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General discussion (archive)Only 9% of scientists are conservative, 9% Republican(175 posts)(175 posts)
(175 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted September 01, 2013
Mistake in the title: Only 6% of scientists are Republican



Only 9% of scientists self-identified as conservatives.

Only 6% of scientists self-identified as Republicans.

http://chronicle.com/article/The-Conservative-Turn-Against/135488/

"Survey data taken from 1974 through 2010 and analyzed by Gordon Gauchat in the American Sociological Review confirm that most American scientists are not conservatives. A 2009 study by the Pew Research Center found that only 9 percent of scientists self-identified as conservative, while 52 percent called themselves liberals. Only 6 percent of American scientists self-identified as Republicans."
Post edited September 01, 2013 by ktchong
Posted September 01, 2013
That doesn't really mean anything though other than that most polled (American) scientists happen to be democratic leaning.
Posted September 01, 2013
I don't see a problem with that. The GOP is the party of anti-science and anti-intellectualism, so it's hardly a shocker that scientists wouldn't feel welcome there. Especially seeing as the GOP is regularly trying to cut funding for R&D.

Also, conservatives in the US tend to be rather supportive of somethings that get thoroughly debunked during a typical science education. Evolution, climate change and such have no real opposition in the scientific world at this point, sure there are a few that argue anyways, but mostly they're doing it for pay. As in they're being paid to do the research even though they know it's not going to go anywhere. But, there are a lot of stupidly rich conservatives willing to front the money and keep the "controversy" going.
Posted September 01, 2013
I still think it is sad that I have to read anything on the internet as if I was American and assumed that everyone else was. It is so hard to pay lip service to this? Republican to me means in support of removing the monarchy, and I'm pretty sure that is not the intent.
Posted September 01, 2013
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_Bruce_: I still think it is sad that I have to read anything on the internet as if I was American and assumed that everyone else was. It is so hard to pay lip service to this? Republican to me means in support of removing the monarchy, and I'm pretty sure that is not the intent.
Agreed and that applies to anything else similar.
Posted September 01, 2013
It's not surprising.

Many of the more conservative policies fall apart pretty quickly when you look at the facts and of course, scientists are trained to look at the facts and analyze them as dispassionately as possible.

Once you have the relevant facts (or in some case, the ability to apply simple mathematical logic properly with few very basic facts), it's not that hard to debunk the war on drugs, criminalization of gay marriage, criminalization of abortion, free market economy without checks, the idea that the economy can grow ad infinitum and tons of other more conservative ideas.
Post edited September 01, 2013 by Magnitus
Posted September 01, 2013
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_Bruce_: I still think it is sad that I have to read anything on the internet as if I was American and assumed that everyone else was. It is so hard to pay lip service to this? Republican to me means in support of removing the monarchy, and I'm pretty sure that is not the intent.
Yes, death to those inbred royal bastards!
Posted September 01, 2013
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Magnitus: the idea that the economy can grow ad infinitum
Going to pick this out from your list because it *is* true. The economy is based on (ultimately) raw resources and added value. Raw resources are limited, but our efficiency in using them is increasing (and there is always off planet resources). Added value is not limited in anyway. Does a modern car cost more to make than a car from 50 years ago? Do they have the same value?
Posted September 01, 2013
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Magnitus: the idea that the economy can grow ad infinitum
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_Bruce_: Going to pick this out from your list because it *is* true. The economy is based on (ultimately) raw resources and added value. Raw resources are limited, but our efficiency in using them is increasing (and there is always off planet resources). Added value is not limited in anyway. Does a modern car cost more to make than a car from 50 years ago? Do they have the same value?
Some aspects of the economy can grow near infinitely. For example, the expansion of knowledge and intellectual property, assuming it is distributed digitally can grow infinitely for the foreseeable future due to the plentiful supply of storage medium.

The more physically intensive side of the economy has more stern limits.

