This is true, but it's one thing to justify your funding to a funding agency, and another to justify your funding directly to an angry public that is being fed anti-science propaganda, and to politicians who are not acting in good faith.

I work in private industry, and I certainly have to justify my funding, but nobody's writing news articles accusing me of fraud -- if they even know that I exist.

Sorry, I'm not attacking you, but your comment triggered a reaction that I've been thinking about for some time.