Metrics for Success

by shamanic

Following up on Cernig's post about the abstinence-only report out yesterday, I want to pull this quote out of the Post's article on the study:

"This study isn't rigorous enough to show whether or not [abstinence-only] education works," [Harry] Wilson [of HHS] said.

This is part of a continuing issue with the Bush White House, where evidence the administration disagrees with is routinely discarded with an excuse that it is somehow tainted. My favorite example of this is probably from last fall, when Bush complained repeatedly about having trouble finding the appropriate metrics by which to measure the purported success in Iraq.

I don't know about you, but at my job, when the measurements all show failure, we don't curse the reports. We change our approach. So much for the MBA president. I think the country now knows why Bush's business ventures all failed. Sadly, he brought his crack management skills to the White House.