Thou Shalt Not Question the Climate Change Cult

Journalist Phelim McAleer finds out the hard way.



More details here.

The Real Goal of the Climate Change Cult: Depopulation

Diane Francis hates people, as do most of those who belong to the idiotic ranks of the climate change cult. She writes:

The "inconvenient truth" overhanging the UN's Copenhagen conference is not that the climate is warming or cooling, but that humans are overpopulating the world.

A planetary law, such as China's one-child policy, is the only way to reverse the disastrous global birthrate currently of one million births every four days.

The world's other species, vegetation, resources, oceans, arable land, water supplies and atmosphere are being destroyed and pushed out of existence as a result of humanity's soaring reproduction rate.

Ironically, China, despite its dirty coal plants, is the world's leader in terms of fashioning policy to combat environmental degradation, thanks to its one-child-only edict. ...

... For those who balk at the notion that governments should control family sizes, just wait until the growing human population turns twice as much pasture land into desert as is now the case or when the Amazon is gone, the elephants disappear for good and wars erupt over water, scarce resources and spatial needs.

The point is that Copenhagen's talking points are beside the point.

The only fix is if all countries drastically reduce their populations, clean up their messes and impose mandatory conservation measures.

This is beyond idiotic. It's entering the realm of the criminally insane.

Ms. Francis, is there any chance you and your cohorts would lead the way in reducing the world's population? Yeah, I didn't think so.

Global Warming Idiocy Hits a New Low

Questioning Global Warming Is "Treason"

If you question the current "science" that wants us to believe that we are killing the planet with so-called "greenhouse gases," then you are guilty of a most horrible crime. The unintentionally hilarious Paul Krugman explains:

So the House passed the Waxman-Markey climate-change bill. In political terms, it was a remarkable achievement.

But 212 representatives voted no. A handful of these no votes came from representatives who considered the bill too weak, but most rejected the bill because they rejected the whole notion that we have to do something about greenhouse gases.

And as I watched the deniers make their arguments, I couldn't help thinking that I was watching a form of treason -- treason against the planet.

"Treason against the planet"? Mr. Krugman certainly has a flair for the dramatic.

Let's set aside the fact that the global warming scare is based entirely on junk science, an insatiable lust for taxpayer dollars, and a desire to alter the very fabric of Western civilization. Even if, by some chance, in our wildest imaginations, Earth really did warm a few degrees, I still fail to see how that would be a bad thing.

The way I see it, the melting of the polar ice caps would mean more water for drinking and irrigation. Once-frozen wastelands would become fertile farmlands capable of feeding hundreds of millions of people. Sure, Duluth, Minnesota, might become the new spring break destination of choice, the Winter Olympics might have to be put on hold indefinitely, and Paul Krugman might have to shave his beard, but I prefer to look on the bright side.

Clean Air Regulations Causing Global Warming?

According to NASA, it's a distinct possibility that the clean air regulations Washington has imposed over the last three decades have actually contributed to global warming:

Since the 1890s, surface temperatures have risen faster in the Arctic than in other regions of the world. In part, these rapid changes could be due to changes in aerosol levels. Clean air regulations passed in the 1970s, for example, have likely accelerated warming by diminishing the cooling effect of sulfates.

Of course I still think this man-made global warming scare is a crock, but seeing those who think the fate of the world rests in their hands contradicting themselves is always good for a laugh.

Death by Environmentalism

I wrote about the tragic cost of environmentalism several years ago, how idiotic environmental regulations led to the deaths of four brave firefighters. A similar tragedy, though on a much bigger scale, has been playing out in southern Australia.

It has been suggested that the wildfires there that have been burning out of control because of global warming. According to Australian Green Party leader Bob Brown, "[The fires] are a sobering reminder of the need for this nation and the whole world to act and put at a priority the need to tackle climate change." What an arrogant, self-righteous fool.

Those directly affected by the wildfires know the real reason for the extent of death and destruction:

Angry residents last night accused local authorities of contributing to the bushfire toll by failing to let residents chop down trees and clear up bushland that posed a fire risk.

During question time at a packed community meeting in Arthurs Creek on Melbourne's northern fringe, Warwick Spooner -- whose mother Marilyn and brother Damien perished along with their home in the Strathewen blaze -- criticised the Nillumbik council for the limitations it placed on residents wanting the council's help or permission to clean up around their properties in preparation for the bushfire season. "We've lost two people in my family because you dickheads won't cut trees down," he said.

