Perhaps some of you already have heard of this book by David Michaels, entitled Doubt is Our Product--which is basically the most comprehensive documentation yet of the war on science being conducted by private industry. But nevertheless, I want to emphasize again that you need to check it out if you haven't already. See my review here, Science Progress's interview with Michaels here, and, if you're in D.C., a Center for American Progress event where he's speaking tomorrow that you should attend.
Basically, as the author of The Republican War on Science, even I found outrageous stories in Michaels' book that I had never heard of, and so grew ever more convinced that this problem of science abuse is systematic--going back to the days of the tobacco industry and becoming worse and worse over time. To even begin to grasp the extent of the issue, we need Michaels' book as a starting point. Get it now, and spread the word....
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One persistent question I've had: how permeable is the line between the industry-based science abusers and the politically-based ones? Do people make their careers in both worlds? Do the two worlds share resources? Are there identifiable shared influences? Is there one discernible Republican/Industrial War on Science "machine"? Complete with identifiable career paths, resources, seminal influences, etc.? That would probably make for some good muckraking.
I'm a government scientist (and probably the last person who should be saying it), so while I know how profit oriented (read obsessed) the science industry generally is, let's not be too quick to dismiss what good industry, particularly the science industry, does for our society--a good that's more a fortunate byproduct of the bottom line but a good nonetheless.
Here at the National Cancer Institute, every few years industry scientists are invited to view and review our research as a way to keep what we do relevant in terms of market trends and their own research.
Naomi Oreskes recent talk at Stanford in April addressed how difficult it is to disseminate research findings to the general public in a convincing manner, especially when the media is influenced by lobby groups with other interests.
http://smartenergyshow.com/node/58