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A group of 61 Nobel Laureates have gotten together to endorse Barack Obama for President. Their letter and the signatories are below. This is the largest number of Nobel Laureates to ever endorse a candidate for office, more than endorsed either Gore or Kerry. (Kerry had 48 total.) That is a remarkable statement. Here is the link to the original letter of endorsement.
An Open Letter to the American PeopleThis year's presidential election is among the most significant in our nation's history. The country urgently needs a visionary leader who can ensure the future of our traditional strengths in science and technology and who can harness those strengths to address many of our greatest problems: energy, disease, climate change, security, and economic competitiveness.
We are convinced that Senator Barack Obama is such a leader, and we urge you to join us in supporting him.
During the administration of George W. Bush, vital parts of our country's scientific enterprise have been damaged by stagnant or declining federal support. The government's scientific advisory process has been distorted by political considerations. As a result, our once dominant position in the scientific world has been shaken and our prosperity has been placed at risk. We have lost time critical for the development of new ways to provide energy, treat disease, reverse climate change, strengthen our security, and improve our economy.
We have watched Senator Obama's approach to these issues with admiration. We especially applaud his emphasis during the campaign on the power of science and technology to enhance our nation's competitiveness. In particular, we support the measures he plans to take - through new initiatives in education and training, expanded research funding, an unbiased process for obtaining scientific advice, and an appropriate balance of basic and applied research - to meet the nation's and the world's most urgent needs.
Senator Obama understands that Presidential leadership and federal investments in science and technology are crucial elements in successful governance of the world's leading country. We hope you will join us as we work together to ensure his election in November.
Signed,
Click here to read the original with signers
The views expressed in this letter represent those of the signers acting as individual citizens. They do not necessarily represent the views of the institutions with which they are affiliated. The Medicine award is for "Physiology or Medicine."
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Technology
Comments
elitists endorse the elitist. nice framing.
Posted by: DrugMonkey | September 25, 2008 2:38 PM
On the other hand is that Jim Watson endorsing the black guy over the scots-irish guy? daaaaayyyuuum things must be really, really bad.
Posted by: DoubleTakeMonkey | September 25, 2008 2:40 PM
Thanks for this. It is an important statement that needs to be heard. I will circulate widely.
Posted by: pam | September 25, 2008 3:05 PM
Unfortunately, Joe Sixpack Republican voter from Boondocks, U.S.A. is going to agree with DrugMonkey above. And I wouldn't be suprised if the likes of Rush Limbaugh jump all over this as proof that Obama is a hoity-toity intellectual. He's not "reglar folks" like all us iggorunt Repubicans.
Posted by: Nebularry | September 25, 2008 3:13 PM
Out of curiousity, I compared the two lists. I found the Kerry list at:
http://www.mellicant.com/sefc/nobelletter.php
I count 12 Laureates who were Laureates pre-2004, but didn't endorse Kerry. Some of the Kerry, but not Obama endorsers are dead. I think I missed 2 Obama, but not Kerry supporters.
The people who endorsed Obama, but not Kerry are:
Abrikosov 2003
Michael Brown 2005
Linda Buck 2004
Capecchi 2007
Stan Cohen 1986
Cooper 1972
Robert Curl 1996
Fischer 1992
Giacconi 2002
Greenguard 2000
Gross 2004
Grubbs 2005
Hall 2005
Hartwell 2001
Mello 2006
Prusiner 1997
Richardson 1996
Rowland 1995
Smithies 2007
Schrock 2007
Watson 1962
Wilczek 2004
The people who endorsed Kerry, but not Obama are:
Hans Bethe1967
Gunter Blobel 1999
Hubel 1981
Lee 1957
Lee 1996
Lipscomb 1976
MacKinnon 2003
Molina 1995
Murray 1990
Palade 1994
Penzias 1978
Perl 1995
Posted by: bsci | September 25, 2008 3:18 PM
"elitists endorse the elitist. nice framing."
