Joint Subreddit Statement: The Attack on U.S. Research Infrastructure 🛡️🇺🇸🔬

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#ResearchInfrastructure #USPolicy #ScienceCommunity #InnovationProtection #AcademicFreedom

🔬 USDA Investigators Scrutinize Foreign Researchers: The Trump administration is directing U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) employees to investigate foreign scientists collaborating on agency research for evidence of "subversive or criminal activity," using Google searches to vet collaborators.

🧐 Employee Pushback and Concerns: USDA supervisors have expressed shock and confusion, with one calling the directive "dystopic." Employees are concerned the new requirements could put foreign scientists, particularly students and postdocs on temporary visas, under undue scrutiny and potentially hinder vital international research collaborations.

🚫 Ban on Collaborations with "Countries of Concern": The USDA has instructed its researchers to halt collaborations and publications with scientists from specific "countries of concern" including China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Venezuela. However, scientists from other nations, like Canada and Germany, are also being vetted.

📢 "Throwback to McCarthyism" Accusations: Jennifer Jones of the Union of Concerned Scientists criticized the directive as a "throwback to McCarthyism," fearing it will deter top global talent and liken the request for scientists to "spy on and report on their fellow co-authors" to authoritarian tactics.

#USPolicy #Science #Agriculture

Incarceration rates have substantially declined in the US across the 21st century. There are two factors behind the decline: (1) Falling crime rates for violent and property offences, and (2) Decreased punitiveness for drug crimes.

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#CriminalJustice #CrimeTrends #USPolicy