Jeff Schweitzer
Encyclopedia
Jeff Schweitzer is an American
non-fiction author, scientist, political commentator and proponent of scientific skepticism
. His published works are largely devoted to the interrelationship between politics, morality, religion and science.
Schweitzer is the founder of the multi-agency International Cooperative Biodiversity Group Program, a U.S. Government effort to promote the conservation of biodiversity through rational economic use of natural resources.In 1992 he was appointed to the position of Assistant Director for International Affairs in the White House
Office of Science and Technology Policy
which is an Executive Office of the President of the United States
.
Schweitzer was responsible for providing scientific and technological policy advice and analysis directly to Vice President Al Gore
and the Director of the OSTP. He worked with President Bill Clinton
’s cabinet and 22 U.S. Government technical agencies, and with countries throughout the world, in biology, physics, chemistry, geophysics, agriculture, oceanography and marine sciences. He helped establish the permanent Global Forum on Science and Technology at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to promote greater international scientific collaboration.
His book, Vote To Save The Planet, was a collection of short articles intended to inform voters about the benefits of electing Barack Obama
/Joe Biden
and the disadvantages of electing John McCain
/Sarah Palin
in the 2008 Presidential Election. His criticisms of McCain/Palin were also a major focus of his Huffington Post articles during that time.
Schweitzer contends that the GOP is hostile to environmental regulation, and claims that Republicans and Tea Party enthusiasts have recklessly and irresponsibly attacked reasonable attempts to clean our air.
Schweitzer argues that war, overpopulation, poverty, destruction of the environment, intolerance, and indifference to the needs and rights of other life forms all result, to a large extent, from an obsolete religious moral code. Schweitzer claims that the very foundation of our moral code is fundamentally flawed; that the current code of ethics predominant in modern societies, shaped largely by divine command theory (most religion, especially Western religion), is based on false promises of eternal salvation or threats of damnation, not on a morality inherent to the human condition.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
non-fiction author, scientist, political commentator and proponent of scientific skepticism
Scientific skepticism
Scientific skepticism is the practice of questioning the veracity of claims lacking empirical evidence or reproducibility, as part of a methodological norm pursuing "the extension of certified knowledge". For example, Robert K...
. His published works are largely devoted to the interrelationship between politics, morality, religion and science.
Early life, education and career
Schweitzer was born and raised in Southern California. Schweitzer began his scientific career in the fields of marine biology and neurophysiology. He earned his Ph.D. from Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego. Schweitzer joined the Center for Learning and Memory at the University of California, Irvine in 1984. While at U.C. Irvine, Schweitzer was selected in 1986 to participate in the Science, Engineering and Diplomacy Fellowship program of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 1991 Schweitzer was appointed as the Chief Environmental Officer at the State Department’s Agency for International Development.Schweitzer is the founder of the multi-agency International Cooperative Biodiversity Group Program, a U.S. Government effort to promote the conservation of biodiversity through rational economic use of natural resources.In 1992 he was appointed to the position of Assistant Director for International Affairs in the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
Office of Science and Technology Policy
Office of Science and Technology Policy
The Office of Science and Technology Policy is an office in the Executive Office of the President , established by Congress on May 11, 1976, with a broad mandate to advise the President on the effects of science and technology on domestic and international affairs.The director of this office is...
which is an Executive Office of the President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
.
Schweitzer was responsible for providing scientific and technological policy advice and analysis directly to Vice President Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
and the Director of the OSTP. He worked with President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
’s cabinet and 22 U.S. Government technical agencies, and with countries throughout the world, in biology, physics, chemistry, geophysics, agriculture, oceanography and marine sciences. He helped establish the permanent Global Forum on Science and Technology at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to promote greater international scientific collaboration.
Politics
Schweitzer identifies with the moderate left wing of the democratic party. According to Schweitzer, “History has shown that Democrats offer stronger support for science than Republicans."His book, Vote To Save The Planet, was a collection of short articles intended to inform voters about the benefits of electing Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
/Joe Biden
Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette "Joe" Biden, Jr. is the 47th and current Vice President of the United States, serving under President Barack Obama...
and the disadvantages of electing John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
/Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin
Sarah Louise Palin is an American politician, commentator and author. As the Republican Party nominee for Vice President in the 2008 presidential election, she was the first Alaskan on the national ticket of a major party and first Republican woman nominated for the vice-presidency.She was...
in the 2008 Presidential Election. His criticisms of McCain/Palin were also a major focus of his Huffington Post articles during that time.
Schweitzer contends that the GOP is hostile to environmental regulation, and claims that Republicans and Tea Party enthusiasts have recklessly and irresponsibly attacked reasonable attempts to clean our air.
Religious views
Schweitzer describes himself as a rationalist. He rejects the use of the term atheist, which means without god, because “we cannot be without something that does not exist”. He further rejects the idea that his belief system can be defined as the negative of another belief system. According to Schweitzer, “The world should be divided between rationalists and ‘arationalists’”.Schweitzer argues that war, overpopulation, poverty, destruction of the environment, intolerance, and indifference to the needs and rights of other life forms all result, to a large extent, from an obsolete religious moral code. Schweitzer claims that the very foundation of our moral code is fundamentally flawed; that the current code of ethics predominant in modern societies, shaped largely by divine command theory (most religion, especially Western religion), is based on false promises of eternal salvation or threats of damnation, not on a morality inherent to the human condition.
Personal life
Schweitzer and his wife, Sally Schweitzer, live in Central Texas, moving there following his service at the White House. Schweitzer is a pilot who owns and operates his personal aircraft. He and his wife Sally are avid scuba divers, often travelling the globe to explore new wildlife.Published works
- Beyond Cosmic Dice-Moral Life In a Random World (ISBN 0-9819311-0-3 ISBN 978-0-9819311-0-4)
- Vote to Save the Planet (ISBN 4-930813-12-3 ISBN 978-1-935073-00-0)
- Calorie Wars: Fat, Fact and Fiction (ISBN 978-0-9847166-0-9 ISBN 0-9847166-0-2)
- Healing the Heart of the World (ISBN 0-9710888-5-3)
- Global Change of Planet Earth (ISBN 92-64-14069-7 ISBN 978-92-64-14069-1)
- The Dilemma of the Sphinx (ISBN 88-7413-120-8)
- Indo-Pacific Fish Biology (ISBN 4-930813-12-3 ISBN 978-4-930813-12-1)
- http://mmopa.com Media:Malibu Mirage Magazine – Founder, Editor and contributor
- Huffington Post – Featured Blogger