a
Memo from To: Lon Cc

JOSHUA LEDERBERG
OCT 6 1976

Notwithsatdning my objections at the innuendoes
SCIENCES plans to publish Simring's letter,
(and my correct response.)

The editor, Ubell, wanted to have any
reply by Friday, or at least a FIRM statement
of how long it would be, and I felt I needed
much more time to think through the issues.

This is such an oblique forum, and no way
of predicting who the 'judges' are, or the
ground rules of the debate, that it does not
seem to be the right place to air out the
complexities of conflict-of-interest. I thought
I had been leaning over backwards; but nothing
short of supine will satisfy every critic.

As it will refer to Cetus, I thought you
would want to know how I had dealt with it;
I just took it for granted you would not
want to add anyything yourself, which would
only add seeming substance to the assertion
that Cetus was somehow involved in what was
going on here.