Subject: Re: CCL:A note of disappointment

From: "Peter Gannett" <pgannett.-at-.hsc.wvu.edu>
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 2003 13:46:53 -0500

List:

Pardon my doubting Thomas nature.  Can anyone confirm this.  I have no
doubt that the current gov't of the US might pull something like this
and, unfortunately, I can figure out the reasons why the ACS might bow
to the demand.  However, this would truly be a black mark against ACS. 

Thanks.

Pete Gannett

>>> Juan Alexander Padron <padrongj.-at-.fq.uh.cu> 12/04/03 10:28AM >>>
Dear CCL list:

I am reluctant to use this list for any reason that differs from
scientific exchange, but I feel that all my colleagues must be aware
of
the recent news regarding to my country.

It have came to me the horrendous information that the ACS, compelled
by
the US government, has forbidden to authors of (by this precise order)
 Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, or Sudan  to publish on their journals.
This,
> from my point of view, is the ultimate violation of the rights of
the
people that devote their life to the development of science. No
political reasons are valid to exclude anyone from the scientific
community, mostly if those are from third developed countries who are
the ones who required all the help that they can get. In the case of
my
country they are no reason to declare such blockade, cause we are not
a
thread to anyone: instead of this they are thousands of Cubans in a
lot
of countries helping in fields like health care, agriculture,
education
and many others that are vital. My country is also the place of birth
of
lots of prestigious scientist like Tomas Romaig, Felipe Poey, Carlos
J.
Finlay, Pedro Kourm, and many others that have make serious advances
in
different fields of knowledge. This is a dark precedent to the new
generation of researches in my country, that sincerely appreciate the
tremendous scientific capacities of the American science, and once
again
must feel excluded without reason. Be then this mail a note of
disappointment and protest.

Best Regards,
--
&///////////////////////////////////////////////////
&Juan Alexander Padrsn-Garcma
&Researcher, PhD Student
&Laboratory of Computational & Theoretical Chemistry,
&Chemistry Faculty Havana University, Cuba
&padrongj.-at-.fq.uh.cu, alex2473.-at-.yahoo.es 
&http://www.fq.uh.cu/investigacion/lqct  ____________
/////////////////////////////////////////

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---

From: Ivan Tubert-Brohman <ivan.tubert-brohman:at:yale.edu>
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 2003 14:43:07 -0500

> to the demand.  However, this would truly be a black mark against ACS.

This was published November 24 in Chemical and Engineering News:

----
ACS imposes moratorium on some foreign papers

The American Chemical Society has imposed a moratorium on publishing
journal articles that are written by authors in Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya,
or Sudan. Robert D. Bovenschulte, president of the society's
Publications Division, writes in a memorandum to ACS journal editors
that "this action, which I hope will be temporary," has been taken "with
great reluctance." The moratorium follows a ruling by the Treasury
Department, whose Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) "advised that
papers from these nations may be published but only if no editorial
services are provided," Bovenschulte writes. Such services could be
deemed to violate U.S. trade sanctions against the countries. The
Treasury Department ruling was prompted by actions of the Institute of
Electrical & Electronics Engineers (IEEE), which is attempting to obtain
a license from OFAC that will allow IEEE to edit articles by authors in
the affected countries. If IEEE, which Bovenschulte notes has "taken the
lead with the government on this problem," can obtain such a license,
"ACS can then use that precedent to make the same case to OFAC and so
obtain our own license."
----

Ivan

---

From: Barry Hardy <barry.hardy/at/tiscalinet.ch>
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 2003 20:34:53 +0100

Can you verify an official source/reference/link for this news?  If it is 
true, I think it is absolutely disgraceful and totally misguided.  Although 
repeating the obvious probably, scientific publication should be based on 
merit, quality and originality alone.  And such a measure, surely is 
counter-productive even from a political point of view:  Today's world will 
progress only by supporting knowledge leaders and cultivators in these 
countries.  Are am I missing something here?

Barry Hardy
Douglas Connect
www.douglasconnect.com

At 09:28 04/12/03 -0600, Juan Alexander Padron wrote:
>scientific exchange, but I feel that all my colleagues must be aware of
>It have came to me the horrendous information that the ACS, compelled by
>  Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, or Sudan  to publish on their journals. This,
> > from my point of view, is the ultimate violation of the rights of the
>the ones who required all the help that they can get. In the case of my
>country they are no reason to declare such blockade, cause we are not a
>thread to anyone: instead of this they are thousands of Cubans in a lot
>of countries helping in fields like health care, agriculture, education
>and many others that are vital. My country is also the place of birth of
>lots of prestigious scientist like Tomas Romaig, Felipe Poey, Carlos J.
>Finlay, Pedro Kourm, and many others that have make serious advances in
>tremendous scientific capacities of the American science, and once again
>&padrongj/at/fq.uh.cu, alex2473/at/yahoo.es
>-= This is automatically added to each message by the mailing script =-
>To send e-mail to subscribers of CCL put the string CCL: on your Subject: line
>and send your message to:  CHEMISTRY/at/ccl.net
>
>Send your subscription/unsubscription requests to: CHEMISTRY-REQUEST/at/ccl.net
>If your mail is bouncing from CCL.NET domain send it to the maintainer:
>Jan Labanowski,  jkl/at/ccl.net (read about it on CCL Home Page)

Barry Hardy, PhD
+41 61 851 0170 (office)
+41 79 755 2340 (mobile)
Email: barry.hardy/at/tiscalinet.ch

---

From: "Dr. N. SUKUMAR" <nagams[at]rpi.edu>
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 2003 17:51:25 EST

On Thu, 4 Dec 2003 14:47:19 -0500 "Shobe, David" wrote:

> 
> 
> If the U.S. State Department decides that this is the law, the American
> Chemical Society has no choice, other than to disobey and have everyone
> there sent to jail (or Guantanamo? ;-), or to pull up stakes and move to
> another country and hire only non-US-citizens.
> 
> So, don't blame the ACS. 
> 

But WE have a choice as to whether we want to continue being part of a
racist organization (however "reluctant") and a discriminatory regime.

Sukumar

---

From: "David F. Green" <dfgreen[at]ai.mit.edu>
Date: Thu, 4 Dec 2003 16:21:39 -0500 (EST)

It's right here:

C&E News, November 24, 2003. Page 25.

David

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On Thu, 4 Dec 2003, Barry Hardy wrote:

> >&padrongj[at]fq.uh.cu, alex2473[at]yahoo.es
> >Send your subscription/unsubscription requests to: CHEMISTRY-REQUEST[at]ccl.net
> Email: barry.hardy[at]tiscalinet.ch 
> 
> 
> 
> and send your message to:  CHEMISTRY[at]ccl.net
> 
> Send your subscription/unsubscription requests to: CHEMISTRY-REQUEST[at]ccl.net 
> Jan Labanowski,  jkl[at]ccl.net (read about it on CCL Home Page)