A misrepresentation of global proportions

Submitted by vrwcmember on Wed, 11/15/2006 - 22:16

Introduction

In August 2006, I had the honor of attending a Liberal Arts seminar through a local college in AZ. I'll say for the record that the general makeup of individuals was primarily environmental liberals. The main focus of this three-day event was on critical thinking and one's search for meaning. As I had anticipated, the topic of "global warming" came up. Sensing the obvious bias in the room, I sat there in my Ronald Reagan shirt waiting for the onslaught.

After the question was asked about how many people had seen Al Gore's movie, An Inconvenient Truth, I muttered, "How many people actually believe in global warming?" It was like I had tossed a stun grenade into the room. Gasps of disbelief and looks of incredulity accosted me from all directions.

Being the open-minded individuals they claimed to be, they gave me an opportunity to explain why I felt the debate over man-made global warming was an invalid one. Should it shock anyone that they immediately accused me of being closed-minded and uncaring? I was met with much opposition since I had not yet had the opportunity to be enlightened by the Gore movie. I told them I didn't need to see it because I knew what it contained and my sources on the subject are far more diverse and relevant than the one-sided propagandist claims made in the movie.

In the end I relented and agreed to see it on the condition that they read my website and take actual scientific research into account when deciding (for themselves) if the theory of global warming is, in fact, a valid one. It should be noted that, in this seminar, I wrote my website address on the board giving everyone a chance to copy it down. They all agreed to visit, read, and provide feedback on its content. To this day I have not received one single comment on this or any other article contained herein.

Setting the Record Straight

Let me begin by clarifying my position on this controversial topic. I may be an evil, war-mongering, right-wing gun nut, but I'm far from a trash-tossing, polluting, bunny-killing nature hater. In fact, I care more for the integrity of nature and our ecosystems than do these self-righteous enviro-preachers. I respect nature for its majestic beauty and grandeur and I realize that we humans are infinitesimally small in the universe and that we owe our existence solely to Mother Nature.

That being said, I will answer these preliminary questions to give the reader a sense of where I stand.

  1. Is "global warming" real? Yes. In the recent history of the Earth, there has been a quantifiable warming trend. A mean (average) of global temperatures over the last two centuries suggests that the planet is coming out of an Ice Age that occurred around 16,000 years ago. We have seen and will continue to see fluctuations in average temperature that last for tens or hundreds of years.
  2. Is it man-made? No. If man is so arrogant that he believes himself capable of altering the evolution of life on our planet, he may start to believe it is within his power to control that which nature has taken billions of years to create. Realistically, it cannot and has not been scientifically proven that man-made carbon emissions are to blame for a build-up of trapped greenhouse gases resulting in accelerated warming.
  3. Are greenhouse gases to blame? Not necessarily. The term "greenhouse gas" refers to pollutants such as CO2 (carbon dioxide), CO (carbon monoxide), CH4 (methane), and N2O (nitrous oxide). It is commonly argued that an excess of these gases in the upper atmosphere prevents the release of radiant heat from the planet resulting in an increase of temperature from the trapped heat. These gases are only part of a larger equation that also includes solar cycles, O3 (ozone), and the magnetosphere.

Al Gore is a Dipshit

According to Gore and his ignorant ilk, if the Bush administration had ratified the Kyoto Protocol, we would surely be safe from assured destruction as a result of restrictions placed on our industry by the United Nations. Makes sense to me. After all, the Imperial States of America is too incompetent to kill a few terrorists hiding in caves in the Middle East, yet is apparently capable of globally alter the planet's atmosphere enough to cause catastrophic climate change.

Let's not let facts get in the way of a good liberal agenda, though. China, who is currently immune from the most restrictive measures of the Kyoto Protocol, is a larger producer/polluter than we are. Why? According to Gore-mongers, China is a "developing nation" and therefore not subject to the more restrictive guidelines of the protocol. Comparatively, China has brought thousands of coal-fired power plants online in the last thirty years while the U.S. hasn't built a single one. Sound like a fair game? It gets better.

The former "next President of the United States" is not only a flaming hypocrite, but possesses a self-destructive personality as well. In 2004 he made a huge point of speaking at Universities all along the East coast trying to warn of the dangers of global warming. Coincidently, at that time the New England states were in the middle of a record cold spell. Real convincing, Al. And what about all the dire predictions that the 2006 hurricane season was to be the most destructive ever as a result of global warming's disproportionate alteration of the hurricane cycle? Hurricane Katrina was to be a mere taste of the destruction that was to ensue. I'd say those doomsday predictions were a tiny bit off. Not what I'd expect from the "genius" who contributed so much to the computing world.

The Grim Reality

So is there substance to the greenhouse gas concern? Let's put things in perspective. Environmental activists are quick to point out that the most obvious source of an abrupt increase of these so-called gases is from human activity, namely carbon emissions from factories, automobile exhaust, pollution, etc. I won't bore you with statistical data, but it's clear that this argument falls well short of reality when one realizes that the 1991 eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in the Philippines spewed more toxic [greenhouse] gases (CO2, SO2, CO, HCl, H2S) into the atmosphere than the entire history of mankind before, during, and after the Industrial Revolution. Additionally, during the spring of 2005, Mount St. Helens was the largest source of airborne pollutants in the state of Washington, emitting more debris and toxic gases daily than all state industrial plants combined. Shall I mention Krakatoa and Mt. Vesuvius?

Why do I focus on this? To make the point that man is so insignificant in the universe that it's virtually impossible for us to be solely responsible for altering this planet's climate indefinitely. Consequently, how the hell can we fix what we didn't cause in the first place? It's ridiculously short-sighted to believe that by driving an SUV, I am causing irreparable damage to an ecosystem that's infinitely more grand and complex than we can imagine. Besides, if by chance we are harming the planet with our emissions, Mother Nature will get sick of us soon enough and will "take care of the problem", just like she did with the dinosaurs...

