Friday
2 hours ago
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Valleywag disses Al Gore again
Cleantech: Al Gore has another $683 million to spend on climate projects
Preaching climate-change end-times sermons can get the creative-capitalist congregation to dig deep when the collection plate comes around.
Apocalypse now delayed
Apocalypse now delayed | Herald Sun Andrew Bolt Blog
If right, the lastest study suggests we will go through nearly 20 years without any warming. That’s not what the IPCC, Al Gore, Tim Flannery and so many other warming extremists ever predicted. Let’s see if the rest of their doom-saying is any more accurate - but I’d suggest it’s no sin to dare doubt.
Incongruities
Warning Signs: Incongruities
What kind of idiots would buy into the junk-science of global warming? The answer is almost the entire Congress of the U.S. with the exception of a few who have courageously and vociferously spoken against it, the House and Senate Majority leaders, all three of the candidates currently hoping to be the next President, and the idiot we have currently in the Oval Office.
Global Warming Campaign Director Job at Greenpeace
Excerpt:
B. Hire, train, and mentor members of the global warming campaign team (currently composed of 30 staff; directly oversee 4-7). Maintain systems for evaluating and developing skills of junior staff. Organize and oversee the work of campaign assistant, volunteers and interns.
Alarmism Taints Global Warming Discussion
TrishAndHalli.com » Blog Archive » Guest Post: Alarmism Taints Global Warming Discussion
If we would work together on economically sound energy policies focused on energy independence and scrap the alarmism, we would all be on the same page. Common sense and legitimate science need to be the basis of the dialogue, not pseudo-science alarmism.
There’s a religious-zeal gullibility that regrettably infests those who are too willing to believe the Jeremiads of the alarmists, whether it’s DDT, Y2K, or man-made global warming. Perhaps this is one of the byproducts of the secularization of America. For as the inimitable G. K. Chesterton said, “When a man ceases to believe in God, he doesn’t believe in nothing. He believes in anything.” Can you say “anthropogenic global warming?”
Cold night may lead to major losses for Michigan fruit growers
Cold night may lead to major losses for Michigan fruit growers - Michigan, Great Lakes Environmental & Conservation Issues - MLive.com
Scientists and growers didn't know the extent of the damage this morning, but Shane predicted losses as high as 80 percent for fruit crops in some areas, with juice grapes likely to fare a little better than cherries and apples.
"Unless we announce disasters no one will listen"
How UN structures were designed to prove human CO2 was causing global warming
As evidence grew that the hypothesis was scientifically unsupportable adherents began defending rather than accepting and adjusting. The trail they made is marked by the search for a clear human signal, identified in modern parlance as ‘smoking guns.’ They also became trapped in what Russian writer and philosopher Leo Tolstoi identified many years ago, namely, “I know that most men, including those at ease with problems of the greatest complexity, can seldom accept even the simplest and most obvious truth if it be such as would oblige them to admit the falsity of conclusions which they delighted in explaining to colleagues, which they have proudly taught to others, and which they have woven, thread by thread, into the fabric of their lives.” Next we will examine how the political system that Strong and the UN set up allowed perpetuation of incorrect science and falsely identified smoking guns.
Another poll shows a shift away from Gore's alarmism
The Daily Republic | Poll: Missouri River divides opinions on global warming
Where people lived in South Dakota seemed to be a factor for those surveyed. Thirty-five percent of respondents who lived west of the Missouri River viewed global warming as a very serious problem, while only 31 percent east of the river viewed it as a very serious problem.
The 2008 results vary considerably from the previous year's results, when 46 percent of respondents who lived west of the Missouri River viewed global warming as a very serious problem.
California: Freeze socks area crops
Freeze socks area crops : Local : Redding Record Searchlight
"Grapes have been hit very hard all up and down California, and Shasta County is right in line with everyone else," he said. "Walnut producers anticipate having some severe losses."
...
The temperature at the winery dropped to 27 degrees. "That severe of a frost is very unusual from our experience," Matson said.
UK 'getting less competitive'
The Press Association: UK 'getting less competitive'
The survey also revealed that more than two out of three company directors believe it is unrealistic to expect CO2 emissions to be reduced by 60% by 2050, the current target.
More than one third of those surveyed said measures aimed at tackling climate change will damage the UK's competitiveness.
Ocean off South Africa doesn't seem to be dangerously overheating
Cape Argus
Two Durban surfers taking part in the South African long board surfing championships at Noordhoek could be forgiven for thinking global warming might be a good thing.By the way, on that same page, I see this:
The two men, unused to the cold Cape Town conditions and ill-equipped, wearing only warm water wetsuits, were plucked from the icy Atlantic on Tuesday after becoming hypothermic during their heats in the contest.
Conditions were described as harsh - even by local surfers - as a water temperature of around 10°C stiffened muscles and set teeth chattering.
Brace for extra power cuts this winter
Cape Town is set for a colder and darker than usual winter, as the City of Cape Town plans to intensify load-shedding, with up to three load-shedding periods a week from Monday.
"The global warming movement poses as being scientific, but is actually a profoundly anti-scientific movement."
The Badger Herald - Global warming claims crippling
By appealing to faith, using ad hominem attacks and claiming privileged knowledge with which only he can be trusted, Mr. Gore demonstrates a profound disregard for science. These tactics represent a desire not to engage in scientific debate, but to shield one's views from scrutiny.
Ban the Smokes, Kill the Smokers?
Ban the Smokes, Kill the Smokers | OpenMarket.org
The unintended consequences of government are wonderful to behold. Impose a minimum wage and put poor, ill-educated teens out of work. Raise auto fuel-economy requirements, and kill more people in accidents as they travel in smaller cars. Ban cigarette smoking in local bars and restaurants, and cause more drunk driving accidents as smokers drive further to find more congenial locales.
Enron and Carbon Trading
Please see the entire thing here.
