Hello Everyone,

Apologies for the mass mailing, but you are receiving this email because you are either a scientist or a skeptic or someone connected with Oxford, or maybe all three. I am writing because you might be able to help British science by helping Evan Harris MP to retain his seat in parliament.

Along with Richard Dawkins, AC Grayling, Colin Blakemore, Lisa Appignanesi and many others, I am supporting the campaign to keep Dr Evan Harris in Parliament as a voice for science, secularism and free expression.

Evan has been the Liberal Democrat MP for Oxford West & Abingdon since May 1997 and he is the Lib Dem spokesman for science. But our support for him is not party political; and it goes beyond the interests of his constituency. Indeed, you can see further below a long list of the vital issues that Evan has championed.

Ordinarily, Evan should be safe at the election, but boundary changes and an aggressive campaign to unseat him mean that we might be about to lose science's best friend in Parliament.

How can you help?

If you are based in the Oxford West & Abingdon constituency then please consider voting for Evan. If you are not in that constituency, then please forward this email to anybody you know who might live in his constituency.

If you can help in other ways, then please contact Evan's team directly by emailing ikhanoxford [at] googlemail.com or visit www.evanharris.org.uk/pages/help-Evan.html.

Why should you help?

Over the past 13 years, Evan has been a fearless spokesman for evidence-based policy-making, opposing religious privilege, and promoting freedom of expression. He has led many campaigns inside and outside parliament, including:

* reforming libel laws, which stifle academic free expression (Evan set up and heads the parliamentary wing of the libel reform coalition in Parliament which supported me in my successful defence against the British Chiropractic Association and which is helping press for law reform)

* promoting the necessity for liberal updated laws allowing stem cell research (Evan coordinated colleagues, scientists, clinicians and patient groups campaigning for the passage of the HFE Bill)

* abolishing the blasphemy law (Evan laid the amendments and built the coalition which forced the repeal)

* helping to expose the fraudulent research that led to the costly and damaging MMR/Autism myth (Evan was the most vocal MP defending the vaccine at the height of the media scare);

* repealing the laws of seditious libel and criminal defamation whose presence in our statute back gave cover for their use by oppressive regimes against writers and journalists abroad

* supporting scientists who do regulated and licensed medical research involving animals in the face of extremist intimidation (Evan was closely involved in the Pro-Test campaign supporting Oxford scientists);

* working with English PEN and Rowan Atkinson, to defeat the Government on their sweeping proposed religious hatred laws (Evan organised the campaign which led to that victory).

* defending the importance of independent scientific advice (Evan was first politician to defend the rights of expert science advisers following the dismissal of Professor David Nutt);

In all these campaigns Evan has worked on a cross-party basis, and by and large he has been successful. Many in the science community know him and hold him in very high regard.

Evan's constituency is marginal and he faces a strong challenge in the current General Election from the Conservative Party, which has been moving campaigning activity and substantial financial resources from neighbouring safe Conservative seats. There have been boundary changes and only a 7% swing would see Evan replaced by someone who does not share his commitment to science.

The task of holding the seat has been made more difficult by the delivery throughout the constituency, of a glossy leaflet attacking Evan for his pro-science and pro-choice record (view at www.thestraightchoice.org/leaflets/2533). This was paid for by a "Pro-life" group and will undoubtedly have done some damage.

Keith Mann, an animal rights extremist, who served three terms in prison for offences including possession of explosives, has not only made defamatory and inflammatory personal attacks (http://fromdusktildawn.org.uk/evanharris) on Evan distributed across the constituency but is even standing against him in the Election.

The next Parliament is likely to be a challenging one for science and an important one for issues to do with free expression and strong advocates there will be more important than ever. We believe that it is important for Evan's voice to continue to be heard.

Many Thanks,

Simon.

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We are also intending to post a daily summary of the events on The Skeptic Blog, contributed by the organisers of Think Week.

Monday 22nd – Think About Belief
20:00 Committee Panel – “What are Atheism, Secularism, Humanism and Skepticism?” – Lincoln College, Oakeshott Room
21:00 Interfaith/Interthought Panel – “Can Different Faiths and Worldviews Work Together for a Common Good?” – Lincoln College, Oakeshott Room

Tuesday 23rd – Think About the Universe
13:00 Dr Stephen Law – “What’s It All About Then? Life, the Universe, and Everything” – Venue TBC
20:00 Professor Peter Atkins – “Science is King” – Lincoln College, Oakeshott Room

Wednesday 24th – Think About Politics
13:00 Paul Pettinger, BHA and Allan Hayes, SoF – Faith Schools – Lincoln College, Oakeshott Room
20:00 Andrew Copson, BHA – “Humanism and Campaigning” – Lincoln College, Oakeshott Room

Thursday 25th – Think About Freedom
13:00 Marayam Namazie – “One Law for All” – Lincoln College, Lower Lecture Room
19:30 Dr Julian Baggini – “Freedom, Respect and Religion” – Wadham College, Moser Theatre

Friday 26th – Think About Culture
13:00 Poetry Workshop – Lincoln College, Lower Lecture Room
20:00 Samantha Stein – “Public Perceptions of Atheism” – Wadham College, Moser Theatre
21:30 Iszi Lawrence – Stand-Up Comedian – Bar Copa Function Room

Saturday 27th
12:00 Atheist, Humanist and Secular Societies Fair – Meet the National Organisations – Linacre College, Hall
18:00 BHA Choir performance with readings – Linacre College, Hall

Sunday 28th
13:00 Ken Smith – “The Paradox of Religious Atheism” – Lincoln College, Oakeshott Room
19:30 Dr Evan Harris MP – Skepticism and Secularism – Bar Copa Function Room

For full details and to check for any changes to the schedule, see the Think Week website.

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Letters of Support

Dave Gorman

Nick Cohen

Dr Evan Harris M.P.

Simon Singh (Introduced by Prof Brian Cox)

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While Simon was expected to announce whether an appeal of his Preliminary Hearing will be forthcoming, his legal team are still working on the case and as yet cannot confirm the outcome. It would seem that an appeal will be made if legally possible, but with the deadline for this decision being 10 days from now (28th May), I suspect decisions and news will be will be forthcoming fairly quickly.

I’ll try to update this blog with notable news, links and updates as they come to my attention. Please do leave comments with info, or send me an email too: digest [at] skeptic.org.uk

For now, a running commentary of the event by its guests can be found here: #singhbca

A rather loosely-phrased petition aiming to prompt change in British libel law can be found here: http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/reformlibellaws

EDIT:

Links:
An interesting article from Wendy Grossman: http://www.newswireless.net/
From the Nature Network:
in-my-opinion-the-british-chiropractic-association-is-being-unscientific
From the New Humanist:
simon-singh-hopes-to-appeal-chiropracty

And a review of Trick or Treatment including the following, very pertinent paragraph:

“Singh and Ernst do not set out to comprehensively condemn alternative therapies, but rather to emphasize the importance of evidence. Properly conducted clinical trials (double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled) are the best way to ascertain whether or not a therapy or product provides benefit beyond the placebo, and this applies to all therapies, not only complementary ones. It seems obvious, but as the authors state, the ‘plural of anecdote is not data’; it seems that some alternative therapists rely on anecdote to ‘prove’ their success.”
http://metapsychology.mentalhelp.net

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