A "Project Steve" for Pro-Science, Pro-Vaccine Scientists, Physicians, and Health Care Professionals?

Over at Confutata, Squillo observed

I’ve been thinking about the apparent permeation of anti-vaccination attitudes into mainstream culture, and how the scientific community and its supporters could better combat it.

What if we were to create a group similar to the Union of Concerned Scientists, focused on vaccination?

I think what we need is something akin to the NCSE's "Project Steve"

NCSE's "Project Steve" is a tongue-in-cheek parody of a long-standing creationist tradition of amassing lists of "scientists who doubt evolution" or "scientists who dissent from Darwinism."

Creationists draw up these lists to try to convince the public that evolution is somehow being rejected by scientists, that it is a "theory in crisis." Not everyone realizes that this claim is unfounded. NCSE has been asked numerous times to compile a list of thousands of scientists affirming the validity of the theory of evolution. Although we easily could have done so, we have resisted. We did not wish to mislead the public into thinking that scientific issues are decided by who has the longer list of scientists!

Project Steve pokes fun at this practice and, because "Steves" are only about 1% of scientists, it also makes the point that tens of thousands of scientists support evolution. And it honors the late Stephen Jay Gould, evolutionary biologist, NCSE supporter, and friend.

We'd like to think that after Project Steve, we'll have seen the last of bogus "scientists doubting evolution" lists, but it's probably too much to ask. We hope that when such lists are proposed, reporters and other citizens will ask, "How many Steves are on your list!?"

So I thought of doing a similar project to illustrate the depth of support among scientists -- those with a Ph.D or an M.D. or both -- for the proposition that vaccines are safe and an essential element of public health.

Project Paul to honor Paul Offit? Project Maurice to honor Maurice Hilleman? (neither first name has the popularity or flexibility of Steve).

Hmmn. Need to find a person seminal to vaccine research & development who has a pretty common first name.

Wait, the internets...

http://www.pokemyname.com/firstname_43_paul.htm

popularity of name PAUL is 16.57 people per thousand.

Names That Includes PAUL as a Whole: Names that are Paul - like:

Paula, Pauline, Paulette, Paulo, Paulina, Paulino, Paule, Paulus, Spaulding, Johnpaul, Paull, Paulita, Paulomi, Pauling, Paulos, Harpaul, Paulose, Jeanpaul, Jaspaul, Pauliina, Polly, Pol, Pawl, Pablo, Paolo, Pauly, Pauley, Pawley, Paulin, Pavlo, Paulo, Paulus, Powell, Pál, Paul

Can you suggest some homophones for Paul, or some names from non-Latin roots that mean "Little one" or small; humble 

Next items of business:

1. A site to host the petition and the signatories, as NCSE does for  Project Steve
2. A committee or group to draft a position statement for vaccines analogous to the Project Steve position statement.

   Evolution is a vital, well-supported, unifying principle of the biological sciences, and the scientific evidence is overwhelmingly in favor of the idea that all living things share a common ancestry. Although there are legitimate debates about the patterns and processes of evolution, there is no serious scientific doubt that evolution occurred or that natural selection is a major mechanism in its occurrence. It is scientifically inappropriate and pedagogically irresponsible for creationist pseudoscience, including but not limited to "intelligent design," to be introduced into the science curricula of our nation's public schools.

Any takers?

Comments

[Kristjan Wager]

I think this is a great idea. I am not qualified to sign it, but I would hope a lot of qualified people would be willing to.