We are a small group of physicians & scientists who have degrees in medicine, genetics, and epidemiology. Several others have graduate degrees in bioethics, philosophy, social work, and theology. We are gender, racially, and ethnically mixed, and we are mixed by age. While we may not agree on every point presented here, we intend to represent a diverse viewpoint of a common ground.
We contend that all opinions are not equal & not to be respected on the same level as expert opinions; regardless of the number of "followers" those divergent opinions might have gained; regardless of the extent to which those divergent opinions are disseminated or published; or regardless of how loudly they are conveyed. While we believe expertise and experience may take many forms and are worthy of respect, we are constantly reminded of the words of the Nobel laureate, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who noted in his commencement address to the students of Harvard University in 1978, "The truth is seldom pleasant; it is almost invariably bitter," 1 yet in his Nobel Prize acceptance speech in 1970 - which the Soviet government forbade him from attending 2 - he further noted, "One word of Truth shall outweigh the whole world." 3
We always hope for the best. We do not exactly expect it.
1 Solzhenitsyn, A. Commencement Address to Harvard University, June 8, 1978." Texts of Famous Speeches at Harvard. The Augustine Club at Columbia University, 1997.
2 Because the Soviet government of Russia forbade him from attending the Nobel award ceremonies in Stockholm to receive his award, Karl Ragnar Gierow, the Permanent Secretary of The Swedish Academy, read Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's Nobel speech for him in 1970.
3 Solzhenitsyn, A. Nobel Lecture. NobelPrize.org. December 10, 1970.