Personally, I think Mr. Spooner was being was being too kind. These environmentally (un)conscious morons have very little respect for human life.

Environmental Discrimination in the U.K.

Like the U.S., the E.U. has imposed a draconian ban on traditional light bulbs. The goal is to phase out incandescent bulbs by 2012.

This policy, however, has generated a great amount of concern among those with poor vision. The problem is that the new energy-efficient bulbs do not give off enough light, which could make life even more difficult if not outright dangerous.

The bureaucratic response? "No big deal."

"Climate Change" Replaces "Global Warming"

From the AP:

The chairman of a key House committee says he wants to pass a climate change bill before Memorial Day.

California Rep. Henry Waxman said Thursday the environment and U.S. economy depend on congressional action to confront the threat of climate change. Waxman, chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, spoke as he opened Congress' first hearing on climate legislation.

This confirms what I have suspected for a long time. It's subtle, but "climate change" is being used increasingly in place of "global warming" as the favorite alarmist term of radical environmentalists. That way their butts are covered no matter which direction the mercury moves.

State vs. Hockey Family

Minnesota prides itself on being the State of Hockey, but one family in Minnetonka has been prevented by the state from playing hockey on their own property. This KSTP report explains:

Another example of environmental extremism run amok.

Crime DOES Pay...if You're the Government

Government officials don't have to be responsible with money because it isn't theirs to begin with, and when they find themselves a little short on cash, they simply raise taxes or impose fines. In Rhode Island, for example, the state wants to start taxing drivers based on the mileage put on their vehicles. In addition to paying for roads and bridges (things that should already be receiving adequate funding), the money will be used to prop up the outdated and financially strapped public transit system.

In Gwinnett County, Georgia, a move is on to force residents to take part in a mandatory recycling program. Did I say "mandatory"? I meant to say that it's voluntary -- as long as residents are ready to shell out $500 each time they choose not to participate.

These kinds of regulations might be enough to give some people the crazy idea that they can vote with their feet and just pick up and move to a community that actually celebrates freedom. No such luck. This is America, after all. Where state or local governments fail to stick it to law-abiding citizens, the federal government is there to pick up the slack. Farmers are finding this out thanks to a proposal by the Environmental Protection Agency that would require certain farms with dairy cows, beef cattle, or hogs to pay an annual fee because of their livestock's greenhouse emissions. No, they're not kidding.

These types of regulations are always implemented under the auspices of providing for the "common good." But in reality they are nothing more than fund-raising schemes that end up making criminals out of otherwise law-abiding citizens.

When you and I are in a financial pinch, we are forced to reassess how much we spend and make the necessary adjustments. We don't have the luxury to go out and rob our neighbors -- except, of course, for those lazy compassionate types who try to "spread the wealth" through the ballot box.

The state, however, can do whatever it wants to pad its pockets. It's why police forces are maintained. If you believe otherwise, then just haven't been paying attention.

International Environmental Court Looming

Some sanctimonious judge is proposing a world court to go after those who violate arbitrary environmental regulations. From the Telegraph:

Stephen Hockman QC is proposing a body similar to the International Court of Justice in The Hague to be the supreme legal authority on issues regarding the environment.

The first role of the new body would be to enforce international agreements on cutting greenhouse gas emissions set to be agreed next year.

But the court would also fine countries or companies that fail to protect endangered species or degrade the natural environment and enforce the "right to a healthy environment".

The innovative idea is being presented to an audience of politicians, scientists and public figures for the first time at a symposium at the British Library.

Come on. You knew it was only a matter of time.

The Global Warming Lie Refuted

This documentary, Doomsday Called Off, uses real science to refute the lie that man-made CO₂ emissions are warming the planet:

Global Warming: No Consensus? No Kidding

As governments continue to cave to the regressive, socialist, tyrannical agenda of environmentalists, Lawrence Solomon, in a column for the Financial Post, wonders if 32,000 dissenting scientists is enough to convince people that there is hardly a consensus on the science surrounding global warming.

Republicans Are As Bad for the Economy As Democrats

Is there even a single person left in this country who hasn't seen through the conservative facade of the Republican Party? The GOP is devoted to growing government and stifling the economy every bit as much as the Democrats.

