Public Service Announcement before beginning this article:  Since many readers are currently being smothered in Medicare Advantage marketing materials, I should probably say a few things about the perils of these products.  But I won’t for two reasons.  First, I already have , and second, my friend and colleague Dr. Josh Freeman has recently provided an excellent update . 

The only thing I’d add is this:  if you sign up for an Advantage Plan, and later become seriously ill and want to switch back to Traditional Medicare, there is no guarantee that you will be able to purchase a private Supplement.  The decision, of course, is yours.  But I’d think about it long and hard before I signed on that dotted line.   

And now, back to our regularly scheduled program.

_____________________________________________________________________

“All that stuff I was taught about evolution and embryology and the big bang theory?  All that is lies straight from the pit of Hell!”—Dr. Paul Broun, physician and former Georgia Republican Congressman, graduate of the Medical College of Georgia who also has a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemistry.  To date, there is no word on whether Broun has demanded a tuition refund for being taught these “lies” which are actually considered fundamental principles of Medicine, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics.

“You’re entitled to your own opinion.  You’re not entitled to your own facts.”—Daniel Patrick Moynihan, former New York Democratic Senator.

Let me make a confession right off the bat.  Science and math weren’t my strongest subjects in school.  I was much better at history and English.  None of what I am about to say is written from the standpoint of a self-proclaimed scientific genius.

But I was able to acquire the necessary science skills to become a physician largely because of my High School science teachers, L.D. Young and T.J. Beach.  Mr. Young was also athletic, outgoing, and a championship basketball coach.  Mr. Beach, on the other hand, was short, decidedly non-athletic, and a unique blend of Midwest farmer-nerd.  He could throw a thousand hay bales as easily as he could explain the laws of thermodynamics.

He was also my uncle.

Uncle T.J. left the farm to fight in World War II, then came home and earned GI Bill-funded degrees in Agriculture and Biochemistry.  He worked in a research lab in Kansas City for a short while, then returned to run the farm when my Grandfather suffered a stroke.  He never left home again.

Several years later, our local school needed a chemistry teacher, and my uncle reluctantly agreed.  He taught until he retired 25 years later.

He was as devoted to science as he was to the soil.  He was also a devout Christian and a Truman-Democrat.  But he never let religion nor politics overrule scientific principles.

Man, would he be shocked at our country today.

For one political party, science seems to make the perfect scapegoat.  And apparently, scientists are the spawn of the Devil. 

For this party, belief trumps fact.  Faith trumps evidence.  And if facts and evidence conflict with religious dogma?  Kill the messenger and bury yourself in your religion.

If you’ve followed this Blog, you’ve already seen what I have to say about COVID denial, the denigration of educators, book banning, and especially the insane notions that the serious threats to America’s health—including pregnancy-related deaths, a declining life expectancy, worsening addiction, firearms mortality, out of control drug costs, and unaffordable health care—aren’t really problems at all.

All of these claims fly in the face of measurable evidence and outcomes.  Yet because they serve a political purpose, people still choose to believe them.

In 2009, the Pew Research Institute surveyed American scientists as to their political views.  55% identified as Democrat, 32% as Independent, and only 6% as Republican.  Given the sort of disinformation (OK, call it lies, if you’d like) that have been spread since 2009, I doubt that the Republican numbers have gotten much better.

It’s not that Science has excluded Republicans.  It’s that Republicans have excluded Science.

As I write this, the second mammoth hurricane in 2 weeks is bearing down on the Florida gulf coast.  It’s not like we haven’t seen this horror coming.

Scientists have issued warnings about the rapidly rising water temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico.  Models have clearly predicted more dangerous storm growth.  Both Helene and Milton exploded from Category 2 storms to Category 5 in a matter of hours.

Rational people would be looking for causes and recognizing that steps need to be taken to help mitigate disasters in the future.  But a look around.  What we’re seeing isn’t encouraging.

Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, a confirmed climate-change denier and purveyor of the “Jewish Space Laser” myth, claims hurricanes are manufactured by Democrats.

Republican Ron DeSantis has mandated that all references to climate change be removed from Florida Schools.  Will anyone hold him accountable?

Ex-President Trump has called climate change a “Chinese hoax” and tried to alter the path of a previous hurricane with a Sharpie pen.  It didn’t work.

And yes, he also pushed unproven and irresponsible treatments for COVID, too.  They didn’t work either.  Remember, he wound up in the ICU despite taking hydroxychloroquine. 

Science isn’t glamourous, and it certainly isn’t political.  Science is a process.  Science is hard work.  It involves measurement, observation, thought, and perhaps most of all, critical thinking.

What’s critical thinking?  It’s the ability to take seemingly conflicting facts and sort them out.  It’s the ability to question beliefs in light of new evidence.  Most importantly, it’s the ability to accept the possibility that a deeply held belief or opinion might, in fact, be dead wrong.

Isn’t this the way kids should be taught to think and reason in school?  Apparently not, if you’re a Texas Republican.

In 2012, the Texas Republican Party added to its Platform a statement that opposes teaching critical thinking skills, since such skills could “challenge a student’s fixed beliefs and undermine parental authority.”

Such a claim serves neither science nor faith.

Those who prioritize conspiracy theories and faith-based belief over science need to take a hard look around.  The evidence of climate change is everywhere.  More emerging viruses are coming our way fast.  Internationally, we are locked in a race with potential adversaries to develop quantum-based computing and encryption, along with artificial intelligence. 

This is the world we confront.  In many ways, it’s even more challenging than the “space race” years of the 50’s and 60’s.

We won that race because we universally supported national efforts to expand science and teach the scientific method. 

Will we win this one?

As I said earlier, my Uncle was also a man of faith, who believed in a higher power.  He was also a tireless worker, who believed government should have a role in providing a path for others who were willing to work hard, too.  Just as his government did for him with the G.I. bill.

He found nothing inconsistent with science, faith, and a supportive social structure.  We need more like him if we are to survive this politicized, conspiracy-minded world of today.

Please keep this in mind when you vote.

___________________________________________________________

BONUS QUESTION:  For those who enjoy a bit of a challenge, here’s an actual question from one of my Uncle’s chemistry tests.  Feel free to take a stab at the answer in the comments below, if you’d like.  I’ll post the correct answer in the next 24 hours.  Full disclosure:  I missed it.  Maybe that’s why I’ve never forgotten it. 

And if you’re unfamiliar with “root cellars,” “Mason jars,” or “canning,” look it up.

Here’s the question:

“A FAMILY SPENDS THE FALL CANNING THEIR GARDEN VEGETABLES INTO MASON JARS.  THEY STORE THE JARS IN THEIR ROOT CELLAR.  IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WINTER, A SEVERE COLD NIGHT IS PREDICTED.  THE FAMILY IS CONCERNED THE TEMPERATURE WILL BE SO COLD THAT THE VEGETABLES WILL FREEZE AND THE GLASS JARS WILL SHATTER, DESPITE BEING UNDERGROUND.  SO THEY PLACE A LARGE SHALLOW PAN OF WATER IN THE CENTER OF THE CELLER, AND MOVE ALL OF THE JARS ONTO THE FLOOR OF THE CELLER, NEXT TO THE PAN, BUT NOT IN THE PAN.  SURE ENOUGH, THE NEXT MORNING THE WATER IN THE PAN HAS FROZEN SOLID.  DESPITE THIS, THE MASON JARS FULL OF VEGETABLES HAVE NOT FROZEN AND ARE UNDAMAGED.

EXPLAIN WHY THIS HAPPENED.”