From a linked page:
From a linked page:
Thence Enron vigorously lobbied Clinton and Congress, seeking EPA regulatory authority over CO2. From 1994 to 1996, the Enron Foundation contributed nearly $1 million dollars - $990,000 - to the Nature Conservancy, whose Climate Change Project promotes global warming theories. Enron philanthropists lavished almost $1.5 million on environmental groups that support international energy controls to “reduce” global warming. Executives at Enron worked closely with the Clinton administration to help create a scaremongering climate science environment because the company believed the treaty could provide it with a monstrous financial windfall. The plan was that once the problem was in place the solution would be trotted out.
Gore's Generation Investment Management firm now has a $683M fund to go with its $2.2B fund
Scroll down here.
Note that when Gore fraudulently promotes carbon dioxide as a driver of catastrophic climate change, he stands to greatly increase the value of these funds.
Note that when Gore fraudulently promotes carbon dioxide as a driver of catastrophic climate change, he stands to greatly increase the value of these funds.
Al Gore and Jerry Springer listed among commencement speakers that may be "controversial, if not outright embarrassing to the school"
From this article:
Over the coming weeks, colleges and universities across these fruited plains will be holding their commencement exercises. Guest speakers will take to the podium to extol the virtues of higher learning, at least that is what most people hope.
The reality is that some commencement speakers will be controversial, if not outright embarrassing to the school. Yet, if everything holds true to form most will say what they have to say, pocket their fee, and their words soon forgotten.
Some of the more controversial speakers scheduled for this year’s commencements include:
...Though not likely to be thought of as controversial by some, Al Gore’s extreme position on global warming does engender controversy.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Emissions Trading Four Times As Costly As Direct Funding - NZIER
Emissions Trading Four Times As Costly As Direct Funding - NZIER | Business News | Guide2.co.nz
Wellington, April 30 NZPA - The Government's proposed Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) will cost four times more than having taxpayers directly fund cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, a report by the Institute for Economic Research (NZIER) said today.
NASA: cool PDO regime begins
The Reference Frame: NASA: cool PDO regime begins
From a related post here:If the observations above are correct, we could expect 20-30 years of cooling (or cancelled warming).
California agriculture has ridden a wave of success on that PDO warm phase since 1977, experiencing unprecedented growth. Now that PDO is shifting to a cooler phase, areas that supported crops during the warm phase may no longer be able to do so.
Why can't Al just field spontaneous questions from a live audience?
Campus Quickies - Covering The Ohio State University Community (OSU) -- Uweekly.com
An evening with Al Gore
Al Gore, the Nobel Peace Prize winner and former Vice President of the United States, will visit campus this Sunday at 6 p.m. to speak on the environment, sustainability, and what Ohio State and its students can do to lead the way toward a green future. Two free tickets to the talk are available to Ohio State students by stopping by the Ohio Union Information Desk. Students who have questions for Al Gore can email them to AskAlGore@gmail.com to be considered for the event.
Colorado: Global warming skepticism at an IREA meeting
IREA electricity flows but members in the dark > General > Stories > Conifer > YourHub.com
Several of these individuals went on to admonish the "radicals" who claim the sky is falling and are telling IREA to be concerned about global warming, which the speakers went on at length to debunk.
Washington state: Freeze means no green for asparagus
Freeze means no green for asparagus | Yakima Herald-Republic Online
"Even if you didn't get frosted out, you had a slowdown," Schreiber said. "And right now prices are through the roof, but because it's been so cold you can't bring it to market."
Unscientific survey: Readers believe global warming still a theory
Survey: Readers believe global warming still a theory - Tampa Bay Business Journal:
A majority of readers are not convinced that enough evidence exists to support claims that the earth's temperature is rising and dramatic impacts will follow.
NASA Says PDO Switched to Cold Phase
NASA Says PDO Switched to Cold Phase | The Blackboard
...PDO phases are thought to persist 20-30 years.More background information is here.
Instapundit on William Gray's troubles
THEY TOLD ME THAT IF GEORGE W. BUSH WERE RE-ELECTED, famous scientists would be punished for daring to dissent from politico-religious orthodoxy. And they were right!
Is the threat of tornadoes really growing?
Carbon Dioxide=Cigarette Smoke?
Kivalina: Carbon Dioxide=Cigarette Smoke
Together this coalition of law firms hope to establish the climate change equivalent of the tobacco cases.
A global warming lobbyist in the family
Excerpt:
As you may know, our august House 50B representative, Kate Knuth, has sponsored a hellacious boondoggle of a bill that would establish a cap and trade system on emissions.
...
I can envision some of the jobs it will create. The people who will benefit most from such a scheme are the highly paid consultants who will bring their expertise to bear on this problem. People like Kate's dad, Dan Knuth. The elder Knuth once held the seat that his daughter now occupies and has in recent years made his living as a lobbyist. One of his clients is Fresh Energy, which would stand to benefit directly from the imposition of any cap-and-trade system.
But of course!
Carbon dioxide from your Pepsi traps heat from the Sun, which causes crops to fail, which causes people to be hungry, which causes them to die of AIDS!
"Climate change will lead to food scarcity and poorer nutrition, putting people with perilous immune systems at more risk of dying of HIV, as well as contracting and transmitting new and unusual infections," Prof Cooper said.
Green fatigue
It's Not Easy Being Green : Culture Blog | CultureFeast
Also, is it necessary for Anne Curry (or anyone for that matter) to talk to me like a kindergarten teacher every time she talks about going green? Listen for it the next time you watch the Today show, Anne's voice changes from sophisticated news journalist to kindergarten teacher every time the subject of the environment comes up.
Sweeping Away Global Warming
Sweeping Away Global Warming | A South Dakota Moderate
Seriously, the story documents a Columbia University professor's solution to global warming: Vacuuming the CO2 out of the atmosphere with 67 million boxcar sized filters placed strategically throughout the world all powered by bunches of nuclear power plants costing an estimated few trillion dollars a year.
Is it any wonder that those of us that believe at least somewhat in the global warming phenomenon have such a hard time touting the science behind it when we have scientists like this guy on our side?
