> -----Original Message----- > From: Robert Munn [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Friday, April 04, 2008 1:55 PM > To: CF-Community > Subject: Re: global warming? how about global cooling > > 1. Yup.
Nope... 1) should have been "we won't completely..." Just like everything else our knowledge is incomplete but growing. We have made great strides, especially in data collection, over the past several decades. We're long past the point where computer models are the only line of evidence (although many of those models predictions have been reinforced by later data collection). > 2. Directly contradicts #1. Not at all. For the data we have this is pretty conclusive. At the very least it is conclusive that the climate is changing. That's a fact. It's not as conclusive (but very likely using our available data) that the climate change is anomalous. It's also very likely that human activity plays a part in this change. The part played is highly debatable and I've seen no serious scientist ever suggest that humans play the only role. But whether our part is greater or lesser it does seem to be the only aspect that we might control. You seem to be rejecting the notion that some understanding can be helpful. It's a crippling failure of logic to assume that you must know everything about something before action can be taken. > 3. I'm all for spending money to understand how the planet works, but > this > incessant running around in hysterics shouting about how the world is > going > to end is alarmist and does nothing to help us understand anything. No... but neither does marking all information that you disagree with as "personally motivated" and all information that you agree with as "good science". Rejecting one extreme just to erect another is just as mind-numbingly stupid as blindly accepting the original extreme. Each piece of evidence needs to be considered as part of the whole - that's how science builds consensus. Scientists are human: any individual can be petty, stubborn, biased or just plain stupid. That's why the body of information needs to be examined. Anomalies get explained (and often that explanation hinges on human error or fraud) and generally either disappear or lead to breakthroughs. The position papers from countless organizations demonstrate that consensus has occurred. As with all science there are still heated debates on any number of mechanistic, causal or predictive elements... but that's science. Any theories (gravity, evolution, etc) may be more mature but in the same modes (and will probably never leave them) - we'll NEVER know "everything" about ANYTHING. Global Warming really isn't at issue here... the fact of it is too obvious to be ignored by any reasonable person. The very reasons that we're arguing so heatedly about human causes is that the fact of global warming has been established: we're into the "why" phase of investigation. I would actually disagree that Global Warming is a threat to the human race... to be specific I can see no result of global climate change that would (by itself) cause the extermination of our species. The worst case scenario would cause untold havoc with social, economic and political systems... this is turn would definitely cause widespread death (through famine, conflict or disease) and an enormous redistribution of resources. The human species is one of the best equipped to deal with dramatic climate change. Human society, on the other hand, is incredibly ill-equipped for it. In and of itself, no, Climate Change could not make humanity extinct. Humanity, with far fewer resources, has lived through severe climate change before and I believe that we will again. Jim Davis ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;192386516;25150098;k Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Community/message.cfm/messageid:258017 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Community/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.5
