As the World Turns (Away from Climate Change Catastrophists)
Some of you might have seen this deliciously ironic headline from the Washington Post recently: “Senate climate change hearings canceled because of storm”. Earlier this month up to 50 inches of snow fell on the nation’s capital. As Charles Colson rightly remarked:
“The people most inconvenienced by the blizzards weren’t the residents of this region, or the senators—it was the proponents of man-made global warming. Scientists and activists insisted that people on this side of the Atlantic ignore the evidence in their driveways and, instead, trust their computer models.”
Indeed, in the past several months one blow after another has landed on the man-made global warming theory. It is now just about as credible as the notion that Tiger Woods is squeaky clean, or Elton John is a top-notch theologian.
It seems that a new revelation debunking the climate alarmists’ case is emerging each week. The most recent comes from no less an authority than Professor Phil Jones himself, the gate keeper (or data keeper) of the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
The Daily Mail recently ran an intriguing story about Jones and some of his incredible about-faces on the issue. Entitled, “Climategate U-turn as scientist at centre of row admits: There has been no global warming since 1995,” this is how the article begins: “The academic at the centre of the ‘Climategate’ affair, whose raw data is crucial to the theory of climate change, has admitted that he has trouble ‘keeping track’ of the information.
“Colleagues say that the reason Professor Phil Jones has refused Freedom of Information requests is that he may have actually lost the relevant papers. Professor Jones told the BBC yesterday there was truth in the observations of colleagues that he lacked organisational skills, that his office was swamped with piles of paper and that his record keeping is ‘not as good as it should be’.
“The data is crucial to the famous ‘hockey stick graph’ used by climate change advocates to support the theory. Professor Jones also conceded the possibility that the world was warmer in medieval times than now – suggesting global warming may not be a man-made phenomenon. And he said that for the past 15 years there has been no ‘statistically significant’ warming.”
These are telling admissions indeed from someone who until recently had insisted that the man-made global warming theory has to be accepted as gospel. And given that he was the director of the University of East Anglia’s Climatic Research from which the Climategate scandal erupted, this is even more significant.
In fact, Jones has since stepped down from his position as director. And well he should have. The leaked emails from the ACR showed the whole world that these scientists were deliberately manipulating data, suppressing information, and refusing to share important data with climate change sceptics.
Such is the level of scientific fraud which has been uncovered here that the entire man-made climate change thesis is now about as solid and watertight as a rusted-out colander. All their predictions of gloom and doom unless we act immediately – and drastically – are falling apart.
Consider the recent above-average snow falls in the northern hemisphere. As Colson says, “Of course, 10 years ago, they told us that, on account of the same global warming, ‘snow is starting to disappear from our lives.’ We were told that, because of all that nasty CO2, British children ‘just aren’t going to know what snow is.’
“Ten years later, they most certainly do. Not only British children, but children in every state except Hawaii. All of Britain, much of the rest of Europe, and the United States have experienced snowfalls this winter. The data suggests, in fact, that ‘snow is coming earlier and heavier than it used to’.”
So who do you believe – the mountains of snow all over the place, or the computer models? The late, and grudgingly made, admissions by Jones of course contain no new information. “If all of that sounds familiar, it ought to. Those very points have been made by global warming skeptics and reported frequently on BreakPoint.
“If there has been no significant warming during a period when the models predicted exactly that, or if the world was warmer 1000 years ago before we started burning fossils fuels, then maybe these models, just maybe, are wrong. And threatening us with global catastrophe and upsetting children with pictures of drowning animals becomes unconscionable.
“Of course, neither Jones nor his fellow advocates will admit that. As Jones also acknowledged, the IPCC tends to leave ‘inconvenient findings’ out of its reports. Why? It’s a matter of worldview. Activists and scientists have too much invested in human-caused global warming. For activists, it’s the threat by which they can create their version of a better world, and scientists have staked their careers and reputations on the accuracy of those computer models.”