ABC News recycles the same idiotic global warming claim that the New York Times retracted in 2000
ABC News: North Pole Could Be Ice Free in 2008
1. The erroneous August 20, 2000 New York Times/AP story is here.
2. John Daly debunked the story the next day here; scroll down to see the text of the retraction.
3. From a related 2001 story here:
1. The erroneous August 20, 2000 New York Times/AP story is here.
2. John Daly debunked the story the next day here; scroll down to see the text of the retraction.
3. From a related 2001 story here:
Objective science reporting has become a casualty of the Kyoto crusade. Last August, for example, the New York Times hastened its slide from respected news source to leftist propaganda rag, by screaming from its front page that "The North Pole is melting." The story was based, not on scientific data or even computer models, but on the claims of a single scientist -- an apparatchik in the UN global warming bureaucracy -- who attended a summertime tourist cruise to the North Pole on a Russian icebreaker. The tourists arrived at the pole, the Times breathlessly reported, and saw open water. "The last time scientists can be certain the pole was awash in water," the reporter declared, "was more than 50 million years ago."4. From another related post here:
Real scientists reminded the Times that stretches of open water in the Arctic are a normal summertime event, caused by shifts in the ice, and the paper was forced to publish an embarrassing retraction.
One example of the shoddy support for the IPCC report: an observation by Harvard University oceanographer James J. McCarthy, a prominent member of the IPCC panel, was reported by the New York Times. Dr. McCarthy said “that for the first time in 50 million years the ice pack at the North Pole had melted”. It seems Dr. McCarthy had observed open water at the North Pole while on an educational cruise and he promptly reported this as evidence of the effects of human-induced climate change. This is the caliber of the ‘science’ supporting the idea of man-made global warming.
After printing Dr. McCarthy’s ‘observation’, the New York Times was contacted by scientists more familiar with the Arctic's climate history and geological record who pointed out that, during the summer, more than 10 percent of the Arctic Ocean is free of ice and it is not rare that the North Pole is part of that 10 percent. Ten days later the New York Times printed a retraction which was not challenged by Dr. McCarthy.
More on the Northwest Passage
Here (dated Sept 9, 2000):
A few weeks ago during the height of the Arctic summer, when the sun shines 24 hours a day, a Canadian police vessel navigated the fabled `Northwest Passage'. The media greeted this news as if it were somehow unique (global warming etc.).A related post is here.
However, the Northwest Passage has a long history and these are but a few of the passages made during the 20th century. (Information obtained from here) -
1903-06 - Roald Amundsen, in the Gjoa, makes the first full transit of the Northwest Passage from east to west.
1944 - The St. Roch, an RCMP schooner, makes the first west-to-east passage. It returns west and becomes the first to make the return journey in one season .
1969 - The Manhattan, the largest ship to navigate the Northwest Passage, leads a special experiment to see if the transport of bulk oil from Alaska would be feasible through the Passage.
1975 - R. Dickinson and K. Maro, in the Pandora II and the Theta, make a west-to-east transit.
1976-78 - R. Bouvier, in the J. E. Bernier II, a ketch, makes an east-to-west transit.
1977 - W. De Roos, in the Williwaw, a Dutch 42-foot (13-m) ketch, makes the first single handed passage from east to west.
1980 - Pandora II, a hydrographic research vessel, makes a transit from west to east.
1981-83 - Japanese sloop Mermaid, makes an east-to-west transit.
1983-88 - French vessel, The Vagabond II, makes a west-to-east transit.
U.S. motor yacht Belvedere, makes a west-to-east transit.
1984 - Lindblad Explorer, the first commercial passenger vessel to make a transit from east-to-west.
1985 - Commercial passenger ship `World Discoverer', makes a west-to-east transit.
1988 - MV Society Explorer, a Bahamas-registered passenger ship, makes a west-to-east transit.
These are but a few of the vessels to make a successful transit of the NorthWest Passage. There were many more.
What makes transits of the NorthWest Passage infrequent is not the lack of open water to actually do it, but the unreliability of being able to navigate the same channels from year to year.
Vessels today have satellite navigation, satellite images of the ice and ready communication in case of trouble. Navigating the passage today can no longer be considered a `feat' as it was in 1903.
A Ted Turner quote from 1996
Ted Turner Repeats Call For Population Curb
"A total population of 250-300 million people, a 95% decline from present levels, would be ideal," Turner stated in 1996.
Climate change event underway in Bangkok
Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) - {Travel Daily News}
Excerpt:
Excerpt:
“Forget the scientific polemics”, he said. “Our customers are the issue; and they are [allegedly] not happy..."
Transatlantic conference hears bleak evaluation of EU climate policies
Transatlantic conference hears bleak evaluation of EU climate policies « 3E Intelligence
Excerpt:
Overall, the European participants painted a less rosy picture than EU institutions want to make believe. Not only was there the growing disappointment with the global effects of biofuels policies (one of the EU’s own environmental institutions now pleads for suspending the 10% target), but the evaluation of Europe’s climate flagship, the emissions trading scheme or ETS, was also rather bleak. It is obvious that up to now the ETS has not lived up to its expectations. Very few real technological investments as a result of pricing CO2 have taken place and the only ones who seem to have won from ETS are the financial traders (who therefore write very positive reports about ETS). It is doubtful whether the Commission’s new proposals will turn things around. Not only has the energy-intensive industry hijacked the debate with its “carbon leakage” panic but even the better parts of the Commission’s ETS review drew heavy fire at the conference. “When Europe’s power producers (who have made big windfall profits in the first phase of ETS) applaud the auctioning proposals of the new Commission package, you have to smell a rat” was the justified and smart observation of an ex-Commission official.
No worries! Just price consumers out of using energy
JunkScience.com Blog » Blog Archive » No worries! Just price consumers out of using energy
So what's the calculated cost, and what's the calculated "benefit" in terms of millionths of a degree of cooling?
One Answer To Energy Needs Is Spelled LNG
IBDeditorials.com: Editorials, Political Cartoons, and Polls from Investor's Business Daily -- One Answer To Energy Needs Is Spelled LNG
Excerpt:
Excerpt:
Many of the same activists and politicians responsible for higher natural gas usage are also among those standing in the way of increased natural gas drilling.
