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I don't disagree with much you've said, the only thing that bothered me after having worked for 20 years at university is the lack of realism of your views about scientific practice. Scientists have to deal with politics a lot, and if it's just with fundraising schemes that often explicitly demand social relevance of the research. That's particularly the reality of disciplines that are extremely relevant for society such as climate science. Of course, they need to assess to some extent whether the consequences of climate change are good or bad for society. This is a no-brainer, if you'd bother to stop and think about how they would structure and organize their research and get funding for it.

> A random scientist's warning holds no more weight than a hobo on the street's warning

You must be joking, and I wish people would do that less often when talking about serious topics.