Tag: global warming

More on the Peter Gleick Fakegate Memo.

This is pretty good stuff of Megan McArdle, re Peter Gleick’s own-goal sabotage of climate change advocates by disseminating/allegedly creating a fake Heartland memo on its global warming strategies (not to mention his confessed identity theft):

When skeptics complain that global warming activists are apparently willing to go to any lengths–including lying–to advance their worldview, I’d say one of the movement’s top priorities should be not proving them right.

…but it must be said: Gleick really doesn’t deserve much benefit of the doubt at this point with regard to his probable authorship of the original, blatantly fake, Heartland memo.  There is a credible case to be made at this point that Gleick stole the original documents, then created the memo himself; and, given that he’s a self-confessed liar, it’s going to take more than I’m not lying about this for Gleick to get out of it. Continue reading More on the Peter Gleick Fakegate Memo.

What are the depths of Peter Gleick’s depravity in the Heartland global warming smear attack? [UPDATED]

[UPDATE: The preliminary steps of removing Peter Gleick from positions of authority and respect have begun: he’s ‘resigned’ from his position with the National Center for Science Education, and his scientific ethics task force chairmanship(!) for the American Geophysical Union.  One wonders whether groups like the MacArthur Fellows Program and NAS will insist that Gleick cut all ties from them, as well.  Nobody’s really expecting the Pacific Institute to join in, of course: it’s a well-known reliable quote machine for the American Left.]

OK, quick background: last week there was a bit of fuss when a variety of documents appeared that purported to show that there was some sort of nefarious global warming ‘denialist’ (that’s what a Lefty calls somebody who has noticed that, hey, the temperature’s not actually rising the way that people told us it would) conspiracy centered around the Heartland Institute.  The Heartland Institute was not amused by this, and has been making it clear that at least one document was a pathetic forgery.  This latter point has generally been conceded by all the players, if tacitly, and the great walkback is beginning.  I recommend Watts Up With That for those looking to monitor further developments: that site has been all over this story.

But let’s go back to what got revealed, for a moment.  The documents can be grouped into two categories: a variety of materials that global warming advocate (and lecturer on ethics*) Peter Gleick admitted stealing from Heartland**; and the aforementioned pathetically faked document.  Since we now know that not even Gleick is standing by the provenance of said document, let us ignore it completely.  What it says is irrelevant.  It has no bearing.  I did not even read it before my summary below of the documents that Gleick stole, solely to keep it from contaminating my assessment. Continue reading What are the depths of Peter Gleick’s depravity in the Heartland global warming smear attack? [UPDATED]

Keywords: mass hysteria, global warming, superstition, science fiction, apocalyptic cults

Hi, researchers from 2100!  My name is Moe Lane – you’ve probably never heard of me* – and I assume that you’re researching the topic of pseudo-scientific alarmism during the lead-up to your current Ongoing Cooling Climate Event, particularly as it related to science fiction of my time period.  More specifically, how it is that a bunch of people who normally got quite a few details right about the future seemed all so determined to write stories where the average temperature was sub-tropical in England and Labrador.  Let me explain and apologize for my… well, not “colleagues,” precisely.  “Associates?” …no.  “Contemporaries” will do. 

Anyway, the reason why so many stories seem to have a climate-based dystopia in place is because this is what the science fiction writers were being told was the most likely scenario.  Remember, this is the Late Twentieth/Early Twenty-First Century C.E. – excuse me, “A.D.” – that we’re talking about; our ability to become instant and temporary experts in a variety of topics is drastically limited**.  Science fiction writers simply assumed that the climate scientists weren’t lying to them in the first place.

Just like the rest of us, really.

Hope this helps! – Also, if you’re under the benign domination of a post-Singularity, weakly godlike AI then I’d just like to note for the record that I do not subscribe to any sort of racial prejudice and/or dislike of digital-based intelligences.  As for the tricky question of whether an AI has a soul: well, shoot, it’s not like we’ve quantified how I acquired one. I’m sure that the Almighty*** can handle this without my input.

Continue reading Keywords: mass hysteria, global warming, superstition, science fiction, apocalyptic cults

Rasmussen and the Global Warming Liars.

Hey, don’t look at me.  Or Rasmussen Reports.  We’re just reporting results.  Object to the American people:

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of American Adults shows that 69% say it’s at least somewhat likely that some scientists have falsified research data in order to support their own theories and beliefs, including 40% who say this is Very Likely. Twenty-two percent (22%) don’t think it’s likely some scientists have falsified global warming data, including just six percent (6%) say it’s Not At All Likely. Another 10% are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here .)

Continue reading Rasmussen and the Global Warming Liars.

A mini-Ice Age?

Better throw some more logs on the fire.

What may be the science story of the century is breaking this evening, as heavyweight US solar physicists announce that the Sun appears to be headed into a lengthy spell of low activity, which could mean that the Earth – far from facing a global warming problem – is actually headed into a mini Ice Age.