Newsweak makes some interesting admissions
GREENIE WATCH
Article below on global warming's absence as a campaign issue makes two observations that are true, critical, and almost never admitted by the chattering class. First, only the (bi-coastal) elite are interested in the issue or deeply concerned. Second, reducing emissions will be hugely expensive. But in their typical Left-Elitist way they do not even consider the possibility that people may have good reason for being skeptical of the scare
"the major trigger for this year's predicament was the Congressional decision to mandate ethanol production"
American Thinker: The Food Crisis
Above all, we must be aware that the situation represents no apocalypse. Farmers across the country are madly planting corn (despite warnings to diversify from the Department of Agriculture) which will bring prices down with a thump next year. But the Second Horseman's swift trot across the horizon has revealed some serious failings in international agriculture. Most of these failings are products of political meddling. Cease meddling, and many problems will solve themselves. Today, much of the developed world has learned that industry cannot be effectively manipulated through policy. We sometimes forget that farming is an industry like any other. That recognition is long overdue.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Wisconsin and the UK to team up in the fight against trace amounts of atmospheric plant food?
JS Online: State, U.K. may deal on climate
In a statement released during his overseas trip, Gov. Jim Doyle said he met with two British environmental policy-makers to discuss a potential memorandum of understanding between the United Kingdom and Wisconsin on climate-change issues.
The United Kingdom has similar agreements in place with California - the first state to pass a law requiring reduced greenhouse gas emissions - and Florida.
Doyle's office said the agreement would encourage collaboration between Wisconsin and the United Kingdom in researching and sharing new technologies as well as efforts to educate the public on global climate issues.
Minnesota lawmakers consider California-style emission standards
Duluth News Tribune | Minnesota lawmakers consider California-style emission standards
The bill had been opposed in Minnesota by farmers' groups and the ethanol industry. But some of those objections were dropped last week after amendments were added assuring corn-growers and processors that the standard allows for high use of ethanol to meet emissions reductions. The Minnesota Farmers Union now supports the bill.
“Growers don’t have anything to harvest. That’s a disaster in my mind”
NC Media Watch: Another I told you so opportunity
A related article is here.Where is all the global warming that the Governor, Legislature and Al Gore are worried about? My guess is the farmers and grape growers in Nevada County would like to see some of it. So, where is it? Warming would not have damaged these crops. But cooling and cold destroy the food we eat, it is far more dangerous that a few degrees of warming. Soon we will all be praying for more warming.
Excerpt:
Local farmers are trying to recover from last week's freeze that decimated fruit, wine grapes and pastures, as the county's agricultural commissioner prepares to file for emergency relief from the state.
For many, last week's frost was the cruelest weather to hit local agriculture in a long time. The cold spell wiped out some crops by as much as 100 percent with financial losses reaching into the tens of thousands of dollars.
"Displacements Set To Increase"
JunkScience.com Blog » Blog Archive » Displacements Set To Increase
Oh boy… back on the ‘environmental refugee’ trail again. What they really mean is ‘lack of development refugee’ but never mind — no one will ever manage to educate the Gaia crowd that the undeveloped world is a damn hostile place (htey know people die of ‘exposure’ but they’ve never figured out that means ‘exposure to nature’).
"Tom Friedman warms the hearts of policy professors everywhere"
- Prometheus: Tom Friedman on Education Archives
The thing I would love to see? We really need a course in every school on environmental policymaking.
Gore Pockets Another Cool Million
A related post is here, entitled "By golly there’s money in this hysteria thing".
Washington lawmakers share blame in energy crisis
Washington lawmakers share blame in energy crisis (OneNewsNow.com)
A related post is here, entitled "Hypocrisy in Congress: A Broken Record".Ebell also notes that if politicians think gas prices are too high, they should be contacted by concerned consumers and asked why they would support global warming policy that is currently before the Senate and House. He feels it is "hypocritical" for politicians to complain about fuel prices, then turn around and support such things as a carbon tax or a mandate to use some form of non-carbon-based energy source.
Excerpt:
This hypocrisy is beginning to be noticed by the press. On Wednesday, Environment and Energy Daily (a sister publication of Greenwire) ran a story by Ben Geman that asks, "Should lawmakers pushing global warming legislation want high gas prices?” Geman goes on to point out that the chief sponsor of legislation to suspend the 18.4 cents per gallon federal excise tax on gasoline is also the Senate’s chief promoter of cap-and-trade legislation—Senator John McCain (R-Az.). Co-sponsors of McCain’s gas tax suspension bill include the chief sponsors of the cap-and-trade bill that is tentatively scheduled to be debated on the Senate floor in June, Senators Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) and John Warner (R-Va.)
John Coleman audio--"why he thinks Global Warming is a total myth"
11-minute podcast from the John and Cisco show here:
Chicago's 560 AM WIND
Chicago's 560 AM WIND
Tropical troposphere: not warming
Excerpt:
The three complicated colorful lines are the temperature data for the tropical troposphere - where the warming should be most rapid - according to RSS MSU, UAH MSU, and CRU: they seem to almost fully agree with each other. In terms of words, there has been no warming over there since 1980.
The thick, light blue line is the approximate average theoretical prediction by the garden-variety greenhouse models. Note that the IPCC predicts a warming of nearly 3 °C per century on the surface which should mean almost 5 °C for the hot spot in the tropical troposphere.
Nyet: Russia Doesn’t Want a Tough Cap on Carbon
Environmental Capital - WSJ.com : Nyet: Russia Doesn't Want a Tough Cap on Carbon
Mr. Gavrilov’s candor is a useful reminder that resistance to a hard global agreement on global warming extends far beyond Washington.
More on Harrison Ford's strange fight against carbon dioxide
1. You may have seen the odd story about Ford getting his chest waxed for the environment.
2. Ford is currently on the home page of an outfit named Conservation International, where he's helping them launch their "new climate change campaign".
3. From this link:
2. Ford is currently on the home page of an outfit named Conservation International, where he's helping them launch their "new climate change campaign".
3. From this link:
"Ford, who calls Jackson, Wyoming home, talks about his travels, making no apologies for his personal helicopter and private plane fleet and describing how much he enjoys flying them. "I fly myself everywhere..."
"Why does the cat pick up so many ticks these days?"
