"The Republican War on Data"

[applegrove]

The Republican War on Data

By Steve Benen at the Maddow Blog

http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/05/02/.UYKvwMcaJUo.reddit

"SNIP....................


The politics of paranoia can lead policymakers into some unfortunate directions. On everything from homeland security to education to guns, paranoid politicians invariably end up pushing some truly bizarre proposals for no good reason.

In the latest example, some far-right congressional Republicans have decided to wage a war on census data because they have paranoid ideas about "big government."


A group of Republicans are cooking up legislation that could give President Barack Obama an unintentional assist with disagreeable unemployment numbers -- by eliminating the key economic statistic altogether.

The bill, introduced last week by Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.), would bar the U.S. Census Bureau from conducting nearly all surveys except for a decennial population count. Such a step that would end the government's ability to provide reliable estimates of the employment rate. Indeed, the government would not be able to produce any of the major economic indices that move markets every month, said multiple statistics experts, who were aghast at the proposal.

...................SNIP"

[applegrove]

1. Making sure the next generations of data will only be available to people who have a lot of money

to pay for it from corporations.

[treestar]

2. Lunatics

Plus they would never know the number of idiotic Republicans.

[TreasonousBastard]

3. This has been reported, and the last time they tried this they got it past...

the House but the Senate stopped it. Who knows what will happen this time...

It's part of the Republican War on Knowledge-- years ago my cousin, with his PhD in aeronautical engineering (yes, an actual rocket scientist) was part of the House science advisory panel, or some such thing. Newt Gingrich fired him and the rest of the crew saying they had no need for science advisors. Or any other advisors for that matter. Except maybe religious ones.

And it shows now, doesn't it?

[applegrove]

5. The conservative government in Canada got rid of the long form census. They hate people

getting free information. Cause it might then fall into the hands of 'socialists' or 'union supporters' when in fact the only person I know who had use for statistics like that is a Haitian man who takes care of my mom. He's planning on starting a number of new businesses some day. A real go getter. And I very much want any information he wants to be free to someone like him. After all small business is what our economies will be based on in the future.

[defacto7]

4. another post made a good point...

The poster winter_is_coming made a good point....

Census data is used to help make decisions about allocating Federal aid.
No aid, no need for the stats.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=2784980

I think that is a pretty good tell.

[winter is coming]

7. And the flip side of that is no data, no way to prove you need aid. n/t

[Half-Century Man]

6. Aren't there random mandatory urinalysis?

On second thought, I think the problem isn't one of rampant drug use. Perhaps a cat scan is in order, I suspect a concussion.