceasing financial support to the offending institution) is not enough, and we would like to suggest a way for MIT to return to our good graces. We suggest adoption of the following Principles of Fairness:
(1) Facts are not racist. Stating facts is not racism.
(2) A person’s ethnicity or skin color does not make him or her a racist, oppressor, or victim.
(3) Intellectual ability and achievement are the principal requirements for admission to our (or any) university and for faculty hiring and promotions.
(4) Diversity of opinions is desired and supported.
(5) A just, democratic society requires equal opportunity, equal justice, and equal responsibility. It does not require equal outcomes.
(6) Adherence to the statements above must not be sacrificed for political, social, or public relations considerations. (MORE - missing details)