White House Newsflash: Global Warming VERY LIKELY Caused by Human
…most of the recent global warming is very likely due to human generated increases in greenhouse gas concentrations.
Very likely caused by humans-now that’s a definitive statement on climate change! Once again the US government has failed to make a clearcut connection between humans and climate change.
Why do we need our government to make an absolute statement that humans are to blame for climate change?
Without such a strong statement linking the human causes and effects of global warming, we are impotent to pass real legislation and regulations that will drastically curb greenhouse gases now! We can’t wait four more years for the next report to come out to say, “Yea, we are screwed and entirely to blame.” A definitive statement by the US government would end the silly debate about global warming that has distracted us from taking action beyond individual citizens. As Rick Piltz, director of Climate Science Watch at the nonprofit Government Accountability Project, stated, “It’s important the government go on record honestly acknowledging this stuff.”
Why would the US government not want to make the connection between climate change and human actions absolute?
The climate science behind the report is not new, and neither is the White House spin. The “Scientific Assesment of the Effects of Global Change on the United States,” report states:
Finally, climate change is very likely to accentuate the disparities already evident in the American health care system. Many of the expected health effects are likely to fall disproportionately on the poor, the elderly, the disabled and the uninsured.
Yet have no fear Americans! White House associate science director Sharon Hays declined to characterize the findings as bad, in a teleconference with reporters. That’s right, increased heat-related deaths and water shortages are not all bad. So what is not negative in the report: The doubt that humans are solely to blame. Now that’s something to celebrate!
I don’t know why the US government cannot admit human blame for climate change. It reminds me of my six-year-old daughter saying she did not drop ice cream on the floor, when she was the only one eating ice cream. Does the government fear it will get in trouble like my daughter and have to clean it up if it admits blame? Would such an admission open up even more litigation opportunities for the states, as well as for individuals to sue polluting corporations? Well, have no fear Americans, our president won’t even read this report. George Bush has already vowed to veto the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act before the Senate even debates the bill, because it will hurt the US economy. Oh yea, blazing wildfires, pestilence, and famine won’t hurt the economy at all.
It didn’t take Mean Joe Green four years to create a political cartoon on the climate change report). Although I disagree with Joe’s idea that the report is entirely “realistic”, given that it does not take a definitive stance on the human causes of climate change, at least the doom and gloom predictions of severe weather, water shortages, heat waves, etc. ring true. As biologist Thomas Lovejoy says of the climate report, “It basically says the America we’ve known we can no longer count on.” It’s a good thing Republicans live on another planet; they’re going to need it.
Real Life Newsflash: Global Warming VERY LIKELY Only Barely Exacerbated by Humans!
But that’s not nearly as good a story…
I think the reason that the US hasn’t definitively stated that Global Warming is entirely caused by humans is because there’s scientific evidence to the contrary. So, one of those needs to be disproven before any real connection can be made.
Oh, and your daughter’s ice cream analogy doesn’t work because the earth’s climate is just slightly more complicated than a system including only your daughter, some ice cream, gravity, and the floor.
And the thing about wildfires, pestilence, and famine…
The damage that they do cause to related industries is rather small when you consider how much a little bit of proper schooling could have helped avert this whole “i’m paying more on a mortgage than i earn” stupidity.
Um, if you think CO2 emissions are bad for global warming, just wait until the far-northern methane stores (which have already started outgassing) start *venting*…
They’re not convinced because they read the latest issue of Wired. (http://www.wired.com/wired/).
Sounds like a bunch of BS to me. Humans have not been proven to be responsible for global warming and even if we are causing it, it is impossible to stop, especially with the developing world progressing economically. Environmentalists want us to push us back to the Flintstone era!
My opinion based on a scientific standpoint is that humans are not to blame for the less than modest increases in global temperature. May I conjecture that it is the lack of volcanic activity and other geological forces that have caused a temporary “hickup” on the temperatures. This is based on the evidence through the study on the opacity of the earth’s atmosphere(the allowance of direct sunlight to make it to the ground) Micro-particles are lacking in the atmosphere in previous studies. The way we do this study is by observing the moon when it is a new moon(not to be confused with a full moon)and when the moon is the right distance from earth the light will shine as a hallow around the edges of the moon(this is possible due to the elliptical orbit of the moon)to see the light intensity reflected off of the moon’s surface. The lower opacity causes an increase in intensity. And this causes more light to reach the ground. BTW, where can I find this document from the White House. Thanks. P.S. please respond for any inquiries.
“Very likely” is a statistical term it usually means that (with the current data) the probability that the theory is true is in the range of 95-99%. In science you never say without doubt because doubt is what makes science work. In a murder trial you would call “Very likely” something else “proof beyond reasonable doubt”.
This is the US government is saying here that humans are responsible for global warming. It is the lay-mens and medias interpretation of “Very likely” that lets politicians off the hook. Your story helps feed the idea that given any chance something is wrong is reason to do nothing. The idea we need to push is “any chance it is correct means we must do something about it”.
If I said that it was very likely someone will steal your car if you don’t lock it, wouldn’t you do something about that?
“This is the US government is saying here that humans are responsible for global warming.”
I think the natural tendency for governments to seek more control would explain this statement.
I feel sorry for anyone who puts their complete trust in the state.
Sheep.
So, the scientist obviously think that it’s man-made and catastrophic. Oh wait, no they don’t!
http://www.petitionproject.org/
The Dems treat voters like children on this issue offering two options on this: Cap and Trade or Carbon Tax. What about the third way - listen to the science? It’s the sun, stupid. The solar cycle modulates the cloud cover on the planet.
Leave the carbon economy in place. Problem however, is the intellectual construct of “BIG OIL”. The state of affairs, actually is that “REALLY BIG OIL”, the national oil companies like Russia and Venezuela and all the rest of the inefficient, and uncompetitive national oil companies (PEMEX) have driven prices through the roof by incompetence. They sit on 93% of the resources and reserves. The US is suffering from NIMBY for certain, but gas in Europe is about $9.00 a gallon and rising for the same reason. CO2 is plant food and the Democrats and their environmental lobby groups do not want you to know that.