Monday, April 21, 2008
Barry / Media / Politics Monday Morning Truth Squad
Posted by Bruce Barry on Mon, Apr 21, 2008 at 9:30 AM
And the nominees for most witless and uninformed assertion about the environment and climate change in a Sunday Tennessean op-ed this week are…
Bob Corker for his performance in “Return Cap-and-Trade Proceeds to People,” featuring this nugget: “No one can quantify how much of global warming is caused by natural cycles vs. man-made greenhouse emissions.”
Phil Valentine for his performance in “Earth Day Extremists were Wrong in the '70s, and Still Are” featuring this gem: “There is absolutely no evidence that carbon dioxide causes any kind of climate change.”
Let’s jump to some science, shall we?
Bob Corker’s assigned reading comes from the Pew Center for Global Climate Change:
How do we know that atmosphere increases in greenhouse gases are due to human activity? Some greenhouse gases, such as industrial halocarbons, are only made by humans, and thus their presence in the atmosphere can only be explained by human activity. Naturally occurring gases such as CO2 and CH4 are generated by natural processes such as plant and animal respiration and decomposition. However, scientists can quantify the various sources (both natural and human) of such gases and measure their contribution to atmospheric concentrations.Phil Valentine’s assigned reading is the November 2007 report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change:
Most of the observed increase in global average temperatures since the mid-20th century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic [greenhouse gas] concentrations. It is likely that there has been significant anthropogenic warming over the past 50 years.And the winner is … both of them! (And an honorable mention to The Tennessean for outstanding editorial oversight in the pursuit of scientific integrity.)
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