3 ms·

i've spent more time in biotech industry than in academia, as is true of many of my scientist coworkers. even in industry, they're all (all) liberals. maybe ev

i've spent more time in biotech industry than in academia, as is true of many of my scientist coworkers. even in industry, they're all (all) liberals. maybe even moreso than in academia, really. even the high up ones. even the runts of the litter. even the foreigners; even the white males. scientists are liberals... and capable of having a polite and objective discussion with those who aren't.

hueving 10y ago
No they aren't. If you think they are liberals you are either stupid or naive. Someone who thinks an 'entire' non political industry is filled with a single political viewpoint is not capable of an objective discussion because people are clearly hiding it from him/her. I've met many people in biotech startups that are not 'liberals' when it comes to economic policy. They joined explicitly to make something that helps humanity while making them rich at the same time. They were explicitly against government intervention in health care research and believed private industry was better at finding viable solutions to problems. That's antithetical to the standard liberal viewpoint in the US. If you don't think there are people like that, it's because the crowd you are with is hostile to people with dissenting political views. It's not because biotech is a magical statistical anomaly that operates on the principles of capitalism while being filled purely with liberals.
- epistasis 10y ago
  Liberals and capitalists are a hugely overlapping group! I meet very few liberals who aren't supportive of free markets. I guess you can find a few in biotech that are against government funding health care research, but they are few and far between. There are also a few that are against regulation, but more as its implemented rather than the idea of it.

3 ms·

i've spent more time in biotech industry than in academia, as is true of many of my scientist coworkers. even in industry, they're all (all) liberals. maybe ev

by cryoshon 10y ago

hueving 10y ago
No they aren't. If you think they are liberals you are either stupid or naive. Someone who thinks an 'entire' non political industry is filled with a single political viewpoint is not capable of an objective discussion because people are clearly hiding it from him/her. I've met many people in biotech startups that are not 'liberals' when it comes to economic policy. They joined explicitly to make something that helps humanity while making them rich at the same time. They were explicitly against government intervention in health care research and believed private industry was better at finding viable solutions to problems. That's antithetical to the standard liberal viewpoint in the US. If you don't think there are people like that, it's because the crowd you are with is hostile to people with dissenting political views. It's not because biotech is a magical statistical anomaly that operates on the principles of capitalism while being filled purely with liberals.
- epistasis 10y ago
  Liberals and capitalists are a hugely overlapping group! I meet very few liberals who aren't supportive of free markets. I guess you can find a few in biotech that are against government funding health care research, but they are few and far between. There are also a few that are against regulation, but more as its implemented rather than the idea of it.