Comments on: Rep. Barton and other science deniers say the only way to stop a global pandemic is if everyone does nothing

By: Kevin

Kevin — Fri, 08 May 2009 23:53:24 +0000

“First off, it is just absurd to claim that “the Earth has actually been cooling for the last 7 or 8 years”…..perhaps you haven’t read the data from the UK Meteorological Office’s Hadley Center for Climate Studies as well as two other widely used global temperature data sources – earth-orbiting satellites UAH (University of Alabama at Huntsville) and RSS (Remote Sensing Systems.) All three show decreasing temperatures over the last decade, with present temperatures barely above the 30 year average. I understand your desire to dismiss Rep. barton because of your idealogical disagreements with him, and I’m sure you will just as easily dismiss these temperature data sources since they disagree with your predetermined conclusion. Perhaps the real “deniers” are those unwilling to consider that man’s contribution to Global Warming may not be significant enough to influence what is happening.

By: Astralis

Astralis — Fri, 08 May 2009 06:19:22 +0000

Dismissing opinions because someone might be connected somehow to an energy company is as dubious as dismissing alarmist opinions of someone connected to cap-and-trade trading companies or windmill factories.

Stick with the facts instead.

By: ecostew

ecostew — Fri, 08 May 2009 02:00:53 +0000

Yes, a bill will pass, and the Obama administration must continue to move forward on mitigating AGW.

By: Sam

Sam — Thu, 07 May 2009 22:10:05 +0000

Joe,

I don’t quite get this attitude of “support WM it’s the only game in town”.

Isn’t it our duty to make the bill into something that actually works? Isn’t the public debate important? It’s just the tip of the iceberg for what’s going to come.

Their bill won’t have the political legs to pass or to last–AG Chair Peterson came out against it yesterday. We should be moving a bill in line with Obama’s call to auction 100% of the permits & return most of the revenue to public.

[JR: I'm all in favor of people pushing and prodding to improve W-M, or, more likely, to stop it from being weakened. I'm all against people saying that those who are trying to do that are "worshiping at the Temple of Doom.

I try to push political realism here along with the climate science realism -- it ain't easy, I know. But I do feel under some obligation to inform my readers that efforts to promote some wholly different approach are probably a waste of time, at least for now, but in any case, if you do so, PLEASE don't devote a lot of effort to trashing the one serious chance we have at energy and climate legislation for the foreseeable future.

This bill will pass. Take it to the bank. Yes, you are going to hear a lot of posturing from people who want things from this bill. If this were a "simple carbon tax" bill, you would hear the exact same posturing. Take it with a grain of salt.]

By: Mark Shapiro

Mark Shapiro — Thu, 07 May 2009 21:30:01 +0000

Joe,

Exxonmobil has no “e” on the end.

It also has no morality at either end. Alas, we can’t fix that.

By: Tim R.

Tim R. — Thu, 07 May 2009 21:14:19 +0000

Barton Logic: No scientist can tell me which particular cigarette will cause lung cancer. Therefore, no scientist can tell me that this particular cigarette will cause lung cancer. Therefore, please give me a light and two cartons of the Marlboro no filters, please. If I don’t buy these cigarettes, that is going to hurt the economy.

By: Lewis

Lewis — Thu, 07 May 2009 20:54:15 +0000

Few problems are ever solved by a policy of inaction.

By: Phil Eisner

Phil Eisner — Thu, 07 May 2009 20:32:09 +0000

Rep. Barton and other “deniers” are not going to read your blog or my comments. They are just making sure they will get elected by securing money from the oil, gas, and coal industries and by seducing their ignorant constituents with lies.
The only way to get good political action to reduce CO2 emissions is to elect new, better representatives and senators.

By: Aaron

Aaron — Thu, 07 May 2009 19:58:49 +0000

I know this is normal for politicians, but I still have a hard time stomaching when politicians out and out lie about something as severely crucial as AGW and get away with it. I liked the analogy too Joe.

By: NFJM

NFJM — Thu, 07 May 2009 19:26:34 +0000

Funny, this is just what I heard last week from Exxon Mobile…

For them, even market run by private investors are “central planning like the Soviet Union”. Off course they do not mind when the central planning is in the form of governmental subsidies to their sector (tens of billions) or when it is in the form of the US army securing their supply routes.