D.C. Watch

NCPA says Polar Bear extinction is ‘Coca-Colalization’ of Science

While commenting on Al Gore’s global warming documentary, “An Inconvenient Truth” David Legates, author of the study and the director of the University of Delaware’s Center for Climatic Research said “the most inconvenient truth is that the science behind these claims is fatally flawed”. The study is part of the National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA). 

The study notes that climate models used as the basis for global warming claims routinely miss key climate factors, which results in false predictions of catastrophe. Furthermore, some official reports, including the U.S. National Assessment, published in 2000, describe only the 2 most extreme predictions, ignoring 30 other models that are far less radical.

 

Many activists have attributed increases in hurricanes, floods, droughts, tornados, hail storms and heat waves to global warming caused by human activities. However, scientific evidence does not support their claims. For instance, the unprecedented destruction caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita was blamed on climate change – but experts say these recent storms were part of a natural cycle and the increased damage was due to increased coastal populations and development.

 

Some have also attempted to link global warming to species extinction. However, the study notes that the link is tenuous. These over-hyped claims of extinction are the ‘Coca-Colalization’ of science,” concluded NCPA Senior Fellow H. Sterling Burnett. “If you want to sell a product, or a cause, just tie it to a cute, cuddly animal. Snails, snakes and spiders withering in the sun just don’t pack the same emotional punch as a cuddly, furry polar bear slipping beneath the melting ice.

 

Source: NCPA.org

Al Gore’s documentary stresses on how real the threat is, the following is a summary of his claims.

The vast majority of scientists agree that global warming is real, it’s already happening and that it is the result of our activities and not a natural occurrence. The evidence is overwhelming and undeniable.

 

We’re already seeing changes. Glaciers are melting, plants and animals are being forced from their habitat, and the number of severe storms and droughts is increasing.

 

• The number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes has almost doubled in the last 30 years. 
• Malaria has spread to higher altitudes in places like the Colombian Andes, 7,000 feet above sea level.  
• The flow of ice from glaciers in Greenland has more than doubled over the past decade. 
• At least 279 species of plants and animals are already responding to global warming, moving closer to the poles. 

If the warming continues, we can expect catastrophic consequences.

 

• Deaths from global warming will double in just 25 years — to 300,000 people a year. 
• Global sea levels could rise by more than 20 feet with the loss of shelf ice in Greenland and Antarctica, devastating coastal areas worldwide.
• Heat waves will be more frequent and more intense.
• Droughts and wildfires will occur more often. 
• The Arctic Ocean could be ice free in summer by 2050.  
• More than a million species worldwide could be driven to extinction by 2050.

Source: http://www.climatecrisis.net/thescience/

Irrespective of who is correct or what the cause or consequences of Global Warming are, it is definitely not wise to continue the irresponsible dumping of pollutants, be it in the air, into water or on ground. Those who disagree with me should visit a coal fired power plant, especially the wastewater plant treating scrubber waste, I bet no one would want that in their backyard!

Footnote: The NCPA is an internationally known nonprofit, nonpartisan research institute with offices in Dallas and Washington, D. C. that advocates private solutions to public policy problems. We depend on the contributions of individuals, corporations and foundations that share our mission. The NCPA accepts no government grants.  

Footnote: Al Gore is Al Gore.

Photo Courtesy: Climatecrisis.net

   

Posted by Moderator on May 16th, 2006 filed in Al Gore, Global Warming, NCPA, News Discuss now »