Climate Change Skeptics Offer YouTube Barrage
by Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, St. Louis, MO on 11. 6.06
While the scientific evidence continues to mount on climate change, and former allies defect, the climate change skeptic crowd is as assertive as ever. On Saturday, a person or group calling itself Internet Skeptic uploaded fourteen videos to YouTube of a college professor (who is unnamed) lecturing students on the skeptics' case against global warming. It's very interesting (and a little disturbing) to watch Professor X lecture students on the standard criticisms of global warming science, and to also openly push a libertarian line of thought (note: as a former college professor, I found this last element of the lectures very disturbing). Fortunately, there's very little in these lectures that can't be answered by perusing Grist's new "How to Talk to a Global Warming Skeptic" feature, or the index at RealClimate. ::Global Warming Myths videos via linton at Hugg
UPDATE: After a little more digging, I did come across what appears to be the event announcement for the gathering shown in these videos. If I've got the right information, these lectures were given at an event for the Libertarian Studies Organization at Ohio State University. If this is correct, then my characterization of the setting in these videos was wrong.
Libertarian philosophy can not abide the very concept of climate change because is signals a failure of markets on a global scale: e.g. self-induced destruction of personal opportunity. This appears to be the very opposite of their most basic belief. The inference is that once they buy into climate change, it's all she wrote for Libertain thought. Wrong interpretation. The Libertarian alignment ought to be that it is their personal obligation to "get the designs right".
Climate change infringes on another peron's right. They are not incongruent.
While I agree that extreme libertarianism pushed in the classroom is unsettling, there are some notable libertarians who support a government's role in affecting environmental change. Take a gander at Andrew Sullivan's "Wanted: a practical guide to saving the warming planet" in The Times. Page found at http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2088-2300743,00.html
"It's very interesting (and a little disturbing) to watch Professor X lecture students on the standard criticisms of global warming science, and to also openly push a libertarian line of thought (note: as a former college professor, I found this last element of the lectures very disturbing)."
The fact that a former college professor finds an open discussion of ideas -- that happen to contradict his own -- on a university campus, 'very disturbing', is, well ... very disturbing.
Had you bothered to do any digging, you would have discovered that "Professor X" is not giving a class lecture, and that this video is, in fact, a presentation given to a student group at Ohio State, called the Libertarian Studies Organization (http://lso.org.ohio-state.edu/index.htm).
In that context, it is hardly surprising that the speaker is framing his arguments from a libertarian perspective.
If the author is so confident in his arguments, then I can't imagine why he would find an open presentation of counter-arguments 'disturbing'?
I wonder if you would find it less 'disturbing', had the speaker been advocating radical Marxist philosophy?
The starting point and failure of almost every climate change *skeptic* is that they aregue against constant rising temperatures... when in reality the issue is human induced climate destabiliazation and alteration of weather patterns. Unprecedented weather extremes of all sorts are becoming more common, and seasonal weather patterns continue to be disrupted regardless of average temperature. From Record Ice Storms to Cat. 5 Hurricaines... we are seeing the results of climate change more and more these days.
"...there are some notable libertarians who support a government's role in affecting environmental change. Take a gander at Andrew Sullivan's..."
Um, since when was Andrew Sullivan ever considered a 'libertarian'???
Or did you simply misspell liberal?
Or did you simply misspell liberal?
Andrew Sullivan is a liberal? LOL.
That says a lot about you if you think that.
He said CFCs help the ozone layer. He is not libertarian. He is just wrong.
Did you even watch this film? I am four minutes in and already clearly heard *two* references to the fact that this was a libertarian group meeting. Only hearing what we want to hear, are we? As a "capitalist treehugger" I will never understand why being green and being a socialist so often seem to go hand in hand.
"Andrew Sullivan is a liberal? LOL.
That says a lot about you if you think that."
Well, yes, I suppose it does. Mainly, it says that I've read Andrew Sullivan and the views he espouses.
Mea Culpa.
Well, yes, I suppose it does. Mainly, it says that I've read Andrew Sullivan and the views he espouses.
But yet you don't understand what he writes, obviously.
Who cares if someone is a Libertarian or Liberal or that someone read a book someone who is arguably Libertarian or Liberal and did or didn't understand it... It doesn't matter! what matters is that they're wrong AND influential! and that's what makes it disturbing!
some of you guys are only a rotfl away from using some kind of *tard slang! grow up and try to forget what you learnt in debate class and lets make some constructive discussion eh?