Election 2008
The Scientific Activist
Category archives for Election 2008
Vote!
Posted by Nick Anthis on November 4, 2008 If you haven’t already, do it now. We have a chance today to move our country in a new much needed direction. One vote could be the difference between waking up tomorrow to a bright new future or another four/eight years of regret. Go to voteforchange.com to find your polling location and to access detailed…
You Can Put $150,000 Worth of Clothes and Makeup on a Horribly Unqualified VP Candidate, but….
Posted by Nick Anthis on October 22, 2008 Today we learned that the Republican Party spent an almost unfathomable $150,000 in the month of September alone on clothes and makeup for Sarah “Joe Sixpack” Palin. This is a breathtaking figure, and the irony is certainly delicious. However, I can’t escape the feeling that something here is still missing. Now, if only I could…
Obama and McCain Highlight Health Care Plans in NEJM
Posted by Nick Anthis on October 9, 2008 I was excited when I saw that The New England Journal of Medicine had today published summaries by Obama and McCain of their health care plans, expecting something quite detailed to appeal to a highly critical expert audience. However, their summaries were still as general and vague as ever. Regardless, these new write-ups are still…
Barack Obama: Health Care Is a Right
Posted by Nick Anthis on October 8, 2008 When I think back to the presidential debate last night, one moment stands out in my mind more than any other. And, no, it wasn’t McCain calling Obama “that one“. It was the discussion following Tom Brokaw’s question “Is health care in America a privilege, a right, or a responsibility?” Health care came up several…
Economists Overwhelmingly Agree that Obama Is Stronger on the Economy
Posted by Nick Anthis on October 5, 2008 Recent polls have shown that voters trust Obama over McCain in addressing the economy by a margin of about 10-15%. But, what do the experts think? The Economist conducted its own poll of economists (appropriately), and found that they agreed that Obama is the stronger candidate when it comes to the economy–but by a much…
Obama Endorsed by 61 Nobel Laureates
Posted by Nick Anthis on September 26, 2008 Yesterday, the Obama campaign released a letter of endorsement signed by 61 Nobel Laureates (click here for a nicer looking pdf). Michael Stebbins of Scientists and Engineers for America points out that “this is the largest number of Nobel Laureates to ever endorse a candidate for office.” And, why should we be surprised? Obama’s answers…
Nature Makes a Funny
Posted by Nick Anthis on September 25, 2008 Yes, these are really the front and back covers of this week’s issue of Nature. Really. The dog on the left looks so hopeful. The dog on the right… confused. On a more serious note, Nature does have a full section on the upcoming election, including Obama’s answers to some science-related questions (McCain declined to…
Obama on Science and Technology
Posted by Nick Anthis on September 1, 2008 On Saturday, ScienceDebate 2008 and Scientists and Engineers for America (SEA) announced that Barack Obama answered a fourteen-part questionnaire that they put together along with several other scientifically oriented organizations. Major props to ScienceDebate, SEA, and these other organizations for making this happen and to Barack Obama for thoroughly answering these fourteen questions. I’d encourage…
Check Me Out on Live TV This Friday
Posted by Nick Anthis on July 23, 2008 For those of my readers in the UK (or anywhere else where you have access to Sky News), I’ll be appearing live on Sky News at about 10:30 11:30 BST this Friday to talk about Barack Obama’s visit to the UK and his support among Americans living abroad. I’m not sure if the video will…
Being a POW Does Not Automatically Qualify You to Be President
Posted by Nick Anthis on July 1, 2008 Am I taking crazy pills, or do people honestly believe that saying that being a prisoner of war doesn’t automatically qualify you to be president is the same as attacking someone’s service record? Because, this latest media flare-up over Wesley Clark’s remarks is getting exceedingly absurd. John McCain went through hell in Vietnam, and he…