Freedom of the Press, Voices of the People Stifled

Events is recent weeks have highlighted a problem in growing nations as well as long established powers, the dissolution of a free press, or the access of foreign press. Tibet, Zimbabwe, and now Myanmar are all refusing access to journalists who want to report on the hardships of their people.

In Tibet, the Chinese are stamping out all means of unrest that could spoil the summer Olympics in Bejing; Tibetans complain of beatings and brutal killings. In Zimbabwe, President Robert Mugabe is hanging on grimly, trying to overthrow an apparent election loss by subterfuge and violence, after running his country into the ground for twenty years. And in Myanmar, after 46 years of iron rule by a military junta, the generals want to stop outsiders from witnessing the devastation of Cyclone Nargis. They're afraid of a threat to their power.

Unfortunately for their people, major disasters and human rights violations have caused a series of devastating events in the past weeks. In China, a severe earthquake has buries hundreds of schoolchildren and killed upwards of 10,000 people. The Chinese, for all of the consternation shown from Humanitarian agencies, is actually doing their part to help their citizens through disaster.

But Myanmar is a world removed from that reality. The government, just a day after a devastating cyclone claimed 32,000 lives (with another 33,000 still missing), decided to hold a constitutional referendum rather than delay it in order to help the victims. Girls danced and balloons were released into the air to celebrate the vote.

And the Myanmar government continues to block aid from foreign countries (and no doubt is redistributing and profiting off of the given supplies and aid) and allow their citizens to suffer. An undercover British correspondent said that as many as 100,000 may now be dead with as many as a million at risk due to disease and improper nutrition or water supply. As of now, over 2 million residents are without clean water or government assisted intervention.

It is a far cry away from the US, but instead of pressuring Myanmar to recognize its citizens (kinda like we did in Iraq) we have sent billions and will not ask where or how that money is being spent. I'm sure in 5 years there will be a beautiful new palace and government buildings, and maybe they'll even send a thank you note so the elite could live in luxury.

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Why Politics Should Stay Out of Science

Close to 900 scientists at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have experienced political interference in their work in the last 5 years. This study was conducted by the Union of Concerned Scientists who sent out 5,419 questionnaires with 1,586 responses. 889 scientists (60%) said they suffered at least one instance of political interference. 224 scientists had been "directed to inappropriately exclude or alter technical information from an EPA scientific document." Full information about the report can be found here.

This shouldn't come as a surprise as the Bush administration's political interference is very pervasive. I'm afraid its at a point where only a complete change of those in charge will release the hold that the corporate handhold has over true study and unbiased information. The EPA scientists obviously have something to say and I wish that they felt like they could come out and say it. The scientists, in fact, are the ones who own the EPA (an organization that means nothing without scientific backing) and all of the information deposited there. They should have ownership over the data, reports, and press releases that the agency constructs. This is bullcrap plain and simple and combined with the pervasive head-turning over the ozone issue leads me to believe that the only ones looking out for our wellbeing is ourselves. I shouldn't have to worry about the government skewing the information to further their corporate measures but I do and you should too.

Here are the report's top findings and quotes:

– 889 scientists (60 percent) said they had personally experienced
at least one instance of political interference in their work over the
last five years.

– 394 scientists (31 percent) personally experienced frequent or
occasional "statements by EPA officials that misrepresent scientists'
findings."

– 285 scientists (22 percent) said they frequently or occasionally
personally experienced "selective or incomplete use of data to justify
a specific regulatory outcome."

– 224 scientists (17 percent) said they had been "directed to
inappropriately exclude or alter technical information from an EPA
scientific document."

– Of the 969 agency veterans with more than 10 years of EPA
experience, 409 scientists (43 percent) said interference has occurred
more often in the past five years than in the previous five-year
period. Only 43 scientists (4 percent) said interference occurred less
often.

– Hundreds of scientists reported being unable to openly express
concerns about the EPA's work without fear of retaliation; 492 (31
percent) felt they could not speak candidly within the agency and 382
(24 percent) felt they could not do so outside the agency.

"OMB and the White House have, in some cases, compromised the integrity
of EPA rules and policies; their influence, largely hidden from the
public and driven by industry lobbying, has decreased the stringency of
proposed regulations for non-scientific, political reasons," said a
scientist from one of the agency's regional offices. "Because the real
reasons can't be stated, the regulations contain a scientific rationale
with little or no merit."

"Scientific integrity is the bedrock on which the federal science
establishment must rest," said Bill Hirzy, an EPA senior scientist and
senior vice president of the National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter
280, the union that represents EPA scientists. "Too many EPA scientists
have had to fight interference from political or private sector
interests and fear retaliation for speaking out."

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