In 1961, President Eisenhower gave his farewell address to the nation. He warned us about the new links in the "military-industrial complex"..... a warning that liberals often cite to bolster their case for "peace not war". What has been little reported was his warning, in the same speech, is the forthcoming dominance in our universities of the government sponsored "scientific-technological complex"....... which warns of dominance of our public policy by "science" elites, and control of our Universities by those in Washington who dispense the research dollars. I believe the current Anthropogenic Global Warming mantra being sung by Washington is a prime example.
Eisenhower said:
"Akin to, and largely responsible for the sweeping changes in our industrial-military posture, has been the technological revolution during recent decades.
In this revolution, research has become central, it also becomes more formalized, complex, and costly. A steadily increasing share is conducted for, by, or at the direction of, the Federal government.
Today, the solitary inventor, tinkering in his shop, has been overshadowed by task forces of scientists in laboratories and testing fields. In the same fashion, the free university, historically the fountainhead of free ideas and scientific discovery, has experienced a revolution in the conduct of research. Partly because of the huge costs involved, a government contract becomes virtually a substitute for intellectual curiosity. For every old blackboard there are now hundreds of new electronic computers.
The prospect of domination of the nation's scholars by Federal employment, project allocations, and the power of money is ever present – and is gravely to be regarded.
Yet, in holding scientific research and discovery in respect, as we should, we must also be alert to the equal and opposite danger that public policy could itself become the captive of a scientific-technological elite."
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