It is a shame when a perfectly good research project gets picked up by a vote grubbing elected official to use in a derogatory way in a sound bite. It is embarrassing when we are talking about the presidential election and the candidate is incapable of hitting his mark properly ... mispronouncing the term "paternity."
You all saw this is Fridays debate. Well, hat tip to Virgil, who points us to a piece published in Scientific American last February that looks into McCain's long standing tiff with bear research.
McCain ... hits .. research in speeches on the stump, cracking jokes about bear paternity tests and criminal investigations. "I don't know if it was a paternity issue or criminal, but it was a waste of money," McCain railed ... during a campaign stop in Clawson, Mich. Scientists, however, are not amused: They insist that the study is not only worth every penny but that the $3-million price tag cited in the ad is, in a word, rong.
Well, it's wrong, but it is actually low, not high. But the point is, wrong. McCain is wrong for bear research, so he's wrong for America. The article is here.
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I'm sure McCain is just upset because the researchers aren't doing their constitutional duty in arming bears.
And, given that Sarah Palin is now in the mix, issues of "paternity" may be best left off the debate docket. I'm just sayin.
It is usually a shame when a perfectly good research study gets picked up by a vote grubbing elected official to utilise in a derogatory way in any sound bite.