I've stayed away from this subject, mainly because I had a hunch that my views on it probably didn't "match up" with those of many, if not most, of my readers. Generally, I have believed that while I am not convinced that human activity is the primary or even a contributing cause to global warming, it was far better to err on the side of caution and to do what we can to reduce carbon emissions. However, today I read a short article from John Coleman, whose credentials regarding the weather are pretty impressive--he founded the Weather Channel. His view is essentially that the whole "human beings are causing global warming" is full of you-know-what: http://icecap.us/index.php/go/joes-blog/comments_about_global_warming/.
Much of the appeal of the Global Warming argument is emotional. We see pictures of forlorn-looking polar bears or seals nosing around and we want to do what we can to help them. That's only natural, and as an animal lover, Lord knows I would do whatever is within my limited power to help out these unfortunate creatures. Still, the stampede to immediately declare Global Warming an uncontroverted fact, and the equally immediate blanket condemnation of anyone who dares raise a voice questioning it is...............well, how do I put this............"unscientific". It has become like a religious dogma which cannot be questioned, and that is not right. This is not a matter of history, such as the Holocaust, World War I, Napoleon, Genghis Khan, or whatever. It is an ongoing phenomenon.
All I am saying is that this issue needs further, intense study. And as an aside, Kyoto is not the answer--it imposes no obligations whatsoever on either China or India, both of which will in relatively short order surpass the United States in terms of their carbon emissions. Does that mean that we should all ignore the issue and go out and by eight-cylinder SUV's? No, but let's just keep a sense of perspective on this whole issue, okay?
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From the US EPA website, not exactly a left wing organization:
http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/
Science
For over the past 200 years, the burning of fossil fuels, such as coal and oil, and deforestation have caused the concentrations of heat-trapping "greenhouse gases" to increase significantly in our atmosphere. These gases prevent heat from escaping to space, somewhat like the glass panels of a greenhouse.
Greenhouse gases are necessary to life as we know it, because they keep the planet's surface warmer than it otherwise would be. But, as the concentrations of these gases continue to increase in the atmosphere, the Earth's temperature is climbing above past levels. According to NOAA and NASA data, the Earth's average surface temperature has increased by about 1.2 to 1.4ºF in the last 100 years. Eleven of the last twelve years rank among the 12 warmest years on record (since 1850), with the warmest two years being 1998 and 2005. Most of the warming in recent decades is very likely the result of human activities. Other aspects of the climate are also changing such as rainfall patterns, snow and ice cover, and sea level.
If greenhouse gases continue to increase, climate models predict that the average temperature at the Earth's surface could increase from 3.2 to 7.2ºF above 1990 levels by the end of this century. Scientists are certain that human activities are changing the composition of the atmosphere, and that increasing the concentration of greenhouse gases will change the planet's climate. But they are not sure by how much it will change, at what rate it will change, or what the exact effects will be. See the Science and Health and Environmental Effects sections of this site for more detail.
The link to the article appears to be broken, but I recently read an article by John Coleman and it sounded like a rant to me. For me at least this is a hard topic to understand. I am also supportive of evolution, which is rare among Christians. I have no desire to hear from Al Gore on Global Warming, but it seems reasonable that carbon dioxide is hurting the environment.
Lomberg is a guy from the Netherlands who is considered a skeptic on the issue. I've heard in his new book "Cool It" he says that humans are causing Global Warming, but that is not necessarily a bad thing and we have to be careful about what actions we take. There are also political benefits to reducing our use of fuels. We just need to be careful to not make rash decisions that will be worse that what we are currently doing. Plus there does seem to be a strain of socialism in all of this.
Glenn Beck interviewed Marlo Lewis on this issue. He is from CEI and seems to accept Global Warming, but feels we have to be cautious about certain issues.
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