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Science/Tech See other Science/Tech Articles Title: “DISINFORMATION SYNDROME” AFFLICTS FEDERAL GOVERNMENT — Officials (scientists) Routinely Rewarded for Lying and Punished for Telling the Truth Washington, DC — The federal government suffers from a “severe disinformation syndrome” in which agency specialists are pressured to alter reports by managers who are promoted for breaking the law, according to congressional testimony delivered today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). As a consequence, scientific and technical papers, particularly within environmental agencies, are routinely censored, altered or manipulated for political purposes. “The Bush administration obsession with controlling the flow of information means that factual information that does not serve its political agenda rarely sees the light of day,” stated PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch who testified today. “Public servants who wish to speak honestly about matters outside officially approved agency talking points are required to cast a profile in courage because their honesty could cost them their jobs.” Ruch appeared today before the Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs of the House Committee on Government Reform in a hearing entitled “Improving Information Quality in the Federal Government.” The PEER testimony outlines a pervasive effort to edit out vital but discordant information across the range of environmental activities: A major problem cited by PEER is that Congress extends no meaningful legal protections for executive branch employees who communicate information to oversight committees or individual members. As a consequence, official reports to Congress are often inaccurate, incomplete or untimely. “If agencies can lie with impunity to Congress, why should they be expected to tell anyone else the truth?” Ruch asked, calling for Congress to put teeth into laws forbidding interference with or retaliation for transmitting information to elected representatives. “Right now, the federal civil service is scared to death.” ### Read PEER congressional testimony Look at surveys of federal scientists Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest
#1. To: Zipporah (#0)
Given the profligate expansion of frequently inane environmental regulations among other things, this is obviously done primarily to reinforce bureaucracies...
Snuggle Bear meets Mossberg... Balance is restored to the world...
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