I’ve purposely avoided jumping into the global warming – oh, excuse me, global climate change – issue, as it’s just one more distraction. But, the mentality of the global warming crowd is so similar to that of the non-design evolutionists that it is worth at least mentioning. Note that the phrase “global warming” seems to have fallen into disuse, as not everyplace is warming. But, let’s ignore that for the moment (why be different?) By most accounts, the Live Earth thing was somewhat of a bust. Especially if you’re really an environmentalist. The figures I heard were that a quarter of a million tons of pollutants were created at the events, and that no money was raised. Apparently it wasn’t about money, it was about “raising awareness.” Tell me, is there anyone in the industrialized world who isn’t aware of global warming – ahem, climate change – by now?
Personally, I think the most socially important aspect of the event was the Spinal Tap reunion – “We’re premiering our new song called ‘Warmer than Hell’, which takes the view of the devil coming to Britain and remarking on how warm it is.” I also appreciated Chris Rock’s sentiment, “I pray that this event ends global warming the same way that Live Aid ended world hunger.”
Bobby Kennedy Jr. apparently came clean with the real point of at least his interest in the event:
Now you’ve heard today a lot of people say that there are many little things that you all can do today to avert climate change on your own. But I will tell you this, it is more important than buying compact flourescent light bulbs or than buying a fuel efficient automobile. The most important thing you can do is to get involved in the political process and get rid of all of these rotten politicians that we have in Washington D.C. — who are nothing more than corporate toadies for companies like Exxon and Southern Company, these villainous companies that consistently put their private financial interest ahead of American interest and ahead of the interest of all of humanity. This is treason and we need to start treating them now as traitors.
So, it is a political issue, after all.
Here’s the deal: no one knows if global warming is happening. Or global cooling, for that matter (It was noted that Sydney, which hosted one of the events, has had the coolest June in 50 years). Or, if it’s unusual, or simply cyclical. The projections we have are based on computer models, that I understand create their own data. And, more recent projections show much less of an impact than originally thought. There’s some indication that the environment may in fact be returning to a more globally beneficial climate, that would bring an end to some chronic drought areas, resulting in more food, less hunger, and so on.
But, it seems that the facts are inconvenient, as Al Gore suggests. Only the real inconvenient truths were the ones left out of Gore’s movie, and were no where to be found at Live Earth.
Don’t get me wrong – I am all in favor of being environmentally responsible. As a Christian, I believe that it is sinful to destroy the planet that God gave us. Let’s clean up the rivers, our food sources, and the air. Let’s continue to require pollution standards, globally. But let’s try to be honest, and quit using issues like this as a mask for other agendas.
Quite frankly, Are Eff Kay Jay has less credibility than anyone who writes on the subject. He has blown his credibility by jumping on the bandwagon of the thimerasol/autism link.
I agree with you on a few points (ta da!) here:
I am not qualified to evaluate the global climate change issue; but I do know that year-to-year swings in temperature are not any sort of sign of what the climate is doing. So a cool summer in Sydney or an unusually cold winter in Minnesota don’t really change the issue all that much. The weird thing about global climate change is that if it does interrupt the gulf stream through the infusion of cold freshwater from the melting glaciers and ice cap, northern Europe will see a return to a harsh winter climate such as it hasn’t seen for over 40,000 years.
It’s complex and I admit I am not qualified to judge, but I have always tried to minimize my own carbon footprint as much as I could. And I don’t think it right that Gore justifies his energy use by trading carbon credits. But the science of global warming doesn’t rise and fall with Gore, anyway.
The largest challenge to Global Climate Change is most likely going to come from the Chinese and the Indians as they continue to rapidly industrialize. And the fact that the Chinese are still “communist” (meaning brutally repressive) with a goal of world economic domination means that they are going to use whatever justification that they can find to continue to contribute to the problem.