This morning, I read this article in the Daily Mail that is dogging the US because 23% don’t believe in Climate Change (aka Man Made Global Warming). Here’s a few quotes:
‘The great majority of climate scientists have concluded that global warming is happening, mostly human caused and, if left unchecked, will have serious consequences for human societies and the natural world,’ the report’s authors said.
‘Yet, over the years, there has been considerable confusion within the American public about the level of scientific agreement on the subject.’
The study, conducted in November, found About two in three Americans (63%) believe global warming is happening.
‘Relatively few – only 23 percent – believe it is not,’ they said.
‘The proportion who believe global warming is real has remained steady since Spring 2013.
‘However, the proportion who do not believe global warming is happening has increased 7 percentage points since Spring 2013.
‘The proportion of Americans who say they ‘don’t know’ whether or not global warming is happening has dropped 6 points – from 20 to 14 – since Spring of 2013.
The researchers also say Americans believe that even if it exists, global warming is not their problem.
One can hear the tone of the article: we all know this is happening but these stupid American’s just won’t believe. Look at them…how stupid are they.
I think most people would consider me a “climate change denier” and one of the 23%; however, that is not the case. Is the climate changing? Perhaps or perhaps not. I don’t really know and don’t think there is enough evidence to say either (records go back to the 1800s). I believe the earth is about 6,000 years old and records for–let’s be generous–300 years mean we only know for sure what has happened for 5% of the time. If you believe in Darwin’s monkeys to man evolution, percentage wise, you know even less.
Even if the climate is changing, we don’t know enough to know if it is naturally cyclical or not. We can’t say whether any change we see puts us at the top of a warming cycle only to cool back down. Perhaps we’ve got another 20 degrees to go before we start. Or, perhaps–since there has been no warming in the past 15 years–we are getting ready to head back down. The point is we don’t know.
The global warmers can’t even get their story straight. Remember the polar vortex? In 2013, Time Magazine blamed it on Global Warming. Did you know that in 1974, they blamed the exact same thing–the vortex–on global cooling? Which is it? Global Cooling? Global Warming?
Given the fact we don’t know, I–as an American–refuse to believe that I am the problem. Even if the earth is warming. Even if humans are responsible. Why? Have you seen pictures of the air in Beijing China? The air there is so stinking polluted they have a name for it: airpocalypse. What about India where the Ganges is also way way polluted? If anyone needs to worry about reducing pollution, it is them…not me and the US.
The US doesn’t have a great record either. In 1969, the Cuyahoga River caught on fire it was so polluted. I’m sure there are many more examples; however, since then, we’ve cleaned things up.
In conclusion, I don’t think we know enough to say for certain that the earth is warming or not. The climate changers–just today’s code word for the 1980s global warmers–can’t even get their story straight (they can’t even make their data work without faking it). But even if it is happening as they claim, they come across as attacking the west and America. The problem isn’t with us…it is with China, India, and the rest of the developing world who pollute way more than we do.
Image from mark sardella via flickr