Scientism

[Eric the Green]

(07-08-2019, 11:04 AM)Bill the Piper Wrote:

(07-08-2019, 10:43 AM)Eric the Green Wrote: Some of us of the Green meme persuasion are against scientism, but still accept, refer to and laud science when not accompanied or directed by the philosophy of scientism.

It's a sane attitude. Science is important, but there are other aspects of experience like emotion and instinct, and without it there cannot be fullness of life. Stapledon in his Last and First Men describes Great Brains, who were creatures of pure intellect and found existence meaningless for this very reason.

Quote:The "shift" Bill mentions toward support of science among Democrats is largely due to how conservatives have used unscientific notions to promote the views of these two elites. The religious right is used to suppress freedom movements like feminism and LGBTQ rights, and the trickle-downers oppose and deny climate science because government programs to deal with climate change might bring down more taxes and regulations on their business and financial schemes.

So it was a reaction to the use of religion by Republicans? OK, but when did it happen?

It was implied early on by Goldwater's appeal to "morality" in his campaign. But the main thrust began in 1978 with the rise of Falwell's "moral majority" and Pat Robertson's TV show and cult, which allowed him to run for president. The moral majority helped elect Reagan, and he and his successors have used the religious right since then to cement their power. Now Trump is effectively advancing their agenda.

The climate crisis began to get serious notice in 1988, but at first Republicans were on board, as when George Bush #I went to a summit in Rio in 1992 and promised action. Even before 2006, however, Reagan had resisted the moves begun by Carter to address the energy crisis. The Republicans began responding to the pressure of the corporate thugs threatened by climate change in the 1980s. But since a former Democratic candidate for president named Al Gore created a sensation with his movie, and stimulated the movement to address climate change as never before, powered by Katrina and other weather disasters, the fossil fuel industry got even more anxious and started recruiting a group of deniers who claimed to be "scientists," and Republicans increasingly deserted the cause. George Bush #2 was already a denier on free-market grounds and resisted action. McCain was not a denier, but Trump is, and so are almost all Republicans in congress today. Deniers may not explicitly denounce science, but they are denying the results of massive scientific research which says the "free market" in the form of the fossil fuel industry and unrestrained capitalism threatens life on the planet. The real scientists are right, and the Democrats rally to them and uphold "science" in the face of the denials. Most of the the religious right has lined up on the side of the deniers by now, saying that only God can alter the climate.