Sadness & Fear

Upon reading about Sky & Telescope being sold, the first thing that struck me was sadness, and the second thing was fear. I'm sad that a long-held tradition of private ownership has been broken. I fear we will lose "Sky & Telescope" as we have known it.

Please excuse my paranoia. However, there seems to be a powerful and well-financed movement afoot to introduce Biblical views into science. Take note of how religious viewpoints and advertisements have steadily crept into various "science" media, such as the Science Channel.

I hope my fears are foolish. I do not want the essence of Sky & Telescope magazine compromised by a spirital slant, be it subliminally, overtly, bluntly or otherwise.

My favorite aspect of S & T is their professional approach to cosmology and to theoretical physics as it pertains to the universe. I do not want a Genesis rendition of the cosmos bleeding into dialogue in some asinine attempt toward "fairness." I want astronomy of the 21st Century, not some hybrid publication sympathetic to dogmatic minds that echo the dark ages.

Otherwise . . .

Is there some reason you think this is a real concern for S&T? I don't know who bought them, but why are you worried there wiold be such a drastic format change? Just curious...

Carl,

First of all, have faith in the market. It would be a mistake for new owners to change the format of the magazine and lose their readers. But, I admit, other publications have gone this way down the tubes before. As long as there is a market for it, I think a magazine with the technical level of Sky and Telescope will exist. There might be some painful transition years to come, though.

Second, have faith in people of faith, like myself. Why are some people so afraid of Christians? This is the USA, and we are all entitled to our opinions. So many people are afraid other people will "take over" and "force their beliefs on them." Well, hopefully the American system and American individuals are strong enough to prevent that from happening.

Let's all meet in the Religion forum. What are you afraid of?
"The only thing to fear, is fear itself." - Franklin D. Roosevelt.
"Be not afraid." - Jesus Christ.
Who ya gonna listen to?

Good bye,
Rick W

My original thread stems from an event that occurred with Sky & Telescope a few months back. In an article by the Editor, he expressed concern that science was being compromised by those who wished to provide fundamentalistic explanations as an alternative to scientific findings. I supported his concerns: the scientific community should not feel obligated to change its findings just to please religion. ANY religion. The article was proper, and it expressed rightful concern.

Shortly after the article appeared in S&T, the editorial staff received several letters from those who wished to debate this issue. Then came letters supporting the initial editorial stance. On and on it went.

This chain of events is what prompted the very post I made. And guess what? The same thing is happening here! And you wonder why I get paranoid about the future of science in America.

This issue is not about one's belief in God. Goodness, I've believed on God all my life. The issue is about one's fear of humankind's religions, and how certain religious interpretations of God's intentions don't fit ALL interpretations. Yet those same religious leaders want to impose their explanations of the universe upon all of us.

True, S & T will not likely become a venue for the Genisis concept of creation or evolution ("God's" astronomy outlet). However, the sale of S&T DID prompt me to wonder what the long-term future holds for science-related magazines that get hard pressure from certain religious groups. As I already mentioned, I've become paranoid about this issue. I happen to view science as the wonderful tool that has allowed us to more clearly "see" the universe. I don't want that clarity to go foggy again because it doesn't happen to agree with someone's religious teachings.

Anyhoo, had the science vs religion "debate" on the editorial pages of S&T not occurred a few months ago, my initial post would never have been made. It's what triggered my psychological response -- fear.

I regret that so many of you took issue with my fears. Those who did simply reinforced those very fears. (But that's okay -- God will get you for this! Lol.)

I am not privy to what led to the sale of Sky & Telescope, but the news release indicated that the buyers are a group of Boston venture capitalists who plan to assemble a group of special interest magazines, of which S&T is the first. This could be the best possible news for serious amateur astronomers, like me and most of you, who like S&T and its features and don't want to see it descend into a fluffy pop-science journal that caters to a low common denominator mass audience so it can pay its bills by attracting the most advertising dollars. The apparent business plan of the buyers, combining S&T with other special but limited interest periodicals, may very well be the best way to guarantee S&T's continuing viability as a premier source for serious science that is of interest to the community of amateur astronomers.