Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!uunet!bionet!bionet-20.bio.net!JLIPSICK
From: JLIPSICK@BIONET-20.BIO.NET (Joseph Lipsick)
Newsgroups: bionet.general
Subject: bionet closure
Message-ID: <12509297160.18.JLIPSICK@BIONET-20.BIO.NET>
Date: 12 Jul 89 04:21:36 GMT
Sender: daemon@NET.BIO.NET
Lines: 27

July 11, 1989

Dear Fellow Bionet Users,

Needless to say, I am quite astounded and dismayed by the NIH decision
to discontinue funding for BIONET.  This resource has been invaluable to
our laboratory for downloading sequences, for computer intensive
sequence comparisons, for communications with other labs, and for
distributing free PC software (Plasmid Paint).  I must say that I am 
even more astounded that only tens of the reported thousands of subscribers
of BIONET have responded to Dan Davison's request for user statements
of support to be forwarded to him and to sympathetic ears at the NIH!
Either people don't understand what a valuable resource they are losing
(and will have to support with other vanishingly rare grant support)
or they are incredibly complacent and too lazy to hit the keyboard
for their own benefit.  The fabled Silent Majority is apparently 
well represented in scientific politics as well.  This is a rather 
sobering affirmation of the widely held view that scientists
are their won worst advocates.  Please prove me wrong and scream a little
as beauracracy overtakes reason in ending support for Bionet due to a
"lack of original research".

Yours for vocal scientists,

Joe Lipsick
JLIPSICK
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