Krugman’s recent column attributing intelligent design to a Vast Right Wing Think Tank Conspiracy draws the ire of the Prometheus blog:
Unlike most areas of science, in the case of evolution there really is no “excess of objectivity” and Krugman is certainly right about that. But by making the general case that scientific facts compel particular ideological outcomes, Krugman is legitimizing the very strategy employed by conservative think tanks (and today also embraced by liberal think tanks) that debates that are really about values can be effectively turned into debates putatively about science.
On the role of science in politics, Krugman finds considerable room for agreement with his conservative opponents. As much as anything, this area of liberal-conservative agreement helps to explain the increasing politicization of science in the United States.
This leap to the idea that research compels certain policies is one of the more disturbing errors we see on leftwing science blogs.
Leftwing partisan attack scientist Chris Mooney (of The American Prospect) is upset with Prometheus for daring to critcize Krugman.