Any scientist worth his or her salt would have refused to run tests on non-random samples taken from the same corner of the Shroud, or at any rate, specimens that were non-representative of the entire expanse of fabric, with or without inclusion of image-bearing regions.
I agree. But then Colin goes on to write:
One can only speculate as to why the three labs agreed to go ahead and test contiguous specimens…
Only speculate? No, there is a lot of history. There is a lot of blame to go around.
Colin does speculate:
Maybe they had been drawn in on a false prospectus, and felt that to back out at the last minute under a media spotlight would have exposed them to charges of insensitivity to "understandable" concern about maintaining the integrity of a holy icon.
Colin, are you sure its not “Mickey Mouse science” by a “bunch of jokers” who are “idiots”? Of course not. So are you suggesting serious ethical breaches on the part of the scientists in the labs, the British Museum, etc.?