Thoughts in a Haystack: Gone Fishing

Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Gone Fishing

You may remember the attempts by the present Administration to muzzle NASA scientists by preventing any untoward comments on global warming and requiring the Big Bang to be referred to only as "a theory."

Well, it seems salmon have joined the list of politically sensitive topics that the Administration would prefer that government scientists not be in a position to make comments about that might prove embarrassing because they are true.

According to an article, "Questions About Salmon Are Directed Upstream" by Blaine Harden in the Washington Post, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which is responsible for protecting endangered salmon, has instructed its scientists to route all media questions about salmon back to three political appointees, who are now the only agency personnel authorized to speak of salmon.

At NOAA headquarters in Washington, spokesman Jeff Donald said the order came down because "some folks were trying to consolidate a little bit and make sure everything we were putting out was accurate and as up to date as possible."

Yeah, the last people you'd want to go to for the most up-to-date and accurate information are the scientists involved. Everybody knows politicians are the best source for that!

Link - Posted by John Pieret @ 1:43 PM