On August 11, I was in the audience when Jim Hansen and Will Steger spoke in Minnesota

I was at the 7:30 Global Warming Policy Forum at the Science Museum of Minnesota; some details are here.

Some notes:

--there were plenty of empty seats at this event.

--I was surprised by the general lack of excitement in the room. No standing ovations; perfunctory golf clapping.

--all five speakers were climate alarmists. Although alleged CO2-driven climate catastrophe was mentioned, it wasn't featured heavily throughout the night. We were often told we had to quit using fossil fuels for "energy security" or because we're going to run out anyway.

--I got the distinct sense that at some level, Jim Hansen himself really doesn't believe his own alarmism. He mentioned the "contrarians" often; he said things like "it's nonsense to say that the sun is a major factor" in climate change, but his voice and body language lacked conviction.

--Hansen said that 350ppm is the key target CO2 level; the Union of Concerned Scientists brochure at a reception afterwards said the number is 450ppm.

--Hansen said that Steger is an inspiration and a "hero"; Steger said that Hansen was his "hero".

--Steger came across as the stereotypical aging hippie, using lots of words like belief, intuition, spiritual, loneliness, biblical, racism, etc.

--J Drake Hamilton of "Fresh Energy" complained multiple times about the "lack of seriousness and lack of urgency" of our elected politicians. Hansen also kept talking about how leaders around the world keep talking about CO2 reductions but they never actually accomplish it.

--Interestingly, late in the evening, Hamilton used the phrase "IF Jim Hansen is right" when answering a question.

--a good portion of the attendees seemed to be state and county government employees that were sent to this event to "learn about global warming".

--no live Q and A was offered. Instead, we submitted cards from which the moderator could select questions. When the first question was about what caused "CO2 levels to rise 50 million years ago", Hansen launched into a long explanation involving India moving north and crashing into another part of Asia.

Summary: As I left, I was actually feeling strangely sorry for some of the speakers. Many of them have mistakenly bet their careers on the idea that CO2 is evil, and at some point it has to be extremely painful for them to realize the truth.