They're all elitists for doing good work for humanity? That's hilarious.
Posted by: James | September 25, 2008 4:13 PM
@bsci:
Not to be picky but
1) some of the dates are wrong (Mike Brown was awarded the prize in the '80s not 2005, Palade in the '70s not 1994 to name a few)
2) many laureates who endorsed Obama, but not Kerry, were awarded the prize after '04 (thus making it impossible for them to be a Nobel Laureate supporter of Kerry). I hope that this was your point. Some Kerry but not Obama endorsers, like Palade, are very old (Palade was born in 1912!)
Posted by: Alex Palazzo | September 25, 2008 5:48 PM
The person who said "elitist" doesn't know what the word means. It is defined as: "Someone who believes in rule by an elite group". If that were the case Obama would never have spent his time organizing unemployed steel workers on the South Side of Chicago. Increasing taxes on capital gains and ordinary income of those making over $250,000 per year would not be part of his platform. I suspect the commenter is simply parroting something he heard one of Obama's political opponents say. Or he may be confusing "elitist" with "elite". Elite is defined as: "A group or class of persons or a member of such a group or class, enjoying superior intellectual, social, or economic status." This first distinction is the one Obama and the Laureates share, superior intellect. As an African-American Obama certainly didn't enjoy "social" advantages growing up, nor did he have superior economic status. He grew up eating government cheese and collecting food stamps, raised by a single mom and working class grandparents. Were there elitists at Harvard University, the place where Barack went to law school? Of course. People need to stop playing the guilt by association game and looking more closely at the character and the background of the man himself. One candidate in this race had a privileged up bringing and got into his college (The United States Naval Academy) by virtue of being a legacy, and it was not Barack Obama. One candidate in this race married into wealth, and it was not Barack Obama. One candidate favors trickle down economics, a policy that fosters "rule by an elite group" by making the rich richer, and it is not Barack Obama.
Posted by: Bob Scofield | September 25, 2008 8:21 PM
Al Gore won the daggone Nobel Prize, too. Why didn't Al Gore endorse Obama? He won the Nobel Peace Prize for paying other people to make a movie about the empending global 'climate change' crisis, thereby creating jobs. Oh no. That was a peace prize. These Nobel Prize guys are scientists, not peace makers. My bad. I will just move on now. I'm just another unwashed Joe Six-pack Republican gooberhead, you see. I can't help it.
Posted by: Jim Baker | September 25, 2008 9:47 PM
Alex,
Sorry for a few incorrect dates. I quickly did this by hand and I'm fairly sure I missed at least two people completely since (just Obama)-(just Kerry) is 10 instead of 12 people.
My main reason for doing this was to see how many people who could have endorsed Kerry decided to endorse Obama (i.e. pre-2004 Nobels on the Obama only list). I expected to just find
Posted by: bsci | September 25, 2008 9:52 PM
Since I consider myself a man of science (physician in training), I have to say that I agree with Obama's stance on medical research. I'm from a poor town in the South. I lived the first 10 years of my life in an old, dilapidated trailer. However, I was given the opportunity to become educated and I chose to take it as far as possible. Does this make me elitist? I work harder now in school than when I was working two jobs to support my wife and pay for her tuition. Sore backs,arms, and legs are not the only indicators of hard work and dedication. I take equal insult when people call Nobel Laureates (some of the most dedicated, accomplished minds in the world) and Barrack Obama elitists. The only reason I can think of for this feeling towards people you have never even met, must stem from personally regret for not pursuing higher education for themselves.
Posted by: Lit | September 26, 2008 2:07 AM
It's the dem legislation sponsoring scientific teaching. Some are exchange programs. The problem is it has to be science related education.
Posted by: SKJ | September 26, 2008 11:27 AM
this is absolutely shocking, these individuals who are mostly communists with far-left affiliations and chosen by teh far leftist Nobel peace traitors would endorse Obama. unbelievable.
