Partisanism and LIMS
Posted from www.limsexpert.com:
Partisanism and LIMS
Originally Published Wed Aug 13 17:52:15 2008
This is for those who feel that an unbiased online publication cannot be produced by an organization that is affiliated with a LIMS vendor.
We do not dismiss the efforts of a politician trying to pass a new bill immediately because of his or her party affiliation.
We do not refuse a shoe company’s endorsement of a community baseball team for fear that they will demand increased sales by the team in return.
We cannot do this if we, with solid breath, claim to be intelligent beings surviving in the age of reason.
Hold on to your chairs conspiracy-theorists! There is such a thing as doing the right thing for the right reasons.
Fifty or so years back people were inextricably drawn to propaganda. It was new and exciting and made you feel good at other people’s expense. Today, now that the average individual with at least a middle-school education can discern between propaganda and other forms of communication, we have less to fear.
But fear makes good copy. It keeps people running and ducking for cover. It undermines trust and reason. It devolves every sense of community into an ugly facade.
If we assume that a shoe company has no right to publish information about making good shoes or that a bird feed company should stay out of the bird-watching book publishing business then we deplete a valuable resource of opportunity and impoverish ourselves in turn.
In an information-centric society we have to be bold enough to read between the lines. Sure, everything you read is suspect. Everyone might have an angle. Big deal. You are an intelligent, discerning individual who seeks out multiple sources of information before making a decision. Or do you visit your local car dealer and offer yourself up like a Thanksgiving turkey when eying that new Mercedes? Of course not! You have vehicle history reports, pictures, specifications, online ratings, blog posts from other happy (or not so happy) customers, and more. You are the informed customer. You are empowered.
The point of this discussion is this: It is in poor taste to assume that a publication has bias without evidence. And even if you find such evidence (or what appears to be something like it) your tolerance for a quick and speedy retraction drenched with apologies is an implicit requirement of your participation in our brave new world.
That we find ourselves today amidst great opportunity is no coincidence whatsoever. Our love of free speech and common desire to be free of tyranny have created for ourselves very real and dynamic communication processes for those who are in some way affiliated. Here, the affiliation is Laboratory Information Management Systems. It could just as easily be ‘Citizens Who Love Play-Doh’ or
‘Those Eagerly Awaiting the Imminent Implosion of the Known Universe’ — you get the idea. Sadly, yes, we live in a world where you cannot trust anyone that you don’t know implicitly. You will have to take a sip of every glass of the tap water to check the chlorine level before drinking. In some ways that suspense makes the glass that much more enjoyable.
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