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Oh goodness. He is trying to tell us that scientists cannot use this to keep the public aware of nuclear war threat. I didn’t even see one negative of having th

by rc_mob 7y ago

Oh goodness. He is trying to tell us that scientists cannot use this to keep the public aware of nuclear war threat. I didn’t even see one negative of having the clock in the article. Just saying over and over science is not politics.

brink 7y ago
It's fear mongering.
- Frost1x 7y ago
  Entirely correct. My question is: if there really is a crisis (e.g. nuclear war threat, climate change, etc.), these days, how do you get the general population to notice and act accordingly without fear mongering? I'm not sure I have a better solution, unfortunately. I tend not to support fear mongering and typically lean on providing education, but that requires time that some situations don't allot for. In the case of the doomsday clock, it makes some sense. The problem is the fear factor has really disappeared and few today experienced the fear of real nuclear threats like those during the peak of the cold war.
  - cr0sh 7y ago
    > The problem is the fear factor has really disappeared and few today experienced the fear of real nuclear threats like those during the peak of the cold war. Few even know about the clock, or what it represents, or historically represented. Few understand the existential dangers humanity is under threat from; those that do shout into a void of apathy, hardly even receiving an echo. Some are patted on the head with a "That's nice dear..." or worse, met with scorn and anger. The world has forgotten the we have the literal power to destroy ourselves, to make the planet virtually uninhabitable for humanity, if not most of life, by our acts. Some in power have even had the gall to ask why we shouldn't use these weapons we have, otherwise why have them? Ignorant. Fools. The only way humanity will learn its lesson is by abject overpowering demonstration. Of course, by then, it will be too late. But the lesson will be learned, in the most harsh manner possible.
LMYahooTFY 7y ago
No, he's saying politics is not science. >Yet there’s a deeper problem. Not only is the Doomsday Clock unscientific; the factors of its setting are now dominated more by policy questions than scientific ones. The former may be important, but claiming the authority of “atomic scientists” is appropriate only for the latter. ... >But today the clock’s setting is determined more by concerns about how superpowers can engage in arms-control talks, about potentially reckless statements by world leaders, or about what policies would best reduce carbon emissions. These are important questions, but not ones on which scientists can claim special authority.
JackFr 7y ago
If the scientists have no special knowledge of the likelihood or effects of a nuclear war, promoting the Doomsday clock is simply policy advocacy based on an appeal to authority masquerading as objectivity. There was a time when they did have special knowledge, but as he points out, that time has passed.

by rc_mob 7y ago

brink 7y ago

It's fear mongering.

Frost1x 7y ago
Entirely correct. My question is: if there really is a crisis (e.g. nuclear war threat, climate change, etc.), these days, how do you get the general population to notice and act accordingly without fear mongering? I'm not sure I have a better solution, unfortunately. I tend not to support fear mongering and typically lean on providing education, but that requires time that some situations don't allot for. In the case of the doomsday clock, it makes some sense. The problem is the fear factor has really disappeared and few today experienced the fear of real nuclear threats like those during the peak of the cold war.
- cr0sh 7y ago
  > The problem is the fear factor has really disappeared and few today experienced the fear of real nuclear threats like those during the peak of the cold war. Few even know about the clock, or what it represents, or historically represented. Few understand the existential dangers humanity is under threat from; those that do shout into a void of apathy, hardly even receiving an echo. Some are patted on the head with a "That's nice dear..." or worse, met with scorn and anger. The world has forgotten the we have the literal power to destroy ourselves, to make the planet virtually uninhabitable for humanity, if not most of life, by our acts. Some in power have even had the gall to ask why we shouldn't use these weapons we have, otherwise why have them? Ignorant. Fools. The only way humanity will learn its lesson is by abject overpowering demonstration. Of course, by then, it will be too late. But the lesson will be learned, in the most harsh manner possible.

LMYahooTFY 7y ago

No, he's saying politics is not science. >Yet there’s a deeper problem. Not only is the Doomsday Clock unscientific; the factors of its setting are now dominated more by policy questions than scientific ones. The former may be important, but claiming the authority of “atomic scientists” is appropriate only for the latter. ... >But today the clock’s setting is determined more by concerns about how superpowers can engage in arms-control talks, about potentially reckless statements by world leaders, or about what policies would best reduce carbon emissions. These are important questions, but not ones on which scientists can claim special authority.

JackFr 7y ago

If the scientists have no special knowledge of the likelihood or effects of a nuclear war, promoting the Doomsday clock is simply policy advocacy based on an appeal to authority masquerading as objectivity. There was a time when they did have special knowledge, but as he points out, that time has passed.