(Printed in the local paper this morning. I
found it on-line at Jewish World Review Oct. 16, 2006 / 24 Tishrei, 5767)
Inhofe, the apostate
By Debra J. Saunders
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | Global warming
is a religion, not science. That's why acolytes
in the media attack global-warming critics not
with scientific arguments, but for their
apostasy. Then they laud global-warming believers
not for reducing greenhouse gases, but simply for
believing global warming is a coming catastrophe
caused by man. The important thing is to have
faith in those who warn: The end is near.
So a New York Times editorial Thursday took after
Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., not for being a
Doubting Thomas, but as the headline read, a
"Doubting Inhofe." The brunt of the editorial was
not a scientific refutation of Inhofe's arguments
against the global-warming craze other than to
cite a National Academy of Sciences report that
warned that the Earth is approaching the warmest
temperatures in 12,000 years a short blip in time to your average geologist.
The Times' focus was on Inhofe's refusal to bow
to "the consensus among mainstream scientists and
the governments of nearly every industrialized
nation concerning manmade climate change." That
is, Inhofe has had the effrontery to challenge
elite orthodoxy. Or, as the editorial put it,
Inhofe "has really buttressed himself with the will to disbelieve."
Get thee away, Satan.
"I see a sense of desperation that I haven't seen
before," Inhofe told me by phone Thursday, "and
frankly I'm enjoying it." CNN's Miles O'Brien
also challenged Inhofe in a similar vein. O'Brien
cited the NAS study, then assailed Inhofe with
quotes from notable Republicans President Bush,
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Rep. Chris Shays
of Connecticut who recognize global warming.
Note that Schwarzenegger gets into global-warming
heaven just for believing, despite his four Hummers and use of a private jet.
Global warming even has a martyr, NASA scientist
James Hansen, who told O'Brien in January that
under the Bushies, "you're not free to speak your
own mind." It's amazing that a scientist can
complain that he is being muzzled while appearing on CNN and "60 Minutes."
Be it noted that Hansen endorsed Sen. John Kerry
for president in 2004 and received a $250,000
award from a foundation run by Teresa Heinz Kerry
in 2001. At the time, Hansen told The New York
Times, the award had "no impact on my evaluation
of the climate problem or on my political leanings." I believe that.
I also believe we should all be so muzzled.
What does Inhofe make of the NAS finding? Inhofe
recognizes that the Earth is warming, but sees
this as part of the natural cycle. Inhofe
mentioned the Medieval Warm Period the year
1000 to 1270, when the Vikings grew crops in
Greenland. So he doesn't buy this 12,000-year
high. His office referred me to a piece
University of Oklahoma geology professor David
Deming penned for the Normal Transcript that
noted, "The fact that the thermometer wasn't
invented until the year 1714 ought to give us
pause when evaluating this remarkable claim."
I remain agnostic on global warming, as I've seen
good arguments on both sides. I know, however,
that I never will be convinced that global
warming is a scientific threat as long as
believers put most of their energy into
establishing orthodoxy and denying that reputable
global-warming skeptics exist.
The Times' "mainstream scientists" line
undermines the editorial's credibility, as it
ignores the likes of MIT climate scientist
Richard S. Lindzen, who argues that clouds and
water vapor will counteract greenhouse-gas
emissions. Ditto the 60 Canadian scientists who
wrote to Prime Minister Stephen Harper that there
is no "'consensus' among climate scientists."
Let me add the Copenhagen Consensus, a group of
Nobel Prize-winning scientists and economists
that looks at the best way to spend a
hypothetical $50 billion to benefit mankind,
rated fighting global warming as a "bad" use of
money. That's amazing, when you consider the
pressure that is put upon scientists to conform.
"Consensus" is another word for clique science.
The good people are true believers, the bad
people exhibit a "will to disbelieve." Editors
used to salute healthy skepticism. Now some are global-warming Torquemadas.
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