More proof from the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press that the Democratic Party is the party of reason and based in reality and the Republicans are straight outta Bible-based fantasy land:
Most scientists identify as Democrats (55%), while 32% identify as independents and just 6% say they are Republicans. When the leanings of independents are considered, fully 81% identify as Democrats or lean to the Democratic Party, compared with 12% who either identify as Republicans or lean toward the GOP.
Now isn't that damning? The "Party of No" might as well be renamed the "Party of No Scientists."
But is that really surprising? I don't think it is, because the very platform of the Republican Party shuns the scientific method and ignores any scientific theory that might be contradicted by either the Bible, monetary interests, or sheer inconvenience. An example of Biblical interference is the theory of evolution. Again from Pew, notice the sharp contradiction. First, scientists:
Nearly all scientists (97%) say humans and other living things have evolved over time – 87% say evolution is due to natural processes, such as natural selection.
Now, white evangelical Protestants, ie Republicans:
A majority (57%) of white evangelical Protestants hold the view that humans have existed in their present form since the beginning of time.
How about global climate change?
First, scientists, you know, people who've spent years studying and learning:
84% of scientists say the earth is warming because of human activity.
How about Republicans, you know, people who've spent years being brainwashed by the corporate elite:
Two-thirds of Republicans (67%) say either that the earth is getting warmer mostly because of natural changes in the atmosphere (43%) or that there is no solid evidence the earth is getting warmer (24%).
Now why is this all so important? To be honest, our status as the world's only superpower is at stake. We're no longer the overwhelming leader in scientific development. Our only "high-speed" (in quotation marks because it's probably the slowest high-speed rail system in the world) rail system, the Acela Express, was developed by a German company and a French company. Our space shuttles are old, getting more dangerous by the mission, and there is no new vehicle on the horizon to take its place.
On the healthcare front, the Republican concerns about "morality" have already set American scientists back years on the stem cell research front. President Obama thankfully rescinded former-President Bush's executive order banning federal funding for research using new stem cell lines, but we're already way behind Europe and Asia in this area, an area where the scientific consensus was beyond clear:
A far greater share of scientists (93%) than the public supports federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.
Only 38% of Republicans agreed.
The entire Pew Research Center report is a fascinating look at how science and politics mesh and I recommend that you read the whole thing. If you're a Republican, you'll probably laugh it off as "liberal scientists trying to change our culture," but if you're a Democrat, I'll bet you'll be even more proud than you already were to be a part of the party of science.