Commentary
Years ago, when concern for global warming began to heat up – pardon the pun – and climate change became part of the terminology, I recall writing about the plethora of studies coming out of our universities and think tanks that supported the government’s environmental agenda.
The U.S. has funneled billions, yes, billions, to the United Nations to fund the work of the International Panel on Climate Change, where funds go to hundreds of climate scientists in the development of their annual report, designed to scare the hell out of us.
We know how the government like to throw taxpayer dollars at projects they deem important, and researchers found it easy to seek grants to help the government prove their case, while at the same time pad their publishing resumes and bank accounts.
Their studies were published and they were paid. News sources provided headlines for their findings, even though their research included faulty project modeling, with conflicting data when compared.
Yet, as recent as February 27, 2023, the EPA announced $21 million in research grant funding to 16 institutions to investigate cumulative health impacts of climate change on underserved communities.
There’s Funding for DEI Projects, too
When Joe Biden became president, the progressives in his party provided him with guidelines to develop executive orders on the subject of DEI – Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion – presumably to take care of Americans “who have been overlooked, under-resourced and marginalized throughout history.”
He ordered a sweeping “all of government” approach to DEI, and soon there were programs instituted in every department.
Perhaps the biggest stir over this new “wokeness” has come from the Defense Department, where a recent survey from the Reagan Institute revealed that those with “a great deal of confidence” had dropped from 70 percent in 2018 to 48 percent. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Miley have made numerous public statements supporting the Pentagon’s DEI agenda.
From Academia
While I object to the beliefs of the leftist faculties of our colleges and universities they are foisting upon young Americans in their classrooms, in a letter to the editor of the Wall Street Journal, George Graham revealed his meaning of DEI, in opposition to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion:
“As an adjunct faculty member, I’ve witnessed the rapid growth and entrenchment of woke culture at the University of Michigan. DEI really stands for Division, Entitlement, and Intimidation at most institutions today.”
Commenting on a Wall Street Journal column, Professor John R. M. Hand of the University of North Carolina, urged caution in claiming that studies show improved financial performance by increasing the racial or ethnic diversity of their executives. “Simply stated,” he said, “they don’t.”
More Grant Funding
Just as there is funding for grants studying climate change, there are a number of opportunities for researchers to pad their income by studying DEI.
Harvard University recently pushed a list of diversity funding opportunities offered by several entities, including the Department of Defense, National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation offering thousands of dollars for selected studies. There are several six-figure grants offered by the NSF.
To cite one DOD example … the DOD is offering $38,000 a year for three years, plus a cost-of-living education allowance per tenure year, a $5,000 travel budget for professional development and up to $1,200 a year in health insurance for someone pursuing a doctoral degree in a STEM discipline of interest to the DOD.
How does this support DEI when “applications are specifically encouraged from women, persons with disabilities and minorities from such groups as Native American, African American …” It smacks of affirmative action if you ask me.
I am concerned that that average American accepts what they read, whether it be about climate change or DEI. They are reading what the administration paid for in a grant, and the author may have Ph.D. after his or her name but recognize you wouldn’t be reading it if it didn’t fit the administration’s narrative.
May God continue to bless the United States of America.