Posted by: Huseein Bee Honey | September 26, 2008 11:31 AM
It is amazing how much ignorance is out there -(hello 'James' and 'Huseein Bee Honey'). You are both the epitome of the dumbing down of America. Try educating yourselves so you sound at least half way intelligent, i.e. when it comes to everyone who doesn't agree with your far right views, you call them communists and/or socialists. Go read a book, because your lack of intelligence/understanding is scary.
Posted by: paula paige | September 26, 2008 4:13 PM
Ok so im a middle class black christian american, let me say that first off. I'm going to talk about religion, christianity, and islam.
Barrack Obama is a scary man, and I will be floored if most people dont fall into his deceptive trap.
Biblical views as well as what our country knows as Democratic views are totally opposite those taught by the bible. In the story about the 3 investors where one dollar is given to 3 people the people who are lazy are punished and the ones who work hard are rewarded. Barrack Obama wants to do the exact opposite and take from the rich and give to the poor. Don't take me wrong I think that disable people and others like these should get financial help and welfare, however I have many people in my family who cheat the government and ultimately the tax payers and I think this should never happen!!
Obama is from a part of Africa known to be the settling place of the tribe of Dan in the Bible. It just so happens that the Anti Christ will be from the tribe of Dan.
It says the antichrist will be of muslim descent. Which Barrack Obama is. Barrack Obama was sent to a muslim school until the 7th grade in malaysia. Scientific research shows that religious views are set before the age of 13.
Ultimately Obama's religion he follows which he claims is Christianity is very corrupted.
Obama can't even get a gun permit, because he has ties with Al Qaeda. No, I'm not making this up, however we'll allow him to run for the president of the united states.
All of this is said without even getting started on his views.
No matter how pretty a flower seed may turn into if it's a bad seed nature doesn't allow it to grow. The same thing should happen and we shouldnt give obama the chance to ruin this great nation.
Posted by: I don't like him | September 26, 2008 4:32 PM
The Bible is just a Jewish fairytale
Posted by: john | September 26, 2008 4:56 PM
John McCain has 8 houses and 13 cars, but DrugMonkey thinks Obama is the elitist.
bsci, I'm sure that if you would exhume Hans Bethe (d. 2005), he would support Obama too.
Posted by: Sam Meyerson | September 26, 2008 5:06 PM
It says the antichrist will be of muslim descent
I really don't want to feed the troll too much, but how could the bible say that the antichrist will be of muslim descent when the entire Christian bible was written before Islam even existed?
Sam, I suspect more than a few on my list are dead. I know Bethe was, but I wasn't going to spend the time and google all of them to check for obituaries.
Posted by: bsci | September 26, 2008 6:31 PM
It's getting really old to see bonehards throw the "elitist" card around every time intelligent, successful professionals state their opinion as to whom they think would be a better President. Only idiots think that an "average person" is somehow better-suited for the highest office of the land than an accomplished, well-educated person. It's pure stupidity for anyone to think that a hockey mom who struggled for 6 years at 4 different colleges just to get a B.A. degree should be anywhere near this race.
Feeling insecure and threatened by someone who has great ability is a moral flaw and a prelude to bad judgment.
Posted by: Fred | September 26, 2008 6:59 PM
obamas going to pic your pockit man like no other
Posted by: billy | September 26, 2008 11:48 PM
um, some of you folks need to check your ability to read for sarcasm and irony. I don't think Drugmonkey was calling Obama elitist. He was pointing out how having a buncha brainiac Nobel Prize winners endorsing Obama is gonna play with Joe Six-Pack. Joe's going to see it as a buncha elitists endorsing an elitist. Because all it takes to be tarred with the elitist label in this country is to be slightly smarter than a bag of hammers, and let it show.
Posted by: Zuska | September 28, 2008 12:42 AM
Jim, if you don't want us to think you're a Republican gooberhead, quit writing like one.
