Scientifically misinformed

John Tures’ most recent column (3/11/17) contained blatant misinformation that needs correcting.

In discussing eye care legislation currently before the Georgia General Assembly — which has already passed the state Senate via a large majority — Mr. Tures stated that only ophthalmologists provide eye “treatment.” That is not true.

Optometrists, who must receive a doctoral level of training, have been providing primary eye care “treatment” for many years. That care includes performing comprehensive eye health exams as well as prescribing medications for eye problems. Their track record, as measured by objective criteria such as malpractice insurance rates, is exceptional.

The bill that Tures questions, SB 221, would allow optometrists to expand the range of services they offer their patients, preventing needless and costly trips to other doctors. This bill is narrowly tailored and would enable only properly trained Doctors of Optometry to provide the services. Optometrists in many other states already perform these procedures, but Georgia currently lags behind.

Mr. Tures, on more than one occasion, has demonstrated a dubious understanding of the subject in which he was ostensibly trained: political science. Accordingly, he may want to save himself further embarrassment by resisting the urge to comment on subjects in which he clearly has no training and no expertise.

Well deserved

On behalf of the State Bar of Georgia, I wish to extend congratulations to Aflac Executive Vice President and General Counsel Audrey Boone Tillman, who was among the recipients of the Rosa Parks Women of Courage Awards, presented recently by Sisters Inc., the charity outreach arm of the Gamma Tau Omega chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority.

Ms. Tillman was honored along with Columbus Mayor Teresa P. Tomlinson, who practiced law earlier in her career and remains an active member of the State Bar, and local community leader Ann Caggins.

We are inspired by the service and accomplishments of Ms. Tillman, Mayor Tomlinson and Ms. Caggins, and we appreciate their ongoing contributions to the betterment of the Columbus-Muscogee County community and the state of Georgia.

Civic necessities

I really appreciate Dusty Nix's opinion piece in the Ledger on Tuesday March 14 celebrating Sunshine Week. Ironically, his discussion with its brilliant ray of truth tends to get sun-screened for lack of consistent exposure. Dusty has great insight from his decades of peering into the core of the American soul and he expresses himself so grammatically and logically well that it is a sad waste to have his thoughts just flicker by so briefly in the night.

Where is the kindling needed to even get the fire started? Years of proper teaching of American values coming from the Founding Fathers are required as a fundamental basic requirement for our nation, not the least of which are thoughts from the conscientious mind of James Madison. I think monthly or weekly discussion of such wisdom should be part of our regular exposure. I also think it totally fair for such ideas to be sold repeatedly using competitive headlines.

Whatever, we should regularly keep such nourishing beams from our fathers shining in our faces.

Sadly unprepared

I was watching a supposedly solemn ceremony on CGTV to honor retired city employees who passed away in 2016. Many family members of the deceased were present in the audience. What an embarrassment for the city. The person reading the names and bios of the deceased was apparently picked at the last minute. She mispronounced the names and then would giggle about it.

The most embarrassing moment came about when she was reading the bio of a retired sheriff's deputy; she read the bio stating he was a veteran of “World War second.” Apparently someone corrected her and she stated World War II. She probably did not know what World War II was, either.

What science?

This relates to the recent AP report that the new administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency “does not believe that carbon dioxide is a primary contributor to global warming, a statement at odds with mainstream scientific consensus and his own agency.”

I don’t know of a single report appearing in a peer reviewed scientific journal that rejects carbon dioxide as a primary contributor to global warming. Further, I am unaware, of any nation’s academy of sciences that rejects the fact that climate change is happening and the burning of fossil fuels by humans is largely to blame.

Also, the U.S. National Academies of Sciences reported in “Climate Change — Evidence, Impacts, and Choices” that, “In 1896, Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius was the first to calculate the warming power of excess carbon dioxide (CO2).”

From his calculations, Arrhenius predicted that if human activities increased CO2 levels in the atmosphere, “a warming trend would result.”

If you would like to contact the EPA about this, you may have to send a letter or email, because the mailbox at 202-564-4700 is (at this writing) full and not accepting messages.

This story was originally published March 15, 2017 at 1:56 PM with the headline "Scientifically misinformed."