[snip]

The Sun normally follows an 11-year cycle of activity. The current cycle, Cycle 24, is now supposed to be ramping up towards maximum strength. Increased numbers of sunspots and other indications ought to be happening: but in fact results so far are most disappointing. Scientists at the NSO now suspect, based on data showing decades-long trends leading to this point, that Cycle 25 may not happen at all.

The magic phrase ‘Maunder Minimum’ was used – which suggests that we might be looking at another Little Ice Age.  Which, depending on who you ask, either: caused a bunch of wars; made a bunch of wars much worse than they would have been otherwise; or is not to be mentioned in polite company.  Personally, I was hoping that we’d avoid this: after all, cold is death and heat is life.  Better to be warm and wet, than cold and dry.  But then, I have kids, and I worry that the current short-sighted, willful denial of science by our self-appointed elites may be condemning my children – and everybody else’s – to a future of poverty and dearth.

On the bright side, a colleague of mine suggested that the perfect name for a hypothetical new period of decreased sunspot activity would be the “Gore Minimum.”  In terms of irony alone, that would be perfect.

Moe Lane (crosspost)

#rsrh My PitA observation for the day.

Having watched Soylent Green again recently*: sometimes it seems that the people most exercised over the entire ‘greenhouse gas’ thing seem to have completely forgotten what it is that we use greenhouses for.

Moe Lane

*A shaping-up-to-be-quite-comprehensively-wrong film which was based on Harry Harrison’s Make Room! Make Room! – a novel that was equally (and equally hysterically) wrong in its predictions.  I mention this largely because it is apparently required that we take seriously the predictions of 2010 for 2050… and ignore the pesky detail that the equally-dire predictions in 1970 or 1985 for 2010 (and increasingly-likely, 2020, or 2025) turned out to be, frankly, crap.  Not to mention the other pesky detail that in 2030 I’ll probably be able to write the same damn post about all those people out there fear-mongering 2070…

QotD, Senator Ma’am edition.

Dinging Senator Barbara Boxer for saying something stupid is cruel.  And vicious.  And viciously cruel; and it’s all because it’s far too easy to do.  I am being lazy by highlighting her flustered response to Senators Barasso’s and Inhofe’s cheerful Hey, you guys have been claiming eco-Apocalypses for forty years now; only back then it was global cooling that was going to kill us all.  Oh, and look!  Obama’s science advisor John Holdren was one of them!

Her response was a thing of Boxer:

“…there were scientists that did call for the Ice Age…”

Watch the whole video, particularly the parts where Democratic Senators scurried around trying to obscure the inconvenient truth that while the tune of DOOM has continued unabated throughout my lifetime, the actual words keep changing to fit the latest academic fad.  Hot Air has more, including this link to Zombietime’s indispensable commentary on Holdren’s shifting attitudes on global warming/cooling/whatever; I’ll just note that this isn’t the only controversial thing that the guy’s ever said, which isn’t actually germane to the conversation but probably is why you’re feeling a bit of mild revulsion about seeing John Holdren’s name right now*.

Moe Lane (crosspost) Continue reading QotD, Senator Ma’am edition.

#rsrh HAHAHAHAHAHAHA…

…HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA:

The Obama administration has urged the Supreme Court to toss out an appeals court decision that would allow lawsuits against major emitters for their contributions to global warming, stunning environmentalists who see the case as a powerful prod on climate change.

(Via Hot Air Headlines)

He can be taught! – Mind you, the argument here from the government is that the EPA has regulatory authority over carbon dioxide already, thus making it unnecessary for guaranteed-heavy Democratic donor groups to pursue punitive lawsuits against not-guaranteed-heavy Democratic donor groups.  Or is that too cynical?  Heck, does “too cynical” even mean anything, these days? Continue reading #rsrh HAHAHAHAHAHAHA…

#rsrh The DOOOOOOOOOOM of Gaia.

Hey, who wants to drink some pain?

Sens. Reid and Kerry made it official today – the mostly dead climate bill is now extinct.  It has passed on!   It is is no more!  It has ceased to be! It’s expired and gone to meet ‘is maker! ‘E’s a stiff! Bereft of life, ‘e rests in peace! If you hadn’t nailed ‘im to the perch ‘e’d be pushing up the daisies! ‘Is metabolic processes are now ‘istory! ‘E’s off the twig! ‘E’s kicked the bucket, ‘e’s shuffled off ‘is mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin’ choir invisibile!! THIS IS AN EX-CLIMATE BILL!!

Yeah, I know: that sounds like something that I would write – only, the author of it is trying to laugh because otherwise he’d be weeping with despair.  Tasty, marvelous, soul-destroying despair; the kind that’s smoky and textured in its flavor, with a lingering aftertaste that warms and supports without overwhelming the dish… where was I? Continue reading #rsrh The DOOOOOOOOOOM of Gaia.