I'm not very impressed by James Kunstler's thinking in the article linked below.
World News Trust -- Defining The New Mainstream - Belief System (James Kunstler)
World News Trust -- Defining The New Mainstream - Belief System (James Kunstler)
Cold weather causes throat problems for alarmist singer Alicia Keys
1. Alicia Keys back on tour - People
The singer cancelled concerts in Pittsburgh and Cleveland last week after suffering from swollen vocal cords...Alicia's spokesperson blamed the cold weather in New York for her problems, after the singer recorded a TV appearance in the city.2. From an article about Keys raising our global warming "awareness" at Live Earth last summer:
Theola Borden said: "It was really cold outside. That was a bit strenuous on her. Afterwards, she went to rehearsal in Pittsburgh but wasn't feeling up to par. She felt she needed to cancel rather than give a sub-par performance."
Enduring the sanctimony of Alicia Keys calling out the “hate skeptics” for their intolerance of non-peer reviewed scientific findings and spiteful distinctions between hypotheses and conclusions, that didn’t bother me.3. From a December '07 article here:
Alicia Keys performed in Olso, Norway, last night at a concert honoring Nobel Laureate Al Gore. The purpose of the concert was to raise global warming awareness among young people.
"Well, I'm raising my hand proudly. I'm a denier."
Liner Notes: Is It Hot In Here Or Is It Just Me?
"An Inconvenient Truth" had about as much "Truth" in it as "Spinal Tap". Oh, there were some grains of truth. It was great storytelling based on myth. But it's not science, folks. Human-caused Global Warming is religion.
Cool spring and "much STRONGER storms" in Minnesota?
kare11.com :: KARE 11 TV - Where the heck is Spring??????
One issue with the current weather pattern if it continues well into May (there are strong indications it will) is that severe thunderstorm activity could become a more common weather hazard for Minnesota and it could be a much more active tornado season for the state as the contrast between the cold and warm will be very intense leading to much stronger storms than in the past few years.
Snowy winter likely to result in fish kills
Snowy winter likely to result in fish kills
With record snowfall this year in Maine, Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife biologists anticipate small lakes and ponds may experience winter or spring fish kills. This is a natural phenomenon.
Another Primary, Another Month of Media Ignoring Climate Change
TheGreenMiles.net: Another Primary, Another Month of Media Ignoring Climate Change
But now McCain has changed his position. He says he'll only support the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act if massive new subsidies for nuclear power are added. If he sticks by that position, he might as well oppose the bill entirely, because costly nuclear subsidies are added, many Democrats will vote against the legislation.
This isn't really about CO2, is it?
Beyond the pleasure principle | Comment is free
What if the only way to reverse climate change or to bring about a more equitable distribution of global resources was for our western economies to shrink? What if we had to become poorer in order for others to grow rich? Would any politician or public commentator even suggest such a thing? Perhaps we should at least consider this question - and stop the relentless train of economic growth that makes the rich richer at the expense of the poor.
Does Al Gore possess one of the world’s top 100 brains?
Maybe he does (in a jar in his basement), but see the article here.
Excerpt:
Excerpt:
Al Gore didn’t make it last time but he’s on the list now. We’re expecting a strong showing from him this year.
California: Local crops feel frost's bite
Local crops feel frost's bite - Chico Enterprise Record
Jim Noble said the frost also wiped out their peaches, nectarines and cherries. "It hasn't been this bad since 1960 or so," Noble said.
It's getting cold out there
The Daily Observer - Ontario, CA
Remember they are trying to convince us that greenhouse gas is responsible for so called global warming, and at a time the CO2 concentrations are at a high we have record cooling.
Agent Leigh Steinberg dons his tinfoil hat
Interview With The Agent: Leigh Steinberg | Bleacher Report
Leigh Steinberg: I think that we've reached a tipping point in terms of Global Warming. We have prodigious intellect and technological skills but deeply flawed emotional systems. It seems to be blinding us as a species to our own imminent demise as a species. The signs of global warming and climate change are all around us: the Earth is getting warmer, we have nonstop hurricanes and tornadoes, viruses keep emerging, oceans are rising, and icecaps are breaking. 40% of the pollution we are breathing in California comes from China. The imperative to act on this or face a dramatically degraded quality of life for now and forever, is now we risk being the first generation to hand down to our children a drastically reduced quality of life. And the mistake is thinking somehow that the Earth is in danger. The Earth will keep on rolling through ice ages and any manner of climate change. It's our species that's fragile.
Wikipedia bias
GREENIE WATCH
Because the actual temperature record of the last 10 years is decisively against them and the only "science" that supports Warmism is speculative, the Green/Left normally rely very heavily on defamation of those who disagree with them in order to "support" their theories. And, although Wikipedia is well-known as an unreliable source of political information, they of course do their best to debauch what appears there. As Fred Singer is a leading skeptic, his Wikpedia entry has recently come under heavy attack. I reproduce below some interesting comments about that from various sources:
US Environment Groups Target Senate Races On Climate
JunkScience.com Blog » Blog Archive » US Environment Groups Target Senate Races On Climate
If you needed a prod to get busy and fight carbon taxes and energy rationing this should be it. the watermelons just could get enough irresponsible politicians elected to do some real harm.
Mark Daniels: I should be greener
The Publican - Home - Mark Daniels: I should be greener
I’ve long been a believer in the fact that there are two very distinct parts to the whole issue of the environment: climate change, a naturally occurring phenomenon, and global warming, a government taxation policy.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Ok, so maybe the science ISN'T settled
Skeptic magazine has published these two articles:
1. A Climate of Belief
2. How We Know Global Warming is Real
1. A Climate of Belief
2. How We Know Global Warming is Real
Endless Winter, Part 2
Power Line: Endless Winter, Part 2
It may well be that the long winter of 2007-2008 came just in time to avert the disaster that would ensue if the general public ever took environmental hysteria seriously.
Al Gore to visit Israel
Al Gore to open TAU conference on renewable energy | Jerusalem Post
Gore will be arriving on a special visit to Israel as guest of the Dan David Prize. The 2008 Dan David Prize will be awarded to Gore on May 19 for social commitment to environmental protection and the prevention of a global ecological disaster, a statement from the university read.
