If you think we’re idiots…tell us why | Climate Nonconformist

There’s the straw man, the slur and a call to shut down the debate. That’s just what we see in Dr Susie O’Brien’s latest column.

In response to the reception her previous column received – in which she justified Julia Gillard’s vile attack on Tony Abbott, not on the grounds that he is a misogynist, but as a general rebuke of sexism – her critics are asked to back their opinions. She contends that people do NOT have a right to their opinion, unless they can justify it to her level of satisfaction. For elites such as our favourite expert in women’s studies, rights are provided by the state, and such, the right to freedom of speech can be taken away if your arguments cannot convince our intellectual and cultural superiors. Such groups whose God-given rights are forfeited by her include holocaust deniers and others whom she sees fit to be uttered in the same sentence - global warming deniers. I doubt Dr O’Brien is claiming a moral equivalence between these two groups, but its nice to be thrown in there with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

- Bishop Hill blog - What's a sceptic?

The problem with these kinds of survey is that they tend to be put together by people who don't really understand what the argument is about. That the world got a little warmer at the end of the twentieth century is a proposition that seems to me to be on fairly firm ground.

Mid-agenda warm period detected in biodiversity hockey stick « The View From Here

“global warming” rates a big fat zero mentions.

Twitter / RichardTol: Son of Charlie Haughey seeks ...

Son of Charlie Haughey seeks €3m to harness Irish sea power http://shar.es/c2ERq another rent-seeker at the renewable energy trough

Twitter / bruceritchie: At #sej12, GOP Rep. Neugebauer ...

At #sej12, GOP Rep. Neugebauer says climate change may be natural. Dem Armendariz says voters don't care about environment. Sigh.

Twitter / ejgertz: Armendariz: Obama, Dems not ...

Armendariz: Obama, Dems not talking about environmental issues because they are simply not on top of the electorate's mind. #sej12

Flashback: Al Armendariz's 'Crucify' Slip Reveals EPA's True Nature - On Energy (usnews.com)

Few can deny that former Environmental Protection Agency regional administrator Al Armendariz's comments implying the agency could "crucify" private businesses with regulatory enforcement were tactless. More importantly, however, his harsh words, the fallout of which culminated in his resignation this week, offer a glimpse behind the curtain on the administration's approach to policy.