Here’s a really interesting article looking at various scientific positions taken by American political parties. Unsurprisingly, both parties have taken some positions that seem to fly in the face of scientific evidence …
From Reason.com:
In support of these claims Berezow cited polling data from a2008 survey conducted by the Pew Research Center for the People andthe Press, which identified a number of partisan divides onscientific questions. On biological evolution, the survey reportedthat 97 percent of scientists agree that living things, includinghuman beings, evolved over time, compared to 58 percent ofDemocrats and 49 percent of Republicans.
On climate change, the Pew survey reported that 84 percent ofscientists believe that recent warming is the result of humanactivity, compared to 64 percent of Democrats and only 30 percentof Republicans. That’s a truly deep divide on a scientificissue.
The Pew survey next asked about federal funding for humanembryonic stem cell research, which Democrats favored by 71 percentcompared to only 38 percent for Republicans. But the GOP responseis likely tied to two issues: (1) the belief that embryos have thesame moral status as adult people; and (2) the general belief thatspending taxpayer dollars on research is suboptimal. These arepolicy differences rather than scientific differences … (Read more on Reason.com)