Three-foot snowdrifts in Minnesota
[mou] Bagley Farm Report-long
A most awful day...We are snowbound at the farm, maybe we can find someone to plow us out tomorrow. For the migrants recently arrived the weather is downright dangerous. We have had a minimum of 12" of snow here, it is still falling and blowing viciously. I measured drifts 3' deep.
Australia: Early snowfalls lift hopes of best ski season for years
A related article is here, entitled "Five weeks before ski season, we have snow".
Joe Barton v. Al Gore
Somehow, until today I hadn't seen this 14-minute video from March 2007.
Joe Barton calls out Al Gore in detail about some of Gore's fraudulent claims; of course, Gore fails to answer (instead, he talks about the alleged "unanimous" scientific consensus, then he talks about a baby with a fever).
Joe Barton calls out Al Gore in detail about some of Gore's fraudulent claims; of course, Gore fails to answer (instead, he talks about the alleged "unanimous" scientific consensus, then he talks about a baby with a fever).
Does Bell Microproducts CEO Don Bell think that we're all idiots?
1. In a typical alarmist article here, Don Bell suggests that he became an AGW believer only after seeing some unspecified evidence at the North Pole in late April.
2. In April 4 article linked here, Bell said the purpose of the trip was "to draw attention to global warming and the need to preserve the polar ice cap".
Hey Don--the Earth is said to be about 4.5 billion years old. After seeing conditions at the North Pole exactly one time, what led you to conclude that carbon dioxide drives the Earth's climate? Does your one data point convincingly refute all the data graphed here?
3. Note that Bell happens to be on the board of the Bay Area Council:
2. In April 4 article linked here, Bell said the purpose of the trip was "to draw attention to global warming and the need to preserve the polar ice cap".
Hey Don--the Earth is said to be about 4.5 billion years old. After seeing conditions at the North Pole exactly one time, what led you to conclude that carbon dioxide drives the Earth's climate? Does your one data point convincingly refute all the data graphed here?
3. Note that Bell happens to be on the board of the Bay Area Council:
The Bay Area Council is a proud first-mover on public policy related to global warming and climate change. Building on an unrelenting sixty-year commitment to a better environment in our region, in the past decade the Council has accelerated and expanded its work, becoming the key business group to help pass the most important recent environmental policy changes in California.
Struggle for Sanity; Peer Reviewed Papers that Challenge Anthropogenic Global Warming
U.S. Private-Jet Fuel Taxes Rise 65% in Senate Accord
I'm quite surprised that this article doesn't even mention global warming, climate change, or carbon dioxide:
Bloomberg.com: News
Bloomberg.com: News
Energy Independence Isn't Very Green
Energy Independence Isn't Very Green - Business - redOrbit
THERE'S BROAD AGREEMENT that America should reduce its dependence on imported oil, but far less agreement on why. Are we combating global warming, or are we distancing ourselves from hostile and unstable regimes? The popular reply is that it hardly matters - we need to do both and the goals reinforce each other. But these two national energy goals are not only different but frequently in conflict, and effective policy will not be forged until those conflicts are addressed.
One story neatly illustrates some of the absurdity of CO2 hysteria
See the story about Direct Energy exec Phil Tonge here.
The story is apparently supposed to inspire readers to reduce their own emissions of CO2 "pollution", but it's quite clear that Tonge is "greening" his lifestyle a bit only for PR purposes, since his company now sells carbon offsets. Nowhere does he give the slightest indication that he actually believes that CO2 drives climate.
1. As of last year, Tonge was flying 200,000 miles per year, with two SUVs, a 5,200 sq. ft house with 250 conventional lights, a 30-foot living room ceiling, a swimming pool, etc etc. He evidently only considered going a bit "green" when ordered to do so by his boss.
2. After going "green", Tonge will supposedly cut his flying by an unspecified amount, but keep the massive house, the SUVs, the swimming pool, etc.
3. The article states that Tonge could completely "eliminate" his 2008 carbon footprint by spending as little as $300 for (bogus) carbon offsets. It then details some of the hassle and expense ($18,000+) of actually reducing his carbon emissions by some small percentage.
4. The article does an incredibly poor job of selling us on the idea of completely switching to the current crop of "energy-efficient" light bulbs. Tonge's boss admitted "I don't like them". More from the article:
The story is apparently supposed to inspire readers to reduce their own emissions of CO2 "pollution", but it's quite clear that Tonge is "greening" his lifestyle a bit only for PR purposes, since his company now sells carbon offsets. Nowhere does he give the slightest indication that he actually believes that CO2 drives climate.
1. As of last year, Tonge was flying 200,000 miles per year, with two SUVs, a 5,200 sq. ft house with 250 conventional lights, a 30-foot living room ceiling, a swimming pool, etc etc. He evidently only considered going a bit "green" when ordered to do so by his boss.
2. After going "green", Tonge will supposedly cut his flying by an unspecified amount, but keep the massive house, the SUVs, the swimming pool, etc.
3. The article states that Tonge could completely "eliminate" his 2008 carbon footprint by spending as little as $300 for (bogus) carbon offsets. It then details some of the hassle and expense ($18,000+) of actually reducing his carbon emissions by some small percentage.
4. The article does an incredibly poor job of selling us on the idea of completely switching to the current crop of "energy-efficient" light bulbs. Tonge's boss admitted "I don't like them". More from the article:
But the biggest challenge so far has been changing the light bulbs.
The Tonge home is professionally decorated in shades of beige and taupe, with silk plants hanging over heavy, traditional furniture. Finding the right compact fluorescent bulbs for all of the 250 lights in the 5,200-square-foot house has been a struggle.
Matching lamps in the master bedroom now have bulbs that give off different colors of light. One bathroom turned out way too bright.
Plus, the new corkscrew-shaped bulbs don't fit into some of the older sockets and traditional-style lamps. So Mr. Tonge had to replace some of the fixtures.
"It does take several trips to the store to get it all," said Mr. Tonge's wife, Cheryl.
