AIBU to think women are against fracking because of the science not because they don't understand!

[deeedeee]

'Many women are against fracking because they “don’t understand” the process due to a lack of education in science'.

That's what Prof Averil MacDonald, who works for the UK oil and gas industry, says is the reason women are against fracking.

There is clear scientific evidence of the hugely negative environmental, social and climate change impacts of fracking, but she clearly does not want to listen to that!

What could possibly have clouded Prof MacDonald's views on women's scientific judgement? Oh, wait a minute! She chairs the industry body industry body UK Onshore Oil and Gas which represents the views of the fossil fuel companies.

Read more here www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/women-dont-understand-fracking-due-to-lack-of-education-industry-chief-claims-a6705166.html

So basically if women don't understand science (to paraphrase) why should anyone listen to Averil? What an idiot.

Words fail me ...

There's so much I could say but all I can summon the energy for is DICK.

Oh, I don't even know where to begin with this. I'll just enjoy my instead

Did Dr Who transport this Man back 60 years?

Not a man, Howto, but a woman with a poor opinion of her fellow-women.

Having read the item I would say Men are the ones who don't understand and Averil is being paid shit loads of money to say whatever her company want her to say.

Shocked and arrrrggggghhhhhhh

Her comments on women are shit, but fracking is safe.

Yes, anyone that disagrees with someone simply must not understand. It would be a travesty to find out that opposing opinions on just about anything are usually well thought out and researched.

Exactly! Her view that fracking is safe can so easily be debunked by science. And independent science at that.

Such as
www.psr.org/assets/pdfs/fracking-compendium.pdf

Which is very different from the funded by industry type science that the RSE report and others are full of!

Men don't know more about science ffs. Most people don't really understand evidence and logic - lots of studies show this - but it's not a male/female thing.

And of course you are all right that she represents the industry so is hardly impartial.
She did say something interesting though, that 'more facts' won't change anyone's mind. V rare for people in charge to realise that just shouting at people won't work.

I

Very true. We, women, don't understand wankers and liars.

I think that with fracking the opposite is true, the more you have learnt about it, the more likely you are to be opposed to it.

deeedeee what makes you think that report is independent?

If I remember what I read yesterday correctly, she based her comments on statistical evidence of women's relative ignorance. She wasn't just assuming women on average knew less.

For example, from memory so maybe wrong, I think something like 20% fewer women than man know what the product is that fracking is intended to produce.

She said "many women," not all women.

If one acceptsas I dothat fracking is safe, and if one then adds to that the fact that women seem to be more likely than men to be anti-fracking, then... well, yes, I'm afraid that the only conclusion one can draw from that is that women are indeed more likely than men to be misunderstanding the science on this one.

I wouldn't say this is unprecedented either. I think there is some substantial evidence that women are more likely than men to believe in astrology, kooky alternative medicine (like reiki) and the supernatural.

I don't know whether women are more likely overall to believe in bullshit (for example, conspiracy theorists seem to be mostly men), but there are certain areas of pseudoscience that women are more likely to believe in.

I think if women respond to cautious remarks of this kind by spitting blood and shouting HOW VERY DARE YOU, then that is just confirming the truth of the stereotype, to be honest.

I disagree that women in general are against fracking, for whatever reason. What total fucking nonsense. We're half the population, views on fracking will vary among women just as they vary among men - we're people too!

What makes you think it isn't Carole?

any opinion that starts with 'women think....' or indeed 'men think...' is instantly worthless. What a stupid generalisation.

the evidence on fracking is not clear on either side, plenty to think about.

I don't know.

My sister (Engineering Geologist) tells me that I am against it because I don't understand it and she's a woman herself saying it to another woman. She's also right! I don't have a clue.

She says that the USA (I think it was the USA, might have been somewhere else) have done it badly (unsafely or on the cheap or something, I don't know) and given it a really bad reputation whereas it's actually perfectly possible to do it safely and effectively if you are careful.

So what's her reasoning for why some men are against it then? If it's merely "because they don't understand the science" then why not just say, "many people are against it because they don't understand the science"? The way she's singled out women and not mentioned men sounds - whether she intended it or not, and I do hope she didn't intend it - as though she thinks there's something about being women that means they can't understand it...

"any opinion that starts with 'women think....' or indeed 'men think...' is instantly worthless. What a stupid generalisation."

YYYY.