Open Thread: Top Alarmist Admits Public Not as Scared of Global Warming
After decades trying to drum up fear about the impending end of the world, top climate alarmist James Hansen has admitted that the public is becoming less convinced by the antics of the global warmongers.
Naturally, before doing so in a recent lecture, he had to trot out the mythical 'scientific consensus' notion, per this report from the Daily Telegraph:
Dr James Hansen, director of the Nasa Goddard Institute for Space Studies, who first made warnings about climate change in the 1980s, said that public scepticism about the threat of man-made climate change has increased despite the growing scientific consensus.
Speaking ahead of a public lecture in Edinburgh this week, he admitted that without public support it will be impossible to make the changes he and his colleagues believe need to occur to protect future generations from the effects of climate change.
He blamed sceptics who are opposed to major social and economic changes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for employing "tremendous resources" to undermine the scientific evidence.
Dr Hansen, who will receive the Edinburgh Medal at the Edinburgh International Science Festival, pointed to a number of controversies involving climate scientists, such as the leaked University of East Anglia emails, as being partly responsible for the shift in public opinion. [...]
"The science has become stronger and stronger over the past five years while the public perception is has gone in completely the other direction. That is not an accident."There is a very concerted effort by people who would prefer to see business to continue as usual. They have been winning the public debate with the help of tremendous resources. Who knows how the East Anglia email fiasco came about?
"There is a huge gap between the public's understanding of the situation and the scientific understanding. If the public doesn't understand, it is not going to happen. Political leaders are not independent of public opinion."
His comments come as recent surveys have revealed that public support for tackling climate change has declined dramatically in recent years. The British Social Attitudes survey published last year revealed that just 22 per cent said they are now in favour of green taxes compared to 31 per cent in 2000. Over a third said many claims about environmental threats were "exaggerated" compared to 24 per cent in 2000.
A recent BBC poll found that 25% of British adults did not think global warming was happening.
Not only is he wrong on the scientific question and lying about how there is more consensus than before (there isn't), Hansen is clearly wrong about the question of "tremendous resources." In actuality, it is the environmentalist movement which is the owner of large sums of money. Besides the billions that governments around the world spend to promote and study the idea that the earth is getting warmer thanks to humans, in the non-profit realm, it is the alarmist movement which has the cash, to the tune of hundreds of millions.
- Matthew Sheffield's blog
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Comments
I'm a farmer
Submitted by Savonarola on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 9:16am.
I love global warming.
12/21/12
Submitted by bkeyser on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 9:26am.
Why should we care about global warming?
Just once
Submitted by texastommy on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 9:28am.
I'd like one of those so called climate 'experts' to explain how all those ancient tree stumps could have been found in Greenland, demonstrating that it was much warmer there several thousand years ago. Then, I'd like them to explain why their model doesn't work retroactively to demonstrate that it can accurately 'predict' what the historical climate was.
Come on guys. If you're right, this must be easy.
I have no doubt that the earth's climate is changing. It has since it was formed. Warmer, colder, warmer, colder. I just don't think that much of the change is due to human activity.
CO2 death threats to our children:
Submitted by mememine69 on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 9:33am.
Now we arrest the fear mongers who put us through 26 years of needless panic.
We need to fear the global warming idiots more
Submitted by ohio granny on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 9:58am.
Throughout history there has always been periods of the world warming and cooling. Remember that at one time Iceland was green.
We need to fear such people as James Hansen a lot more than we need to fear global warming. Their scare tactics are no longer working with the majority of people. Tough, they can live in their own little world and leave the rest of us alone to live our lives as we see fit.They just need to go away.
Things I fear on a scale of 1 to 10.
Submitted by Newsbubba on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 10:16am.
Global Warming - 0
Obama's second term - 100
Pants on Fire
Submitted by Reggie on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 10:17am.
Dude, that's what happens when you get caught lying over and over again - nobody believes you any more.
The boy who cried wolf comes
Submitted by ricklail on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 4:48pm.
The boy who cried wolf comes to mind.
Guess I'll stay home today
Submitted by Blonde on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 10:21am.
Looks like Barry's coming to town. And he'll tie up traffic from Miami to Palm Beach, as I don't believe Ft. Lauderdale is large enough to handle a jumbo.
Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)
Blonde
Submitted by Radical1979 on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 10:20am.
I think you should go out there dressed like a hippie with some signs saying "Stop destroying our air! Stop flying Air Force 1!" or some other Earth Day nonsense. The guy should stay home once in awhile.
Did you read that article, Rad?
Submitted by Blonde on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 10:40am.
FAU is a "convenient" and "friendly" geographic location for The Won.
Because it's oh so close to Palm Beach, prime time fund raising territory.
I am so sick of this inhabitant of the White House.
Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)
➚That's scary, Blonde
Submitted by Cool Arrow on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 10:53am.
Rush & Obama in such close proximity to each other?
It's like matter and anti-matter.
Rush is the "matter"
Submitted by Blonde on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 10:55am.
And O the anti-matter.
I'll let you know how it goes, I think the speech is, (of course) scheduled for 2:55, how convenient for Baracka.
Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)
Hopefully
Submitted by panzerakc on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 2:42pm.
After the election, Obama will be the "doesn't matter".
From your fingertips
Submitted by Blonde on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 3:43pm.
...to God's ears.
Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)
J
Submitted by Radical1979 on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 10:54am.
There is nothing this man does that is not well planned for his own benefit. That's why I believe he is or will be behind all the attacks on Mormonism if Romney is elected. He has no scruples.
Who know, Blonde.
Submitted by Newsbubba on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 11:06am.
Maybe Da One is coming down to the Miami area to lend his support to old Ozzie for his Castro comments. I heard he got suspended today for being such a dumb bass.
After all, Fidel IS one of the RBFSOB's heroes!
Did you see the great picture on Drudge today of the White House Egg Roll? There was this big, stupid, long earred moron, standing with the Easter Bunny.
There was a family from our
Submitted by ricklail on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 4:54pm.
There was a family from our church there. I hope they don't like Obama. i don't know how you could pray that out of anyone.
http://www.newbernsj.com/articles/house-105680-new-bern.html
Little Maggie is one day younger than my 5 year old granddaughter. Emma was born on Oct 31 and Maggie was born on Nov 11.
Hansen sure must have tired
Submitted by dbo on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 10:19am.
Hansen sure must have tired arms rowing from New York to Edinburgh.
These alarmists
Submitted by NOLAgirl on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 10:31am.
are afraid they are going to be out of a job if everyone catches on to their lies. The weather, like the economy, is cyclical.
It figures
Submitted by oldfart on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 11:08am.
This has nothing to do with real scientific data.
Can we say spotted owl that cost thousands of jobs and lost tax dollars?
Lets see, come to find out the reduction in spotted owls has more to do with a more aggressive species of owl that likes the same living space. And as we move into an election cycle it is now OK to start logging again so people will be 'thankful' to manna from Washington, DC. This was known when there was a “R” President but that would not have helped the 'progressive' agenda.
Can we say piping plover that has caused and will continue to cause the closing of miles of beach for human use. Lets see ,come to find out natural predation on the part of sea gulls eating the eggs is the limiting factor from the US Govt's own web sites.
Can we say 'poor polar bears' that will soon cease to exist because of human caused 'global warming'.
Well it seems that since unrestricted hunting of polar bears was banned their populations have gone back up in spite of 'dramatic' increases in global temperature. You think there might be a link there?
Can we say arctic ice cover? Accurate data only goes back a few decades with the advent of satellites. 'They' were not getting the data they needed to 'prove' loss of ice cover' so the definition of the arctic was expanded to include Hudson's and James Bays. Also Newfoundland. All of these below the arctic circle therefore NOT part of the Arctic. These areas have dramatic changes and variations in the ice cover as is to be expected the further South you go. Also the variation is ice, when graphed, is within +/- two standard deviations. As anyone who knows anything about statistics, any data points within THREE standard deviations is considered a 'normal' distribution.
Can we say dear Dr. Hanson. A few years ago he was Mr. Chicken Little – the planet is going to freeze – we are going to enter a new ice age and life as we know it will come to an end. Less than ten years after that 'all the ice is going to melt – major cities will be under water and life as we know it will come to an end.
Hey all you global warming freaks out there – just because two lines on a graph move in the same direction does NOT indicate any dependency between them. Didn't they teach you that in STAT101 as a Freshman?
So what is this about?
1. Political control.
2. Economic control.
3. Personal control.
Of anything and everything that happens.
George Orwell got the details right – he just made a mistake on the year.
give them 15 years
Submitted by dmacleo on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 11:01am.
and they'll be complaining about mankind causing too much global cooling.
oh wait...they already tried that.
was a warmer winter here in maine this year, used a lot less heating oil, so isn't that just the most awesome thing ever for a greenie?
No way, D-mac.
Submitted by Newsbubba on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 11:10am.
If you just froze to death, you could save a LOT of heating oil. That would make the "greenies" happy.
Someone I know from Maine told me that all the women are beautiful blondes with blue ears. Is that true?
Afraid??
Submitted by MOONSTRUCK on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 11:19am.
How can I be afraid of something that doesn't exist? I live in MN., and this morning the temp was 28 degrees.
Are Obama’s job policies hurting women?
Submitted by bkeyser on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 1:09pm.
According to WaPo, it's "True but False".
