"I think the globe is warming - beyond scientific curiosity, I think it's a scientific fact," the former Louisiana governor and four term U.S. Congressman said.
"...I don’t think there is any question that man’s effect on his environment is also a factor," Roemer went on to say.
He also shared his thoughts on science, evolution vs intelligent design, and vaccination. Read his comments or watch the full video below.
Buddy Roemer on science:
Interviewer: ... concerns is science education in the United States. What would you say are your thoughts on science education in the United States?
Roemer: I’d never thought I’d live to see science actually denigrated like it’s been.
It’s like mankind has not forever in search, curious about how things work. That’s what science is.
It starts off as a theory and then the theory is not question marked, it then becomes a group of laws that are the theory of gravity or Einstein’s theory of relativity. That doesn’t mean it’s not true because it’s a scientific theory, it means it’s a group of laws that change how we operate and how things move.
I have noticed – I am 67 – I have noticed as I grew up from that cotton farm where things were scientific as to how many things now are anti-science.
It bothers me. I think you can be spiritual and scientific. I don’t think they are mutually exclusive. But to have spiritual values override science facts to me is not progressive, it’s not good, and it’s not spiritual in my opinion.
Buddy Roemer on global warming:
Interviewer: That leads me to my next question, which is really about a lot of the science denial that we’ve been having and I’m curious about some of your opinions on some of those aspects such as global warming and then the sub-question is it anthropogenic?
Roemer: I don’t know what anthropogenic means by the way.
Interviewer: Okay… human created, man created…
Roemer: Okay… Well, I don’t think we can answer that.
I think the globe is warming - beyond scientific curiosity now it’s a scientific fact. The cause of it probably more than one thing.
There cycles in the Earth’s history where temperature rises and falls. We might be on one of those cycles. But I don’t think there is any question that man’s effect on his environment is also a factor.
So we need to be commonsensical. We need to plan out how to ameliorate, how to diffuse man’s effect.
Maybe man has nothing to do with it. How can we take the risk?
Buddy Roemer on evolution vs intelligent design
Interviewer: What about the question of evolution vs intelligent design and the issue of teaching intelligent design?
Roemer: Well, intelligent design can be taught in schools in religion class. Evolution needs to be taught in science class.
One again, I believe in both science and religion, but I don’t mind teaching in religion things of spiritual value, things of faith. That’s where religion comes in.
Things of science ought to be taught in science class. Evolution is a thing of science. We have moderated our opinion over time, it changes over time, but it is scientifically based.
Creationism is a thing of faith. I’m a Methodist, I’m a believer, but it ought to be taught in religion class, not science class.
Buddy Roemer on vaccination
Interviewer: Right now, Iowa for the first time in 40 years is having a measles epidemic and one of the problems is that the vaccine deniers. What would you say to the mother who is trying to decide, ‘Should I give my child his vaccines?’
Roemer: I’m not a doctor. My doctors tell me and my reading confirms that reports of problems have been exaggerated with the vaccines, but the mother ought to know the history of the vaccine and the results. I think we need to look at the results and make our opinion.
I have never heard of this man until now....I like him!
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