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I think it is the dumbing down that makes it easier for mud-rakers. People know it's complicated anyway, and the average person can grasp complicated things as

• deleted 4y ago
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• Enginerrrd 4y ago
  As an environmental engineer that deals with the interface between the public and policy makers, I think I'm inclined to agree with you. The public IS dumb, but every time they try to dumb down the principles they regulate on, it always comes at the detriment of the environment and the 'little guy'. It's almost always better to delegate policy to smart qualified people with correctly aligned interests. Getting that latter part right is hard, but that is the job of a competent public official.
  • boringg 4y ago
    It's a difficult place to be - damned if you do and damned if you don't.
• boringg 4y ago
  I disagree. There is an inherent risk that dumbing down or abstracting away the complexities of the science to have an appropriate discourse on appropriate policy action creates blowback but trying to create a system that accounts for the complexities of the science would just cause infinite headaches. The business mechanism to try and solve this needs to be simple and relatively clear and should align with the science. The general population doesn't have the time or capabilities to understand the complexities. I am not saying hide the complexity - I am just saying don't have it in the forefront of the policy decisions - and don't constantly change the regulatory mechanism unless it is grossly misaligned with the science. I am glad you think the average person has the same capability to understand the problems and has taken environmental science engineering programs - I feel much better about that.