Obama and McCain differ on several science issues

McCain IS McSame on NASA/manned flight; ScienceDebate asks a couple of iffy questions

ScienceDebate2008 has does a great fairly good job of comparing their stances on 14 science-related questions. After reading through the questions more, one question seemed just wrong to me, and second one not much better. More on that below.

One thing that John McCain flat gets wrong is manned space flight:
• It’s unnecessary.
• It could be dangerous, even lethal, viz a viz cosmic rays, to engage in it as far away as Mars.
• We can’t afford it.

And now, the two iffy questions.

National security:
• I feel uneasy about this question even being here.
Yes, our national security has become more and more technological. But, as a good left-liberal, this almost seems to me to be asking:
“And, how would YOU expand the military-industrial complex”?

Pandemics and biosecurity:
• I feel uneasy about this question even being here, at least as phrased, on similar grounds to the one above. Throwing in the “biosecurity” element seems to give more weight to the so-called Global War on Terror. That said, Obama actually went into that part of this issue before McCain did.

On to the other topics, though.

Nuclear:
• Both favor it, but only Obama adds the all important caveats about safe nuclear power that addresses nuclear waste, etc.

Driving:
McCain actually gets a point here, for talking about needing tougher penalties on carmakers who miss CAFE standard benchmarks.

Climate change:
• Similar in what they claim they will do. Obama aims to get 80 percent below 1990 emissions by 2050, while McCain aims for “just” 60 percent.
How realistic either one is, especially with the paucity of specific actions they plan, or details on cap-and-trade carbon plans as far as what baseline standards will be, is another issue altogether.

Energy:
• Obama talks about greener/more efficient building standards.

Education:
• As I said in a longer post specifically dedicated to this issue earlier today, both candidates hugely miss the boat by not pushing for a 200-day school year.

Genetics:
• Obama goes into more detail, and sounds more knowledgeable.

Stem-cell research:
• This is a clear McCain pander to the Religious Right, and, after the nomination of Sarah Palin, what did you expect? Basically, without calling it the “Bush policy,” he supports the Bush policy.

Oceans:
• Obama a winner for stressing we need to ratify the Law of the Sea Convention.

Water:
• Both are shamefully skimpy, and neither connects future water issues to global warming and climate change.

Space:
• McCain writes three times longer, without necessarily saying a lot more.

Government science integrity:
• Obama goes into more specifics about finding scientists of integrity for top White House and agency positions. He also promises the nation’s first chief technology officer.

Research funding priorities:
• McCain basically dodges the issue; Obama commits to life sciences.

Health:
• Both talk, necessarily, about health care costs. Obama’s plan is and will be better than anything of McCain’s, but it won’t be what Obama claims it is, either.

Overall:
• On a 1-0 scale, I’ll give Obama a 7.75 and McCain a 6.5. They both get scored down on the education issues, which is a pet peeve of mine.

But, don’t be satisfied with my summary. Hopefully, I’ve whetted your appetite, without making your eyes glaze over, to read their answers for yourself.

Or, you can read the NYT take on their statements.