Posted by: Steve | September 28, 2008 7:53 AM
In 1957 The US detonated a nuclear device in the atmosphere above Johnston Island. The Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP) generated by that explosion first observed at that time burned out street lights in Hawaii 750 miles away.
=========================================================
Report of the Commission to Assess the
Threat to the United States from
Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) Attack
The Commission has released a Critical National Infrastructures Report (PDF, 7MB) and testified before the House Armed Services Committee (July 10, 2008) -
Commission Members
Dr. John S. Foster, Jr.
Mr. Earl Gjelde
Dr. William R. Graham (Chairman)
Dr. Robert J. Hermann
Mr. Henry (Hank) M. Kluepfel
Gen Richard L. Lawson, USAF (Ret.)
Dr. Gordon K. Soper
Dr. Lowell L. Wood, Jr.
Dr. Joan B. Woodard
Excerpts from this report: CRITICAL NATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURES
(power line transmission of electricity)
It is the Commission�s assessment that functional collapse of the electrical power system region within the primary area of assault is virtually certain. Furthermore, widespread functional collapse may result even from a small weapon with a significant E1 component. While stopping electrical supply over a broad geographical area nearly instantaneously is damaging, it is the time it takes to restore service that is important, assuming restoration is possible, which itself may be questioned in some instances.
Chapter 2. Electric Power
36
All of these collapse mechanisms acting simultaneously provide the unambiguous conclusion that electrical power system collapse for the NERC region largely impacted by the EMP weapon is inevitable in the event of attack using even a relatively low-yield
device of particular characteristics.
Chapter 2. Electric Power
36
Expert judgment and rational extrapolation of models and predictive tools suggest that restoration to even a diminished but workable state of electrical service could well take many weeks, with some probability of it taking months and perhaps more than a year at some or many locations; at that point, society as we know it couldn�t exist within large regions of the Nation. The larger the affected area and the stronger the field strength from the attack (corollary to extent of damage or disruption), the longer will be the time to recover. Restoration to current standards of electric power cost and reliability would almost certainly take years with severe impact on the economy and all that it entails.
Chapter 2. Electric Power
45
With EMP, broad geographic reach and simultaneous multiple levels of disruption result in a situation in which the islanding schemes themselves will probably fail to work in the EMP-affected area. Since the geographic area is so large, perhaps encompassing an entire NERC region or possibly more, restoring the system from the still functioning perimeter may well not be possible at all or would take a great deal of time; the Commission estimates weeks to months, at least in the best circumstance.
Chapter 2. Electric Power
Page 34
The effects of EMP on the electrical power system are fundamentally partitioned into its early, middle, and late time effects (caused by the E1, E2, and E3 components, respectively). The net impact on the electric power grid includes the synergistic interaction of all three, occurring nearly simultaneously over a large geographic area. The Commission has concluded that the electrical system within the NERC region so disrupted will collapse with near certainty.
Chapter 2. Electric Power
35
The whole report (quite long [208 pages] is at)
http://www.empcommission.org/docs/A2473-EMP_Commission-7MB.pdf
=========================================================
The following is NOT from the report
Recently Iran fired a missile from a ship at sea into the upper atmosphere where it detonated a small explosive device. If they replace that device with a nuclear device that they are desperately trying to achieve and launch it at sea in international waters off of the east coast or west coast of the United States, they could easily achieve what has been outlined in the report.
Senator Obama has described Iran as a small country of no danger to the United States�.
Do you know hou you are going to die....?
Posted by: Steve | September 28, 2008 1:15 PM
What is scary to me is not Barak Obama's run for presidency but instead people who would use the bible to justify their distorted views. AMEN!!
Posted by: Michael Greene | September 28, 2008 2:05 PM
hanks for this. It is an important statement that needs to be heard. I will circulate widely.
Posted by: bodrum tatil | September 26, 2009 3:24 PM
President Obama deserves it. He really made history for Americans.
Posted by: Colon Cleanse | November 6, 2009 1:05 AM