A war on... science?

[morsla]

So, it now seems that America's waging a War On Science. In the interest of protecting its citizens from themselves, the Consumer Product Safety Division has outlawed many chemicals that can be used in the manufacture of fireworks, rockets, or recreational drugs.

Sounds reasonable so far... or does it?

"By legislating away amateur chemistry and rocketry, we are depriving an entire generation of potential innovators that same chance. All in the name of a little extra false security. “People who want to make meth will find ways to do it that don’t require an Erlenmeyer flask. But raising a generation of people who are technically incompetent is a recipe for disaster.” says Bill Nye."
(America's War on Science)

So, children's chemistry sets are being gutted or removed from sale, cutting off something that's fostered a curiosity about science in generations of kids. That's only a part of the problem, though - the restrictions don't stop at the chemicals themselves. Whatever the intent, the devil's in the details...

"It is illegal in Texas, for example, to buy such basic labware as Erlenmeyer flasks or three-necked beakers without first registering with the state’s Department of Public Safety to declare that they will not be used to make drugs. Among the chemicals the Portland, Oregon, police department lists online as “commonly associated with meth labs” are such scientifically useful compounds as liquid iodine, isopropyl alcohol, sulfuric acid, and hydrogen peroxide, along with chemistry glassware and pH strips."
(Wired 14.06 Don't Try This at Home)

"I'm sorry sir, you'll need a registration card to purchase that beaker." Yet some of those states don't require permits for firearms...

Comments

[peacockangel.livejournal.com]

I've been reading about the War on Science, as you so aptly named it, as well. I am becoming more and more embarressed to call myself an American.

[morsla.livejournal.com]

Much like we feel whenever our Prime Minister opens his mouth...

There's one upside to having so many countries run by idiots, though - when you have one in your own country, it reminds you not to judge people from other countries by their prime ministers and presidents :)

bishi_wannabe found a great quote that seems to sum things up nicely...

"When a candidate for public office faces the voters he does not face men of sense; he faces a mob of men whose chief distinguishing mark is the fact that they are quite incapable of weighing ideas, or even of comprehending any save the most elemental — men whose whole thinking is done in terms of emotion, and whose dominant emotion is dread of what they cannot understand. So confronted, the candidate must either bark with the pack or be lost... All the odds are on the man who is, intrinsically, the most devious and mediocre — the man who can most adeptly disperse the notion that his mind is a virtual vacuum. The Presidency tends, year by year, to go to such men. As democracy is perfected, the office represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. We move toward a lofty ideal. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron. "

HL Mencken (1920)

[peacockangel.livejournal.com]

That is an excellent quote. I had a quote to send back, but I forgot it. If I remember, I'll tell you.