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The Reason Foundation is funded by the Koch Family Foundations and David Koch sits on its board of directors. Koch Industries includes plastics manufacturing.

http://reason.org/trustees_and_officers/ http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Koch_Family_Foundations

There is no disclosure of these facts in this report.

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I recognize the importance of skepticism about sources of information, but why would a paper like this need to specifically "disclose" one of the board members of its publishing organization?

It seems like a conflict of interest, IMO.

This is very much a political topic. When you take into context where the funding came from, the "research" presented in this abysmal paper looks a lot more like a wolf in sheep's clothing.

Especially since the Koch brothers use their money to sway policies.... and effectively at that.

Everything can be made a political topic. What is the wolf you're seeing?

Because journalists and academics have a longstanding tradition of disclosing potential conflicts of interest, and therefore readers and scholars expect it. To do otherwise displays at best amateurism and at worst a deliberate attempt to hide bias.

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