Monday, December 7, 2009

Harry's Place - why do we on the Left want to believe in global warming anyway?

This is a cross post by MoreMediaNonsense
The Climategate issue is getting more attention in the MSM, there was an interesting piece last Friday on the Today program and this morning John Humphrey’s first questions to Ed Milliband were on it.There is obviously going to be more to come.

The reaction of Gordon Brown this weekend talking about flat earthers was a risky strategy, in fact making this issue a political one will be a disaster for the Left if he is proven wrong. If the whole edifice collapses as some sceptics (see Prof Philip Stott here) think, the consequences will be profound for politics as well as science and just blaming the scientists will not work.

Ed M’s argument this morning to the questions was that “there is a vast scientific consensus on this issue” but more scientists seem to becoming sceptical eg see here for a withering letter various top US physicists are sending to the American Physical Society.

Why do Leftists want to believe in AGW so much anyway ? Cutting back on global growth is going to hurt all economies and make the world poorer, we should only being doing it if we are totally sure it is absolutely necessary.

This is much more of an open scientific issue now and politicians would do well to butt out until after all the various inquiries re Climategate are over.

http://www.hurryupharry.org/2009/12/07/climategate-scientific-consensus/

Posted via email from Garth's posterous

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