My apologies for posting this on an open board :) I realize that this is completely off topic - but it is a pretty painful topic that affects us all regardless of academic or industrial affiliation, professional preferences etc.
Artem --- do not read below unless you want to :) --- If an average citizen is asked whether they believe in fairies/unicorns or in atoms (since you cannot see either* it's easy to get confused as to which ones are real, I guess), they often pick fairies and unicorns. The nature of belief as a great human fallacy does not cease to amaze me. Its tendrils affect all of us, without exception. Fake news is just the latest representation of the (utterly irrational) power of belief. If one can convince millions that something is real (or ethically/morally right) then fantasy may become 'real' for the duration of the shared dream. To be fair, sometimes the dream is that of freedom, liberty, equality, kindness, etc. but far too often it is the dream of the dark and disturbing kind that leads to subjugation of self-determination, oppression, whitewashing of atrocities, and violence. Recent events in the political sphere simply illuminate some of the abhorrent fantasies perpetrated by what amounts to nearly 50% of the population. Mathematically speaking we are pretty close to a 'fake news country' - especially since the 'dark dreamers' elicit more political power than the rest of us. This did not begin two years ago. It will not end two years from now. Some thoughts on making things better (fairly basic for any practicing scientist): - always insist on proof, especially when common sense is at odds with what's being 'sold' - exercise passion and don't be afraid to get agitated "Those who profess to favor freedom and yet depreciate agitation, are people who want crops without ploughing the ground; they want rain without thunder and lightning; they want the ocean without the roar of its many waters." -- Frederick Douglass * Yes, I realize that we can in fact see atoms with the right equipment. This makes it even worse, all things considered... - Cosmic Cats approve of this message On Wed, Jan 2, 2019 at 8:07 AM Keller, Jacob <[email protected]> wrote: > 6) I most sincerely hope that, if I stick to my five New Year’s > resolutions and stop wasting the cryo-EM community’s time, my fellow > Canadians will not extradite me to the fake-news country at our southern > border. > > > > > > I know this is a joke, but we in the USA are not a fake news people, and > please don’t punish us for the sins of our leadership--it’s painful for > many of us. > > > > JPK > > ######################################################################## To unsubscribe from the CCP4BB list, click the following link: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?SUBED1=CCP4BB&A=1