The process can be made more efficient, to a degree, but you hit some hard limits at some point. For example, there is x amount of material in a car. You can make the car smaller, but only to a degree. You can recycle, but it's not a perfect process and not all materials recycle well. And let's not forget to mention all the pressure that high end manufacturing puts on the ecosystem (will that improve? Probably. Will that improvement hit some hard limits at some point? Again, probably).

So yeah, in short. If your idea of an infinite economy is an ever increasing supply of books and video games for everyone, you are perfectly correct.

If you idea of an infinite economy is that everyone can buy ever growing houses and an increasing car collection each year, reality will slap you in the face pretty quickly.

I personally think that the beginning of a potential solution might be to literally split the economy in two (between things that can grow near infinitely and things that can't) and regulate the later a lot more strictly.
Post edited September 01, 2013 by Magnitus
Posted September 01, 2013
That's because they're busy defending your freedom. Only 9% of the U.S. military force is liberal (as opposed to 45% conservative-leaning).

Booyah!: :)


For real, I think there are many reasons conservatives are not scientists, and I think most of the reasons are far less dubious than one may suppose. Though I could be wrong.

And if we turn this into a Big-Bang/Evolution/Young Earth debate, I still fully believe that a person's view on those subjects plays a very, very, very small role in their scientific work. I've met many scientists who were Christians who did great work. The scientific method can be applied by anyone with just a little training.

It would be unwise to be conservatiphobic, Chrisitiaphobic or republiphobic. Whenever we exact our most certain prejudices, we tend to shut out those whom could be our closest friends and allies if we just took the time to get to know them.
Posted September 01, 2013
And just how many happen to be libertarian or something else related to limited government? And how much of percentage of American scientists were polled?

Just because someone is wise in terms of science doesn't mean that person is wise in terms of politics.

Also those who claim the GOP is anti-intellectual should look at themselves first. Last time I checked, it was the conservatives who understood economics better than some liberal who thinks blowing non-existent money on federal bureaucracies who use it so that their employees pay next to nothing to their perks and then gives whatever is left to growing number of welfare recipients is somehow financially sustainable. Not to mention that conservatives acknowledge that not all business owners get corporate tax protections as suppose to some liberal who claims to support small business but then supports heavy regulations and high taxes that an unincorporated business and small LLCs cannot afford.

Also, it's the conservatives who actually use analysis and further research to back up their stances like when they point out how justifiable homicides get included in statistics concerning gun-related deaths or how the FBI reported that the US got safer even as private gun sales legally increased as suppose to the liberals who think banning guns would make them disappear from criminal hands or merge heaven with earth even yet those same liberals worship a president who armed the drug cartels of Mexico with thousands of government-owned rifles, shotguns, and handguns; ignore the troubles of other countries like how Australia ended up with a higher amount of rape per capita than the US; and probably smoke marijuana, an illegal plant.

Also seeing that the topic creator is using an anti-Tea Party symbol as his user picture, it seems that he needs to assess himself before assessing others.

The following briefly illustrate why liberals should never be allowed into public office or hold positions of major power and why the topic creator as well as any other leftist is a huge hypocrite for pointing their self-righteous fingers at decent conservatives, libertarians, Republicans, and anyone else who feels individual liberty should apply to much more than just abortions and gay marriage and making such insults.

http://t.qkme.me/3srxb3.jpg
http://doodiepants.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/College-Liberal-Meme-049-695x1024.jpg
http://assets.diylol.com/hfs/063/74d/a7b/resized/queen-of-plastic-meme-generator-we-have-to-pass-the-bill-so-that-you-can-find-out-what-is-in-it-1e1dec.jpg
http://i1.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/276/128/e4d.jpg
https://i.chzbgr.com/maxW500/2793074688/hCE7C4BCA/
[url=https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT3UbgoA5pZMMYb38HnNvAE7jkECRTxpVWKYU_VTpU7lbSOtwJ_]https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT3UbgoA5pZMMYb38HnNvAE7jkECRTxpVWKYU_VTpU7lbSOtwJ_[/url]

And I wouldn't be surprised if some leftist shouts out "You're a racist!" as if it was some kind of trump card.

