If I had to think about scientists and artists and tell whose contribution is more valued by the society I live in, I’d probably have a tough time trying to be objective while thinking about it. Both arts and sciences are fortunately highly valued in this side of the world. So I’ll give some examples to illustrate such a wonderful characteristic of the actual Euro-Mediterranean civilization.
As public coffers empty, not only is art taken off the table, but funding for scientific research disappears at the same astonishing speed. That’s what I call a fair balance. Meanwhile, we regular citizens keep enjoying and suffering artistic and scientific goods until we drop, annoyed or intoxicated. Artists, bad ones and good ones, are happily acclaimed and hatefully scanned and scientists, bad ones and good ones, are seriously respected and peacefully ignored. None of them have a decent salary nor a guaranteed job, and all of them democratically survive in harmony in this equitable society we have proudly built.
In order to value the work of their artists and their scientists a society needs firstly to grant the possibility for them to get paid for their work and the possibility to go ahead with it under dignified conditions. What contributions will a society receive from his workers if they barely can survive? What value can they be given when there are no working values anymore? Sadly, a society in which corporate and political corruption are the only safe professions for success, no scientific, no artist, no working citizen will truly receive any recognition.
