Defense! Defense! Scientists to the Defense

Science and scientists are under attack by the Trump administration and some in the U.S. Congress. Proposed funding reductions contained in the President’s and House budget proposals, if enacted, would severely damage American science, at a time when we need it more, rather than less.

President Trump is showing a bully management style that may work in some corporations but is ill-suited to the White House. In my professional life, when a bully was on the radar screen, I prepared for the attack by building support and arming myself with corroborating data.

We scientists have earned broad public support. We deliver life-saving drugs, consumer and business products of high quality, safe and wholesome foods, and make significant contributions to the financial health of the country and its businesses. The environment has improved dramatically during my lifetime—better air and water quality—due to the efforts of scientists in government, academic and industrial labs.

Scientists need to resist and push back against the Trumpian reductions. Choose the high ground to motivate your colleagues. All of us need to write our governors, senators and members of Congress. Respond to attacks in newspapers with letters of rebuttal to the editors. Protect our turf; it is your turf and, more importantly, it is society’s turf. As members of the STEM team, we form the base of our progress as a nation, including improved standards of living for all. If we are effective in reminding the stakeholders, we will win the pivotal battle, both for society and for ourselves.

Take the first step: Write and call your representatives in the House and Senate. Keep it short and sweet. They are counting numbers, not eloquence.

Robert L. Stevenson, Ph.D., is Editor Emeritus, American Laboratory/Labcompare; e-mail: [email protected].

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