EARTH MATTERS: BUSTING THE DENIERS’ MYTHS

01 Feb EARTH MATTERS: BUSTING THE DENIERS’ MYTHS

Fox News, my personal favorite for misinformation, recently claimed without a wisp of evidence that “all climate scientists that claim climate change is real are corrupt.”

If that were true, it would mean that 13,926 out of 13,950 peer-reviewed articles written by climate scientists between 1991 and 2010 who concluded anthropogenic actions have induced global warming were part of a global conspiracy and the thousands of members of the conspiracy somehow kept it a secret.

Sound like snake oil to you? Allow me to further illuminate the fallacy of their “logic.”

Suppose you had developed a degenerative illness because of your actions over time and decided to consult with 13,950 experts, worldwide over the course of ten years to determine the type and cause of your disease. Then, after compiling the information, you redistribute the articles among the experts to review the validity of their peers’ reports. After the review process, you determine that 13,926 out of the 13,950 experts have concurred on the type of disease, how you got it, and the long-term actions necessary to prevent a slow, painful, costly death.

Would you choose to believe the 24 who contradicted elements of the results of the other experts? Or would you trust the findings of the 13,926 experts who unanimously confirmed the type and cause of your life-threatening disease?

Unfortunately, over half of Republican voters have abstained from using logic in their decision-making process and bought the climate denial snake oil sold via mass media by extreme conservative organizations such as the Heartland Foundation, Koch Industries, and Fox News (some of whose noisemakers – I mean newsmakers – have a direct financial interest in the fossil fuels that drive climate change).

Climate Change denial monkies

In an attempt to help bust the myths, I have complied brief, factual responses to the Top Ten Climate Denier Fallacies.

1. “The climate has changed before”
    
 Climate reacts to whatever forces it to change at the time; humans are now the dominant force inducing global warming.

2. “It’s the sun”

In the last 35 years, the sun’s effect on climate change has been declining and the global warming has been increasing.

3. “Climate change won’t hurt us”

In 2010, 4.6 million people died due to carbon intensive systems and the impact of climate change cost the global economy $1.6 trillion dollars.

4. “There is no consensus”

Between 1991 and 2010, 99.8% of the climate scientists who published peer-reviewed articles agreed that humans are the cause of global warming.

5. “Animals and plants can adapt”

The current rate of climate change will cause mass extinctions of species that are     unable to adapt or migrate on short time scales.

6. “Ocean acidification caused by excess CO2 emissions isn’t serious”

Proxy indicators reveal that when CO2 has risen quickly in the past, there were mass extinctions of coral reefs. Today, 85% of the coral reefs the South Pacific Ocean are degraded.

7. “Hurricanes aren’t linked to global warming”

There is increasing evidence that the intensity of extreme weather events such as     hurricanes have gotten stronger due to global warming.

8. “Climategate CRU emails suggest conspiracy”

Several independent investigations have cleared scientists of any misconduct. It was a media-hyped event based on misinformation.

9. “Antarctica is gaining ice”

Satellite analysis of the Antarctica indicates an overall loss of land ice at an  accelerating rate.      

10. “Sea level rise is exaggerated”

Scientific analysis reveals steadily rising sea levels over the past century due to thermal expansion as ocean temperatures rises, ice shelves melt, and glaciers melt.

Nuff said