She's retired from AT&T Corp., where she met her husband. Recently, she's spent a lot of time waiting for contractors and researching windows.
Then there's the problem of screwing the new bulbs into the 30-foot living room ceiling fixtures. Even with an extension pole, it's tricky to change the bulbs without breaking them.
That makes Mrs. Tonge nervous, especially since the compact fluorescent bulbs contain a tiny amount of mercury and require special cleanup.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Climate Change Strikes Minnesota
Climate Change Strikes Minnesota (M4GW)
It's April 26th and Minnesota is getting pelted with yet another late spring snow storm. Some places getting over a foot of snow, Pelican Rapids got 18" and its still snowing. So get yourself off that lawn chair, turn it back into a snow shovel and get to it.
Unpaid utility bills soar as economy sags
Unpaid utility bills soar as economy sags - USATODAY.com
I wonder if it would be a good idea to gouge these people with much higher energy costs that would further line Al Gore's pockets, yet would have no measurable climate "benefit"?
CHICAGO--Hundreds of thousands of utility customers are at risk of disconnections as the sagging economy drives up the number of past-due home heating bills and the amounts owed, utility companies in cold-weather states say.
Xcel Energy says 17%-19% of its 1.1 million Minnesota customers and its 280,000 Wisconsin customers are in arrears. That's about the same as a year ago, but balances owed are up 10% in Minnesota and up 20% in Wisconsin, says Pat Boland, Xcel's credit policy manager.
Xcel disconnects 600-650 customers daily, he says. "Obviously the economy is playing a very big role in the disposable income that folks have," Boland says. Another factor: Cold weather added 7%-8% to this year's bills.
Climate Change: You Don't Have to Believe It, But You Still Need to Plan For It
The argument below, in various forms, is extremely common on the Internet right now. Lots of people have figured out that catastrophic AGW is a crock, but they're still under the impression that the majority of other people are still buying it.
At least in America, the polls show that the majority of people are not buying it.
Climate Change: You Don't Have to Believe It, But You Still Need to Plan For It
At least in America, the polls show that the majority of people are not buying it.
Climate Change: You Don't Have to Believe It, But You Still Need to Plan For It
On the one hand climate change portends nothing less than the cataclysmic end of civilization as we know it. On the other it is simply the most insidious hoax foisted upon mankind in the history of humanity.
Whatever.
If you're a CEO or business leader it really doesn't matter what you believe about the science of global warming, because in the business world climate change is coming and if you aren't prepared for it your business will suffer.
Minnesotans: Always stick to locally grown citrus, coffee, chocolate etc
Ladies Logic: Watching What They Teach Part 2
Remember, our "reward" for great sacrifice could allegedly include even later arrival of future springtimes!
One of the more ridiculous suggestions on that sheet though was this one:
Buy Locally Grown Food
Let's see....we live in Minnesota where the growing season is what....4 months long? And how are we to get the produce that we need to maintain healthy lives and thus not need health care? Oranges and other citrus foods just do not grow in Minnesota!
Proof that American right-wingers were driving SUVs in 1878
Here.
Excerpt:
Could someone please explain to me again how we know that carbon dioxide is the dominant force driving the Earth's climate?
Excerpt:
After the warmest winter on record, the ice was out of Lake Minnetonka by March 11, 1878 -- the earliest date on record.After over a century of ever-accelerating and catastrophic anthropogenic global warming, note how early the ice went out last year:
In 2007 the official ice-out for Lake Minnetonka was April 3.Update: Official Lake Minnetonka ice-out for 2008 was April 23. Historical data is here.
Could someone please explain to me again how we know that carbon dioxide is the dominant force driving the Earth's climate?
A rational person reviews "An Inconvenient Truth"
Here.
Excerpt:
Excerpt:
The science bit was so dumbed down that I cringed. Matt Groening cartoons showing greenhouse gasses fighting sunbeams, for God’s sake? The ’science’ bits seemed to be selected so that Gore could demonstrate his incredible ‘wit’. There were so many holes in his arguments I could have driven the entire American Navy through them.
All his data seemed to come from ‘friends of his’. He was incredibly selective in his data too.
Most of the time, he showed us graphs showing climate trends since 1970 or 1960. What? An that basis I can argue that today is colder than yesterday, therefore by the end of next week, we’ll be into another ice age!
He was hot on the computer graphics too. He showed us Manhattan after the Greenland Icecap has melted, and of course focused on the site of the World Trade Centre. If you want to whip up American fervour, you must mention the World Trade Centre.
What I saw was a film glorifying Al gore. What I didn’t see was anything to make me worry unduly about Global Warming.
I must have seen the wrong film.
If anyone has the right one, can they send it to me please?
John Christy piece
The Baptist Standard :: The Newsmagazine of Texas Baptists
In fact, I suspect an anthropologist, isolated from the media, would observe this global-warming fervor as a religion complete with anointed authority figures, sacred documents, creeds, sins requiring absolution, castigation of heretics and even an apocalypse.
Global Warming Holiday
Global Warming Holiday - WSJ.com
No one could get elected, or for that matter govern, on a platform that called explicitly for increased energy prices. So we get contradictions like a gas tax moratorium married to cap-and-trade carbon limits. To quote Mr. McCain, it's "a joke."
"It’s time for John McCain to realize he was sold a bill of goods"
Will The Global Warming Nuts Please Just Go Away Now. - Say Anything
Certainly their models didn't come close to predicting what we are now experiencing.
A Greenie consolation prize
GREENIE WATCH
The first great Greenie adventure into climate processes was the Montreal protocol which "saved" the ozone in the atmosphere over the Antarctic. Monkeying around with our refrigerators and spraycans was supposed to shrink the ozone "hole". Many years later, however, there is no evidence that the hole has shrunk. It just oscillates as it always did. The unfalsifiable Greenie way out of that is to say that the hole will shrink one day if we are patient enough -- a bit like waiting for the State to "wither away" under Communism.
Notice the increase in skeptical articles lately?
JunkScience.com Blog » Blog Archive » A cool idea to warm to
This in interesting. Notice the increase in skeptical articles lately? See how much more space newspapers are prepared to devote to telling readers about dissenting opinion?
