A pseudo-científica astrologia paga com o dinheiro dos contribuintes

Fui alertado por Aba de Heisenberg, que cita Klepsýdra, que por sua vez remete para James Randi Educational Foundation, para a existência de uma petição, assinada por 35 académicos portugueses, protestando contra a contratação de uma astróloga, no programa Praça da Alegria, no canal 1 da RTP, Televisão oficial do Estado Português, suportada pelo dinheiro dos contribuintes, num momento em que se efectuam cortes orçamentais na investigação e no ensino.
A petição é ainda assinada por Georges Charpak, Prémio Nobel da Física em 1992.

Transcrevo o texto da petição, sem arriscar uma tradução deficiente:

• " The undersigned persons wish to express their concern about the financing of astrologers by the Portuguese State, and ask for the correction of this anomalous situation as soon as possible. The most serious and visible case is the one of astrologer Cristina Candeias, to whom the State pays a monthly sum, probably well above the minimum wage, for her participation in the daily show "Praça da Alegria" on Channel One of the RTP (Portuguese Television). We suspect that there are similar cases on other public service media. The company "SAPO" uses an astrologer. It is unclear whether this service is paid with public or with private funds, since the company is related to Portugal Telecom. It would be important to identify and cease payments to all individuals exhibiting these pseudo-scientific activities on state-sponsored media.

  
  

  Our main arguments are these:

  
  

  1. Incompatibility with budget strictness - Recent measures to control public spending have included budget cuts on investigation and on teaching. One consequence of this has been a reduction of scholarships from the "Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (Science and Technology Foundation)", thus creating unemployment and uncertainties in an area involving highly-qualified people, an extremely sensitive and critical part of the country's development that demands a continuous effort, so that Portugal will reach a "critical mass" of investigators in several areas of science and technology. It's nonsense that this same State should be funding pseudo-scientific activities like astrology, that are not recognized by the State itself.

  
  

  2. Pedagogic immorality - Mrs. Cristina Candeias alone has more weekly coverage via public television, than all the country's scientists and all educational and investigative institutions. This is even more immoral when the State finances, on a live, highly visible public TV service, actions which deny and distort all the concepts being taught to thousands of students in public schooling.

  
  

  Our request demands no modification to Portuguese legislation, only that it be strictly applied, as is its due in a democratic state. "
  

Outros actos de charlatanice, mesmo sem a contribuição dos dinheiros públicos, abundam por aí noutras televisões, jornais e revistas, fazendo-se passar pelo que não são.
Parafraseando Sérgio Godinho: "Pode alguém ser quem não é?"