Yes, worldviews matter. Everyone has a worldview – even scientists. We all can be guilty of pushing agendas. But when those who have inordinate influence and power push agendas, that will affect all of us. That is why Climategate and the alternative media are such welcome additions to this ongoing debate. Without them the climate change fraud would just be getting worse.
http://www.breakpoint.org/commentaries/14460-an-inconvenient-driveway
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1250872/Climategate-U-turn-Astonishment-scientist-centre-global-warming-email-row-admits-data-organised.html
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Also, Bill, look at the benefit (cui bono) to scientists – they’ve been telling politicians what they’ve wanted to hear, and “proving” things which politicians want proved is the route to funding, research grants, capital programmes, etc. Proving what isn’t beneficial to the rulers is not good for you. Yes, it’s the scientists’s worldview, as you say, but perhaps it’s a more basic urge, first and foremost.
John Thomas, UK
Thanks, Bill.
There are many things – and persons – which/who infuriate me over this whole AGW business, but two in particular:
1. The intransigence of politicians of the left (e.g. Obama, Rudd, Wong) who when faced with the embarrassing evidence just bore on regardless, determined to inflict on us massive taxes to tackle a non-existent problem, employing the same tired, and exploded, rhetoric of global warming (aka “climate change”). Never have I seen such head-in-the-sand obscurantism, nor such elementary scientific howlers that carbon (dioxide) is a pollutant!
2. The naked and outrageous politicisation of science. AGW has been merely a shibboleth of the left from the outset. As has often been pointed out, when Communism crashed in the early 1990s the left intelligentsia herded out of the Communist movement and into the Green movement. The Club of Rome in 1992 declared that global warming would now be the means to attack capitalism, the West, and the Western economy, even if the science turned out to be bogus. Hence we witness on an almost daily basis the hysterical screams, yells, name-calling, hoots, and smackdowns from the AGW true believers when anyone dares to challenge the AGW shibboleth. Global warming has become broadly a left-right issue, with true believers on the left and skeptics on the right. I plead therefore, let science be science, apart from this shrieking charade! But I fear that the whole business has damaged science, possibly beyond repair, although I sincerely hope not.
Murray Adamthwaite
For a full list (at least so far) of all the ‘gates’ associated with this monumental scam, see this link:
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/-234092–.html
As the author suggests, memorise them and bring them up at your next dinner engagement.
Murray Adamthwaite
Bill,
If northern winter heavy snow is evidence against global warming, what then are we to make of the extremely hot summer days (and nights) we have had in the southern hemisphere?
Mike Robertson, NSW
Thanks Mike
But of course you miss the point entirely. Nowhere did I or anyone else claim that cold snaps in the north are proof that global warming is not true. In the same way warm snaps in the south are not proof that it is true. That is the whole point. One has to look at the entire planet over long periods of time to test out these theories, not just look at local areas over very short periods of time. The telling admission by Jones that there has been no global warming over the past fifteen years is the sort of information we need, looking at the bigger picture over the longer term.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Mike, I might mention in response that in the Northern hemisphere this is the third year running of abnormally low temperatures. Last year in the USA there was snow in Louisiana and in the Nevada and Southern California deserts – in mid-December, when the winter had barely begun. Yes, last year Australia had some hot spells (notably Black Saturday), but apart from Feb 7th nothing out of the ordinary; and as for that hot 44deg day back in January this year, I have never known such hype over a hot day!! It’s summer, for crying out loud! Hot days are par for the course. This current summer has been cool by comparison with other years.
Hot weather in summer is no proof of CO2-induced global warming!
For that matter, In New Zealand last spring, in late Oct – early Nov, there was record cold, while we were warming up for the summer. What do you do with that?
Mike, stop this beat-up about hot or cold weather. Come to terms with the scandals over the IPCC, the fudged data collections, the flawed computer modelling, etc. etc. etc. That’s what Bill is getting at, even if the MSM refuse to deal with it.
Murray Adamthwaite
Even Hitler knew about fudged scientific data. Please check youtube: “Hitler on Climate Change”
Jonathan Foster
Thanks Jonathan
Yes it is quite funny: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-PI2vCA9ck&feature=related
Earlier versions have also been a riot, such as: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGdbHW9Nlds&feature=related
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Although Jones is sticking with his theory, despite maintaining that there has been no significant warming in 15 years, the question that needs to be asked is: how has CO2, which continued to be pumped into the atmosphere at increasing levels over that time, been responsible for global warming even if, as now seems unlikely, that phenomenon is occurring?
Dunstan Hartley