The latest example comes from none other than the presumed Republican presidential nominee, John McCain, who was busy over Mother's Day weekend campaigning against global warming. His non-free market solution to this mythical threat includes implementing a cap-and-trade program on carbon-fuel emissions and forcing businesses to adhere to strict emission limits. In other words, more government control over the nation's economy.

OK, show of hands. Who is surprised by this?

Global Warming vs. Global Hunger

Global warming has taken a back seat to an even greater (i.e. real) threat: starvation. The New York Sun has the story:

With prices for rice, wheat, and corn soaring, food-related unrest has broken out in places such as Haiti, Indonesia, and Afghanistan. Several countries have blocked the export of grain. There is even talk that governments could fall if they cannot bring food costs down.

One factor being blamed for the price hikes is the use of government subsidies to promote the use of corn for ethanol production. An estimated 30% of America's corn crop now goes to fuel, not food.

"I don't think anybody knows precisely how much ethanol contributes to the run-up in food prices, but the contribution is clearly substantial," a professor of applied economics and law at the University of Minnesota, C. Ford Runge, said. A study by a Washington think tank, the International Food Policy Research Institute, indicated that between a quarter and a third of the recent hike in commodities prices is attributable to biofuels.

Last year, Mr. Runge and a colleague, Benjamin Senauer, wrote an article in Foreign Affairs, "How Biofuels Could Starve the Poor."

"We were criticized for being alarmist at the time," Mr. Runge said. "I think our views, looking back a year, were probably too conservative."

Not surprisingly, Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore was unavailable for comment.

In Celebration of Earth Day

Genesis 1:1
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:26
Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."

Deuteronomy 32:1
"Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak, and let the earth hear the words of my mouth."

1st Chronicles 16:31
Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, "The Lord reigns!"

Psalm 24:1-2
The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof,
the world and those who dwell therein,
for he has founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers.

Matthew 24:35
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

Romans 8:19-22
For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.

1st Corinthians 10:25-26
Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience. For "the earth is the Lord's, and the fullness thereof."

Revelation 21:1
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.

Environmental Concerns

Just what are we to make of this?:

Record Low Temperatures in Parts of U.S.

DENVER - Bitterly cold air poured southward across the nation's midsection Wednesday, dropping temperatures below zero to record lows from Montana to Illinois. The cold even extended south to the Texas Panhandle, where Lubbock shivered at 9 above zero, toppling a record for Dec. 7 that had stood since 1942, the National Weather Service said. ...

Damn global warming.

Poetic Justice

Oh, the irony:

Greenpeace Fined for Reef Damage

Environmental group Greenpeace has been fined almost $7,000 (£4,000) for damaging a coral reef at a World Heritage site in the Philippines.

Their flagship Rainbow Warrior II ran aground at Tubbataha Reef Marine Park, in the Sulu Sea, 650km (400 miles) south-east of Manila.

Park officials said almost 100 sq m (1,076 sq ft) of reef had been damaged. ...

I suppose global warming is to blame.

Global Warming on Mars?

According to recent data, global warming isn't just an earthly phenomenon:

Mars Getting Warmer, May Have Quakes

The climate on Mars is showing a warming trend and recent images have shown the first evidence of seismic activity on Earth's neighbor planet, scientists said on Tuesday.

New gullies that did not exist three years ago have been pictured on a Mars sand dune--just another of what scientists say are surprising discoveries found by cameras aboard the 8-year-old Mars Global Surveyor that are changing notions about the climate and formation of Mars.

"To see new gullies and other changes in Mars surface features on a time span of a few years presents us with a more active, dynamic planet than many suspected," said Michael Meyer, NASA's Mars Exploration Program chief scientist.

Does anyone else see the disparity here? Mars, a dead, lifeless planet, is seen as "active" and "dynamic." Earth, on the other hand, a planet teeming with life, is dying.

Scientists--most of whom have devoted their entire lives to evolution, a theory based on the fundamental concept that things change over time--tell us that Earth's climate is anything but dynamic. Why, it's simply unnatural for the global temperature to increase one degree over 100 years or so. We're killing ourselves!

Natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina are due to global warming, and global warming is caused by man. In essence, modern science teaches that human beings are slowly destroying the planet. I recall the words of Eileen Collins, commander of the last shuttle mission: "The atmosphere almost looks like an eggshell on an egg, it's so very thin. We know that we don't have much air, we need to protect what we have."

When can we expect to see reports that human activity here on Earth is affecting other planets in the Solar System? With all the junk science passed off as legitimate research these days, I don't think it will be long.

