Saturday, December 17, 2016

Galileo Repeated

Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei spent years at odds with the politically powerful in the 17th century when his scientific observations threatened to overturn the non-scientifc beliefs of the Catholic Church.  Eventually, Galileo faced inquisition proceedings from September 1632 to July 1633 that ended in a heresy conviction for which he spent his remaining years under house arrest.

Galileo had the science correct and it seems silly today to imagine a political argument over whether the sun is center of the solar system.  The empirical evidence is obvious enough for an elementary school child to understand.  The science around global warming is just as obvious yet, using the same 17th century playbook as the church, President Elect Donald Trump and his conservative leadership team are trying to stifle science for their own personal gain.

Trump's famous 2012 tweet set the tone for his future administration.  Trump is no expert in climate science and why anyone would give his position credence is incredible.  Years of evidence show the Earth's climate changing and 2016's voluminous additions to the research show arctic ice disappearing even faster than previously thought.  Trump and other climate change deniers face nearly universal evidence to the contrary yet they continue to make baseless statements that get followed in the media and gain traction with some, also non-expert, supporters.

Recently, Trump upped the stakes when his transition team asked the Department of Energy for the names of scientists working on climate change.  DoE declined to honor the request but that information should be readily available once Trump assumes the presidency and his choice for Secretary of Energy, Rick Perry, heads the department.

The parallels that ask has to persecution campaigns past from the Galileo inquisition to the McCarthy hearings are chilling.  Trump allies are heavily vested in oil, coal, and associated industries feel compelled to protect their financial interests.  They seem willing to stop at nothing to trade short term gain for long term consequences.  Firing scientists studying climate change and slashing research funding once in office are good bets on next steps.  A misinformation campaign promoted by a Trump administration will likely resonate with many of those that put him in office as they have repeatedly demonstrated an ability to dismiss fact for fiction.

Trump has a deep bench of individuals that stand to gain from the strategy.  Perry, the former Texas governor who will now head the department he famously vowed to eliminate but could not name, has significant ties to big oil.  Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt was tapped to head up the Environmental Protection Agency.  Pruitt sued the Obama administration over the climate rules for power plants to protect the energy industry.  Wilbur Ross, Trump's nominee to head the Department of Commerce, has business ties to the coal industry.  Future Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is current CEO of Exxon Mobil which is now under investigation for misleading investors on the effects of climate change.

All these men have several things in common.  All have ties to big energy, all are rich, and all stand to become richer the longer they are able to wield the power of the federal government to favorably impact the industries that have lined their pockets.  The businesses with which they've been involved are not democracies and the idea of running one must be foreign, yet governing a democracy is exactly what they've been asked to do.

Trump's team of leaders are ill prepared to govern.  Already their first instinct is to put their industries ahead of the common good.  If they next begin removing climate scientists and cutting research that is akin to restricting knowledge and crushing dissent.  Tweeting baseless information is propaganda.

Sounds a lot like tyranny.  Galileo could probably relate.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Most internet comment threads are a cesspool of slurs most civil people wouldn't say fact to face to another human being. You can't hide behind an pseudonym here.

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.