Myths About Science Exposed

In pursuing the themes of this Blog, it is important to approach science with the right frame of mind--recognizing that science is not always what scientists do, because science can reflect the will of those with motives other than the attainment and communication of truth. The latter both have and will backroll the hypotheses, theories or paradigms they want pursued; these will become "the Establishment."

With this in mind, we consider one of the more interesting books on today's science to have been published recently: Tom Bethell's The Politically Incorrect Guide to Science. Not all of Bethell's conclusions are of interest on this Blog, but they are worth noting for their comprehensiveness. In his Introduction, Bethell shows both how and why political motivations can throw scientists off track. The Power of the Purse comes into play, and our rule should be (as always): follow the money trail!

Bethell thus pursues global warming, nuclear power and fears about it, the ban on DDT and Rachel Carson's brand of science, the concept of endangered species, the politicizing of the AIDS epidemic, stem cells, how contemporary thinking about cancer is a product of funding mechanisms, how the supposed dispute between science and religion is a product of Whig history, and--most important for our purposes on this Blog: how the case for Darwinian theories of evolution are nowhere near as solid as are usually claimed. Evolution is in fact a necessary component of materialistic metaphysics rather than the conclusion of scientific research; the hypothesis Darwin originally proposed was picked up and promoted heavily by British biologists not because the evidence supported it but because evolution accorded with the materialistic metaphysics and positivistic methodologies that scholars embraced during the second half of the 1800s.

I very much recommend The Politically Incorrect Guide To Science!