Politically, they all seem to be typical academic leftists. Ed recently tweeted in favor of Australia ban tennis star Novak Djokovic for not taking the covid vaccine. An appellate court has since ruled that he has complied with all requirements, but he was deported anyway out of fear that he might influence public opinion.
This is just typical academic foolish leftism to side with experts outside his field in order to give an opinion on who should play tennis on the other side of the world.
One of his daughters has been active in canceling statistician and geneticist Ronald Fisher, based on some politically out-of-favor opinions associated to him on his Wikipedia page. In particular he wanted to use genetics research to improve the human condition. Plus, she wanted to join all the academics making a statement about the death of George Floyd.
It is not clear what Fisher said that was so offensive, but I don't see why it should matter. If he were wrong, then demonstrate his error. His critics are not doing that. He smoked cigarettes and denied that they cause cancer. Okay, he was wrong about that. But he still made a great many other positive contributions, and I do not agree with applying an ideological litmus test on scientists.
There is a great reckoning going on where famous men of the past, like Charles Darwin, are being scrutinized for their opinions on slavery. Why would anyone care? I don't. Whether Darwin had political opinions for or against slavery, or on various other political issues, is of no relevance today. He is not judged for his politics.
If we are really going to apply weird George Floyd racial theories to scientists of the past, what will future academics make of Ed Witten's refusal to breed with a low-IQ woman?
There is something creepy about our elites being so leftist. It is just their way of saying that they are better than the rest of us.
Eugenics has a strange history. Here is a review of a new book on the subject.
It is odd that people who consider themselves so intelligent so often forget to learn what words and concepts actually mean, as if such study is beneath their station.
ReplyDeleteIntelligence is not any indicator whatsoever of character.
Being smart and clever does not magically inoculate one from being mislead, cowardly, vain, capricious, short-sighted, cruel, or, just flat out evil...
but often..it does give such highbrowed folk glorious pretensions that they no longer need school themselves against such common failings. It is simply amazing how often the most educated in such large numbers have simply lost the capacity to consider they could be wrong.
The more clever one thinks themself, the more easily they fall into arrogance and self deceit. One should know thyself before they lay claim to ordering the universe.
"Trouble arises when either science or religion claims universal jurisdiction, when either religious dogma or scientific dogma claims to be infallible. Religious creationists and scientific materialists are equally dogmatic and insensitive. By their arrogance they bring both science and religion into disrepute.“
— Freeman Dyson
"I would rather have questions that can't be answered than answers that can't be questioned."
- Richard P. Feynman