A Terrible Day for Science . . .

Yesterday was a terrible day for science in the US. Here’s some of what went on.

The AAP Stands Tall

Let’s start on a positive note. Kudos to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), home of my first job in scientific and scholarly publishing, at least dealing with original research. Yesterday, they announced the AAP will no longer participate in the ACIP vaccine advisory process, which they view as illegitimate and politicized, and will instead continue to publish their own vaccine schedules, likely making the AAP the de facto vaccination authority for children in the US since its members are the ones immunizing our children. Statement here:

Springer Nature Subscriptions Cut

The US government has cut subscriptions to Springer Nature journals, according to Axios. These are not the first, but it may be the largest culling so far. The usual jingoistic or hateful rationals are being used — too much China stuff, too “woke” — but it’s just another attack on independent journals as RFK Jr. and his ilk move to start up more “gaslight journals” and push more “gaslight science.”

NSF Kicked Out of Building

In a more shocking development, the National Science Foundation was kicked out of the building constructed just for it not even a decade ago, with Housing and Urban Development taking over. The Secretary of HUD is Scott Turner, a former NFL cornerback, Congressman, and a pastor at a megachurch outside of Dallas. According to the American Federation of Government Employees, planned upgrades to the building include:

• A dedicated executive suite for the HUD Secretary on the 19th floor
• Building an executive dining room
• Reserved parking spots for the Secretary’s five cars
• An exclusive Secretarial elevator
• Space for the Secretary’s executive assistants on the 18th floor
• A gym space for the Secretary and his family

As Derek Lowe writes on “In the Pipeline”:

I feel like either vomiting or kicking a hole in the wall. Why not both? Meanwhile, Rep. Zoe Lofgren, ranking member on the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee is calling this an “egregious, corrupt, and disgraceful abuse of power.”

Anti-Vaccine Misinformation Specialist Gets CDC Vaccine Safety Role

Lyn Redwood, former head of RFK Jr.’s bogus Children’s Health Defense anti-vax group, was appointed yesterday to a vaccine safety role at the CDC. She’s unqualified and unscientific. This is what her web site looks like:

US Will Stop Supporting the Global Vaccine Initiative

RFK Jr. announced the US will stop funding the Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, for all his typical bullshit reasons around bullshit vaccine performative bullshit.

The New York Times Runs This Headline

OK, that won’t do, New York Times. Maybe you’re tired. Let me try.

Kennedy’s Unqualified Team Wants to Undermine Child Vaccine Safety

See. It’s easy as pie to write an accurate headline that doesn’t carry water for anti-science creeps and grifting cretins.

RFK Jr.’s minions and their enablers — who sound less like actual scientists and more like assistant basketball coaches struggling to teach health class — are about to lead the ruination of one of the great scientific cultures the world has ever seen. Are we going to let that happen? What role did we play in enabling it — and can we play in stopping it from going further? Can we at least stop publicly shit-posting about editors and journals for the time being? It’s time to defend the house.

Holden Thorp of Science published an editorial earlier this week I largely agree with — we need to stop being selfish, self-interested, and self-serving. We need to get back to doing science that helps people and advances our knowledge, not retreat into craven careerism, or act haughty or defensive. We need to diagnose our ills and address them. As Thorp writes, “It is possible to support science and hold it accountable at the same time.”