This &quot;muzzled scientists&quot; story is a bit overblown. I&#x27;m also a muzzled scientist - $LAWYER hired me to do some statistics on $FINANCE_THING and search for $LAWBREAKING. One of the conditions of my employment is that everything I did is legally privileged and I can&#x27;t say anything beyond what is contained in this post. I was a scientific adviser to $LAWYER, and my job was strictly to help <i>him, his client, and only them</i> understand things better.<p>In much the same way, certain scientists employed directly by political agencies were held to some nondisclosure rules. I&#x27;m not sure I know why this is a story - is there some moral principle that all scientists should disclose everything and you can&#x27;t hire them for confidential work?