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z64dan on 18 June 2007
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misterd said:
z64dan said:
misterd said:

Science does change over time (Al Gore -perhaps not seeing the irony- said as much at the start of An Inconvenient Truth), but so far it has always been scientists who have been able to fix the mistakes (as in the case of Global Cooling) and there is ample reason to believe that at some point they do get it right (or right enough for government work - the atomic model is a classic example).  


But here's the facts:

2500 scientists each agreed that one part of the IPCC report was correct. They did not all agree on the entire report, they were just 2500 contributors. Kinda misleading.

Evidence has been mounting that the earth is getting warmer. However, evidence has NOT been mounting that this is A) Abnormal compared to medieval warm period, B) Dangerous to humans, C) Warming causes horrible weather. Actually, warming should increase crop yeilds and theoretically give everyone more rain.


No disagreement from me, which is why I teach GW (as mandated by the state) in the manner I mentioned earlier (GW occurs - agreed; human influenced (not caused) - mostly agreed, with debate over degree; long term "damage - little agreement; what to do - no real consensus).

I have a problem with the basic philosophy that has led us to this point - that of the "Fragile Earth". Earth ain't fragile. It's been here 4.55 billion years. It survived having a moon ripped from it's body, so I think it can survive what we do to it. As for the life on Earth, it survived oxygen, global cooling, meteor strikes, super volcanoes - okay, most life DIDN'T survive those things, but some did, and we are here thanks to them getting killed off and replaced by the survivors. The life that's here now will, eventually, suffer the same fate as all who came before it, and will eventually be replaced. As for humanity, we're a heck of a lot more adaptable than most species. We'll make it, in one way or another, for a long time.

No, I think the real issue is that we like the Earth the way we know it, and want to keep it as is for future generations to see what we see. But that doesn't quite fit on a bumper sticker, and doesn't sound so loud an alarm bell. Heck, it sounds a little egocentric. But it is, in the end, where most people really are.


Yeah seriously. I'm not afraid of a little change, it might make things interesting. I live 600 feet elevation (austin tx), and even if all the ice melts, the ocean only rises ~250 feet or whatever, so I'm sittin pretty. I guess my question is how did we come out of the ice age, without cars?? It's a mystery.