When Good Intentions Go Bad

Al Gore boldly proclaimed that "the debate [was] over" regarding global warming and that the "evidence [was] indisputable". Apparently, a consensus of scientists came to the conclusion that we are doomed if we do not act soon. Really? First, a scientific conclusion is not made through consensus, but by hypothesis, testing, data gathering, and analysis. This has not been done in this case. The data are incomplete and inconclusive at best, eliminating the possibility of stating "concrete and indisputable facts" regarding the cause of global climate change.

The dangerous thing I see happening here is the unchecked spread of blissful ignorance. In a society where Hollywood continually defines science to the uneducated masses through ridiculously inaccurate movies like Armageddon and The Day After Tomorrow, common sense falls victim to fearful predictions of doom and gloom at the suggestion of another uninformed politician with an agenda. Don't get me wrong, I'd be just as concerned even if the politician in question wasn't benefiting monetarily from the cult following of the modern day global warming propagandist. As usual, I guess it's up to the intellectual minority with our heads out of the sand to bring logic to the table to keep us from doing something stupid - again.

– Publius

*Update:

In response to Gore's unbridled rampage to save the world, more and more educated skeptics are speaking out. Is it still acceptable to trust him when he ignorantly proclaims "the debate is over"?

  1. Telegraph » UN downgrades man's impact on the climate
  2. U.S. Senate » AMS Certified Weatherman Strikes Back At Weather Channel Call For Decertification
  3. National Post » Against the Grain: Some Scientists Deny Global Warming Exists
  4. Canada Free Press » Global Warming is Not Due to Human Contribution of Carbon Dioxide
  5. Telegraph » Cosmic Rays Blamed for Global Warming
  6. TimesOnline » An Experiment That Hints We Are Wrong On Climate Change
  7. United Press International » Study: Glacier Melting Can Be Variable
  8. EurekAlert » Antarctic Temperatures Disagree With Climate Model Predictions
  9. The Christian Science Monitor » Humans' Beef with Livestock: A Warmer Planet
  10. National Geographic News » Mars Melt Hints at Solar, Not Human, Cause for Warming, Scientist Says
  11. Daily Mail » Greenhouse Effect Is A Myth, Say Scientists
  12. Documentary » The Great Global Warming Swindle
  13. Canadian National Post » Scientists Who Buck the Conventional Wisdom on Climate Science
  14. ABC News » Global Warming Is Not A Crisis
  15. Newsweek » Why So Gloomy?
  16. The Huntsville Times » Scientist: Warming Not Caused By Humans
  17. National Review Online » Plutonic Warming
  18. Spiegel Online » Not the End of the World as We Know It
  19. U.S. Senate Committee on Environment & Public Works » Climate Momentum Shifting: Prominent Scientists Reverse Belief in Man-made Global Warming - Now Skeptics
  20. Australia's News Network » A CONTROVERSIAL British documentary which claims global warming is a lie will be shown by the ABC
  21. Wisconsin Energy Cooperative News » The Faithful Heretic - A Wisconsin Icon Pursues Tough Questions
  22. ABC News » NASA's Top Official Questions Global Warming
  23. Courier Mail » High Price for a Load of Hot Air
  24. UK News » Three Quarters Believe Global Warming A 'Natural Occurrence'
  25. BBC News » Skepticism Over Climate Claims
  26. WorldNetDaily » Sizzling Study Concludes: Global Warming 'Hot Air'
  27. U.S. Senate Committee on Environment & Public Works » Breaking: Less Than Half of all Published Scientists Endorse Global Warming Theory
  28. EarthTimes » Hundreds of Scientists Have Published Evidence Countering Man-Made Global Warming Fears
  29. NewsBusters » CNN Meteorologist: 'Definitely Some Inaccuracies' in Gore Film
  30. Fox News » British Court Rules Al Gore Film Exaggerated Climate Claims
  31. The Sydney Morning Herald » Gore Gets A Cold Shoulder
  32. News Busters » Weather Channel Founder: Global Warming 'Greatest Scam in History'
  33. Hillsdale College Imprimis » Global Warming: Man-Made or Natural?
  34. Bloomberg.com » Hot Air Emitted by Climate Summit Equals 20,000 Cars
  35. U.S. Senate Committee on Environment & Public Works » Skeptical Scientists Urge World To 'Have the Courage to Do Nothing' At UN Conference
  36. U.S. Senate Committee on Environment & Public Works » U.S. Senate Report: Over 400 Prominent Scientists Disputed Man-Made Global Warming Claims in 2007
  37. International Herald Tribune » Antarctic Volcanoes Iidentified As A Possible Culprit In Glacier Melting
  38. Daily Tech » Temperature Monitors Report Widescale Global Cooling
  39. Fox News » Global Warming: Is It Really a Crisis?
  40. Business and Media Institute » Weather Channel Founder Blasts Network; Claims It Is 'Telling Us What To Think'
  41. Fox News » Weather Channel Founder: Sue Al Gore for Fraud
  42. NOAA » Coolest Winter Since 2001 for U.S., Globe
  43. NPR » The Mystery of Global Warming's Missing Heat
  44. The Australian » Climate Facts To Warm To
  45. Fox News » Scientist: Forget Global Warming, Prepare for New Ice Age
  46. TG Daily » MIT Scientists Baffled by Global Warming Theory, Contradicts Scientific Data
  47. Cornell Chronicle » Global Warming Predictions Are Overestimated, Suggests Study on Black Carbon