Oh and before any of you make an accusation, I'm part Asian and I'm agnostic so there goes your "white Bible-thumper" claim.
Post edited September 01, 2013 by infinite9
Posted September 01, 2013
Not surprised.
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Tallima: That's because they're busy defending your freedom. Only 9% of the U.S. military force is liberal (as opposed to 45% conservative-leaning).
If they are busy defending my freedom, how come this country is turning into a police state?
Post edited September 01, 2013 by monkeydelarge
Posted September 01, 2013
> justifiable homicides

That joke never gets old.
Posted September 01, 2013
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infinite9: -snip-
Did you HONESTLY link memes as evidence, or are you being ironic? Either way, I lol'd.
Posted September 01, 2013
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infinite9: And just how many happen to be libertarian or something else related to limited government? And how much of percentage of American scientists were polled?

Just because someone is wise in terms of science doesn't mean that person is wise in terms of politics.

Also those who claim the GOP is anti-intellectual should look at themselves first. Last time I checked, it was the conservatives who understood economics better than some liberal who thinks blowing non-existent money on federal bureaucracies who use it so that their employees pay next to nothing to their perks and then gives whatever is left to growing number of welfare recipients is somehow financially sustainable. Not to mention that conservatives acknowledge that not all business owners get corporate tax protections as suppose to some liberal who claims to support small business but then supports heavy regulations and high taxes that an unincorporated business and small LLCs cannot afford.

Also, it's the conservatives who actually use analysis and further research to back up their stances like when they point out how justifiable homicides get included in statistics concerning gun-related deaths or how the FBI reported that the US got safer even as private gun sales legally increased as suppose to the liberals who think banning guns would make them disappear from criminal hands or merge heaven with earth even yet those same liberals worship a president who armed the drug cartels of Mexico with thousands of government-owned rifles, shotguns, and handguns; ignore the troubles of other countries like how Australia ended up with a higher amount of rape per capita than the US; and probably smoke marijuana, an illegal plant.

Also seeing that the topic creator is using an anti-Tea Party symbol as his user picture, it seems that he needs to assess himself before assessing others.

The following briefly illustrate why liberals should never be allowed into public office or hold positions of major power and why the topic creator as well as any other leftist is a huge hypocrite for pointing their self-righteous fingers at decent conservatives, libertarians, Republicans, and anyone else who feels individual liberty should apply to much more than just abortions and gay marriage and making such insults.

http://t.qkme.me/3srxb3.jpg
http://doodiepants.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/College-Liberal-Meme-049-695x1024.jpg
http://assets.diylol.com/hfs/063/74d/a7b/resized/queen-of-plastic-meme-generator-we-have-to-pass-the-bill-so-that-you-can-find-out-what-is-in-it-1e1dec.jpg
http://i1.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/276/128/e4d.jpg
https://i.chzbgr.com/maxW500/2793074688/hCE7C4BCA/
[url=https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT3UbgoA5pZMMYb38HnNvAE7jkECRTxpVWKYU_VTpU7lbSOtwJ_]https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT3UbgoA5pZMMYb38HnNvAE7jkECRTxpVWKYU_VTpU7lbSOtwJ_[/url]

And I wouldn't be surprised if some leftist shouts out "You're a racist!" as if it was some kind of trump card.

Oh and before any of you make an accusation, I'm part Asian and I'm agnostic so there goes your "white Bible-thumper" claim.
I'm just going to throw this in here: I don't agree with conservative ideals. I think they're wrong. But that's against their ideology, not the person. Also, bullshit has happened under every president, but we get so caught up in every modern president that we miss the fact that rarely was any president that popular in their own time. Bush Sr's administration put Saddam in power if I recall, for example. But again, like I said: Bullshit happens with every administration. You can't paint any group right or wrong, so much as you can "a bunch of people who feel differently, and don't always act with the best interest or method."
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General discussion (archive)Only 9% of scientists are conservative, 9% Republican(175 posts)(175 posts)
(175 posts)