Great post. I especially liked the Eisenhower quote about scientists being the only group in Washington there to help the country.

I believe scientists have to become far more active, at a time when science is being ignored. A recent article — also by Hansen entitled Scientific Reticence addresses the issue quite nicely. Hansen notes that sea level rises could be far more severe, and come sooner, than IPCC forecasts suggest. Most scientists agree — no knock on the IPCC, but they shut-off reviews as of December 2005, and they run a consensus process — this means they were working with dated data and they applied a process that is inherently conservative, so it’s no wonder it’s outdated and understated.

If scientists can’t get no respect, then they have to start demanding it. They must become adept at communicating in lay terms the threats we face, because no one else will.