I find that most people that have an opinion online about climate change refuse to read any of the actual research. Some people go off of Al Gore's slideshow, which has errors in it, and some go off of Exxons heavily promoted data, which comprises a very small part of the scientific community.
Scientists are, in many ways, just as at fault for people's perception about climate change as those that have turned it into a political issue and those that have deliberately confused the issue by spreading counter-information. The problem is that most scientists in educational institutions these days live and die by what they publish. The problem is that they take very little time to actually explain what they have researched to the general public. Schools all vie for prestige by having more published articles in peer review journals which most of the public can't access.
Now, this doesn't mean that the data on climate change is wrong. It just means that people are getting it through second hand sources that use the word "scientists" like it was a secret underground organization bent on world domination. Specials on the history channel regarding the future death of the man due to global warming are generally made for dramatic effect. If you want to know the answer, you need to start reading. Colleges also often times have free seminars that you can attend about the topic so you can actually ask questions of people that do research it to find out what "scientists" are really saying.
There is a lot of information out there. In this age, ignorance is voluntary.
Thank god for the disable signatures option.