Okay then.
It's
Submitted by bkeyser on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 1:13pm.
beginning.
Not good, BK
Submitted by Blonde on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 1:24pm.
I'd suspect they were trolling for someone to beat up.
That's a student housing area of town, apartment buildings and such. It's not in the "ghetto" area of town, where one wouldn't want to break down at high noon.
Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)
And also
Submitted by Radical1979 on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 1:35pm.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57411787/shots-fired-at-police-car-n...
More new age "science" from NASA
Submitted by upcountrywater on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 1:21pm.
Flight tests continue.
Commine China ditches windmills and solar panels for ... Nuclear Power.
China will accelerate the use of new-energy sources such as nuclear energy and put an end to blind expansion in industries such as solar energy and wind power in 2012, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao says in a government report published on March 5.
China will instead develop nuclear power in 2012, actively develop hydroelectric power, tackle key problems more quickly in the exploration and development of shale gas, and increase the share of new energy and renewable energy in total energy consumption.
You Didn't Build That.
Santorum Out
Submitted by Blonde on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 2:20pm.
Like we didn't see this coming.
Mittens better start pandering to us conservatives now.
I am seeing "sixteen" potential VP's on Fox, but no mention of Allen West. THAT makes me angry.
Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)
Mitt picks a pasty white guy, we are screwed...
Submitted by upcountrywater on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 2:46pm.
The handwriting is on the wall.
Allen West for vice president: Why it’s not happening
Herman Cain became the latest big-name Republican to pitch the Florida congressman for the job on Monday, calling him an “excellent choice.” Cain joins Sarah Palin , Newt Gingrich , and South Carolina governor Nikki Haley in pitching West, who this weekend confirmed that, if called, he would probably take the job.
You Didn't Build That.
Nice, upc
Submitted by Blonde on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 3:49pm.
Look at the lib comments on that article....their heads are exploding already.
Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)
Sorry To Say
Submitted by stratman on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 7:43pm.
There are two reasons Romney will not pick West as VP running mate:
1) West does not bring votes Romney believes he needs. Blacks will still overwhelmingly vote for Obama and Conservatives will still come out to vote against Obama. Something that eases Independents and old school Democrats away from Obama is what's needed. We already know Rubio and Nikki Haley will not run. Christie probably won't either.
2) Most difficult to downplay let alone turn around and convince Independents and dissatisfied Democrats is that West left the military for discharging a firearm next to a prisoner's head to make him talk. Now, we might be OK with this but others will not be. Every bad or questionable deed by a soldier going back at least to the My Lai Massacre, including the iconic image of the South Vietnamese policeman shooting a suspected VC in the head on the street, will be seized upon to the hilt by Obama and his minions. It would be that dirty. I doubt Romney wants to add easily avoidable baggage to his list of things to dispel in order to defeat Obama.
No matter what we want, we need to be pragmatic from Romney's point of view when guessing who Romney will pick. Romney must think he will lose enough of the Conservative base to make a difference in the election before he would choose a Conservative running mate and that isn't going to happen. Even if it were to occur, Santorum would not be Romney's choice either. Whoever it is, they will be pretty squeaky clean, solid religious foundation (but not Mormon), smart (not like Plugs who makes a fool of himself when he speaks), and hit a chord with some demographic that Romney believes he needs and can make a difference at the polls.
Overheated
Submitted by deadeyedan on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 4:13pm.
There have been a number of comments on a number of blogs recently declaring global warming dead.
Just like the alarmists who have no understanding of the proportionality of nature's forces (see Maunder, Adhemar, Croll and Milankovitch) versus human's (increase in the carbon dioxide level that was already providing virtually the maximum that CO2 could ever muster), these bloggers have no understanding of the proportionality of the forces of the MONEY tied up in alarmism compared to the feeble amount allotted to skepticism.
There is a protracted battle ahead, folks, and it will probably take a return to normal volcanic aerosol levels in the stratosphere (who knows when that will happen) to begin to erode the intransigence of those whose MONEY has been tied up in this amazing scam.
Because of the money involved, there is a matter of PRESTIGE as well. It is the prestige of politicians, high profile mass media types and management of institutions and industries which provide the overwhelming incentive to keep the ruse going.
Check this out, speaking of NASA:
http://icecap.us/index.php/go/joesblog/former_nasa_scientists_astronauts...
And it's such a goofy superstition!
CLIMATEGATE (now I & II plus FAKEGATE) - the revelation that the pseudo-scientists at East Anglia University know just as much about the atmosphere as Harvard law professors know about the Constitution
Apparantly half white man can't jump
Submitted by Blonde on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 4:10pm.
Obama bricks four shots in a row (actually 7, but only four in the video).
What a manly man. Not.
Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)