Doubtless there will be plenty of claims this is due to some supposed evil-empire-financed campaign to deceive the hapless populace but these claims no longer cut it--too many in the "evil empire" have clambered aboard the rent-seeking "carbon constraint" bandwagon and now actively promote the myth for such an illusion to be sustained.
People are beginning to wonder why, with alleged consensus and unanimity of purpose, Al Gore and his merry band need spend $300,000,000.00 on another 3-year indoctrination campaign.
This, coupled with Earth's failure to behave as advertised, is beginning to cause zealots to make increasingly outrageous and absurd claims--note how much damage Hansen has done to his own credibility this past year or two.
Hold the line, the great gorebull warming farce is collapsing at last.
More about the Church of Global Warming
PheistyBlog » Blog Archive » Raped by Global Warming
With every day that passes, I'm becoming more convinced that this is the most oppressive and freedom-eroding religion this world has ever seen. That would be all fine and dandy if it weren't being forced upon us with such proselytizing madness, and if it weren't attempting to be legislated from every publicly-held office in our nation.
I'm Dreaming of a White...Mother's Day
As I look outside my windows here in Minnesota, it's snowing right now.
From this article:
From this article:
MINNEAPOLIS (Map, News) - It's late April, but Old Man Winter was showing Friday that he isn't finished with Minnesota just yet.
Heavy snow began falling in parts of western Minnesota, where a handful of schools closed early. Ivanhoe reported 2 inches of snow as of 1 p.m., and 5.5 inches was reported in the western town of Donnelly near Morris by 4 p.m. By 7:30 p.m., Appleton and Madison both reported 8 inches.
The National Weather Service said a large area of western and northern Minnesota could get 6 inches to 12 inches of snow by Saturday. Accumulations of 8 inches to 15 inches was expected Friday night and Saturday morning in Walker, Grand Rapids, Bigfork, Ely, Crane Lake and International Falls in north-central Minnesota.
Friday, April 25, 2008
We’re All Gonna Die! Global Warming Fear-Mongering
Check out the video and text here.
Excerpt:
Excerpt:
In today’s floor session, Sen. Ellen Anderson (DFL, St. Paul) raised concerns that kids are living in fear that they won’t grow up because “they’re gonna die of global warming”, as if it is some new contagious disease. Perhaps it is. It may well be a new psychological disorder spreading through ignorance, shame, groupthink and the fear of the unknown. Chicken Little infected her friends with the same anxiety disorder, leading them all into the den of a cunning fox that promised to help them get to the king and solve the problem of the falling sky.
Let's all panic--there may be too little (or too much) ice for the narwhals!
1. From a typical alarmist article by Seth Borenstein here:
Polar bears can adapt a bit to the changing Arctic climate, narwhals can't, she said.2. From National Geographic in 2004 here:
While polar bears are "good-looking fluffy white creatures," Laidre said narwhals, which are medium-sized whales, are "not that cute."
The narwhal, which dives about 6,000 feet to feed on Greenland halibut, is the ultimate specialist, evolved specifically to live in small cracks in parts of the Arctic where it's 99 percent heavy ice, Laidre said. As the ice melts, not only is the narwhal habitat changed, predators such as killer whales will likely intrude more often.
In addition, changing sea-ice conditions may be affecting narwhal survival. While warming trends have generally caused sea ice to shrink, it has been increasing over the last several decades in Baffin Bay, one of the narwhal's wintering grounds.3. A related post is here.
"Narwhals aren't usually in trouble when they're migrating, because they're constantly moving ahead of the ice," Laidre said. But the species spends the winter in areas thick with pack ice—often more than 95 percent covered. With increasing sea ice, these close quarters could be getting even closer, and wintering narwhals could become trapped in the ice more often.
Climate alarmist Simon Donner counsels "patience" at the continuing lack of catastrophic warming
maribo: Patience, my friends
It also sets unrealistic expectations that every month will set a temperature record, that every new study will conclude climate change is more dangerous than the last study did.
Just like the US Presidential campaign, we risk being led into arguments about minutia rather than a much-needed conversation about the great challenges that lie ahead.
There is an undeniable warming signal. The climate is warming and it will continue to warm long into the future unless we drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions. There is no reputable counter argument.
Online chat with Laurie David!
'An Inconvenient Truth' - washingtonpost.com
Philadelphial Pa.: We should all be stewards of the earth and take care of how we impact it. But how do you explain that his shift in climate is not naturally occurring? After all -- we had an ice age once before and the earth warmed up well before humans and cars and industry. How do we know that this just not a cycle?
Laurie David: We know its not just a natural cycle because all of the experts, all of the scientists say its not. Facts are facts.
There is now more CO2 in the atmosphere than in the last 650,000 years and just basic common sense tells us that cannot be a good thing.
Another Geologist Dissents on Man-Made Warming
Students meet state treasurer - Campus
With a graduate degree in geology, Mourdock said his studies have convinced him that global warming is not happening.
"I'm scared to death about each of the three candidates and their positions on global climate change," Mourdock said. "Global caps in the last 15 years receded until last year on Mars, but what do we have in common with Mars? Last time I checked, only the sun."
Mourdock explained that humans aren't the cause of global warming and that it's something bigger in the universe, such as the sun.
Let's just keep it simple and protest EVERYTHING in the name of Gaia
From this article:
“In planning this event, we made a conscious decision to encourage other activist organizations to get involved, to show the relationship between all of our issues,” said EON member Sarah Reed ’08. “It’s important to remember that humans are part of the environment. We must remind ourselves that war, economic injustice, environmental injustice, violation of human rights, violence, racism, sexism are also assaults against the Earth.”
All this for $25,000?
Town commits $25,000 to ‘green initiative’ | The Essex Free Press
Council was told that the town could cut greenhouse gases by implementing effective land-use, energy and transportation planning, infrastructure design, building retrofits, water conservation, solid waste diversion and the development of renewable energy projects.
Miller said the town would work towards creating a greenhouse gas emissions inventory. With no fixed time restraints, Miller said the town could decide on the timing and funding of any initiatives designed to cut those emissions.
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