My Own Enlightening "Discovery"

When I write anything that ends up on one of my blogs or published on another website, two questions run through my mind:

1. Is what I wrote relevant?
2. Who reads this stuff anyway?

I began to think that I had an answer to the latter question when I saw an Aug. 8 National Review article, written by R. J. Smith and Iain Murray of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, entitled Spaceship Earth. I couldn't help but notice some striking similarities between that article and my Aug. 5 blog entry, One Shuttle Commander's Enlightening "Discovery". (Of course, theirs was a rather deliberate analysis while mine was more of a tongue-in-cheek, sarcastic commentary, with bits of cynicism and a dash of hyperbolic vitriol thrown in for good measure.)

Concerning the remarks made by shuttle Discovery's Commander Eileen Collins about how "deforestation" is "widespread in some parts of the world," I wrote:

I realize that we're down here and you're up there, and perhaps we can't see the deforestation for the lack of trees, but do you see those big brown patches? Those are called deserts. ... Deserts are notorious for their lack of forests.

Smith and Murray wrote:

The nonsense is that everything evaluated is done so simply in area extent. The desert is larger!

When it came to the commander's comments that the planet's atmosphere is "so very thin" and, since "we don't have much air, we need to protect what we have," I wrote:

As long as there are plants and algae, I don't think that will be a problem. You've heard of a process called photosynthesis, right? Of course you have. You have two master's degrees.

Smith and Murray replied:

... [W]hat is her concern? That people are using it all up by breathing? This is grade-school environmentalism at best, not the sort of thinking we should expect from the highly qualified scientists that astronauts are supposed to be.

To Collins's statement that we need to "replace the resources that have been used," I responded:

We'll start pumping oil back into the ground just as soon as you rocket scientists invent a car that runs on hugs and happy thoughts.

From Smith and Murray:

What is that supposed to mean? Refill copper mines with more copper or start pumping crude oil into depleted reservoirs?

About the overall sermonizing on environmental issues, I wrote:

Like Bowie's Major Tom, there really is nothing these astronauts can do except talk about what the Earth looks like from a tin can floating in space. And now that the shuttle has become a celestial soapbox for environmentalist ramblings that have no basis in scientific fact, perhaps it's time to ground it permanently.

Smith and Murray:

As for Eileen Collins's comments themselves, a moment's thought reveals them for the platitudinous claptrap we have come to expect from people who don't know all that much about Spaceship Earth.

Now, I sincerely doubt that Smith and Murray have ever read my writings. Any similarity between events or persons, living or dead, was purely coincidental. But since I wasn't the only one to pick up on the environmentalist, PC implications (i.e., the sheer pointlessness) of this latest space shuttle mission I can only conclude that what I had to say was somewhat relevant in this case.

I tried, in my own feeble way, to make light of Commander Collins's doom-and-gloom sermon on the fragility of Planet Earth (which has been around for how long now?). Unfortunately, that message was seemingly lost on those who were offended that anyone would dare to criticize such a "cool" government program like the space shuttle, no matter how wasteful it may be. Let's just say that most of the e-mails I received in response to my breviloquent breakdown weren't exactly positive.

One such e-mail came from "Chris," who saw what I wrote on SierraTimes.com:

You sad [expletive deleted], disrespectful [expletive deleted] moron who wrote this [expletive deleted] column about Collins and Shuttle Discovery. When this sad little site gets named and shamed we'll wreck your server. [Expletive deleted] idiot.

Now, I have received some hateful e-mails before, but this one was so deliciously clever and insightfully eloquent that I had to reply.

I thanked him for reading and asked what it was he found so disrespectful. (It certainly wasn't my use of profanity.) When he didn't answer, I decided to use the online tools at my disposal to find out who this guy is.

Running a Google search for his e-mail address, I came across a few discussion forums that bore his profile. It turns out that "Chris" lives in England, drives a Ford Probe and is a fan of the band Evanescence. Most importantly, he is the U.K. Director of Communications for NASA!

On one hand, I am not at all surprised to learn that the most vile, hate-filled response to my critique of the latest Discovery mission came from a NASA press officer. No doubt he would like to see me shipped off to Orwell's Ministry of Love for a little "rehabilitation."

On the other hand, I am quite flattered that a government propagandist took time away from his busy schedule to read what I had to say. And with readers like that, Lord willing, I won't be quitting anytime soon.