If I was 20 years younger and participated in a certain body art trend, I might have a tattoo inscribed on my forearm that said something like this: Confirmation bias MT @jayphilips: “The assumptions you start with dictate the conclusions you arrive at.” @james_christie #CAST2014 — Josh Meier (@moshjeier) August 12, 2014 As the Skeptics…Continue Reading…
It wasn’t that long ago that global warming was mostly discussed as (and believed to be) a distant threat– the scope, timing and severity of its impacts considered uncertain. Then in recent years, as climate scientists began studying and asserting linkages between greenhouses gases and severe weather events, the discourse shifted. We are now at…Continue Reading…
This is notable: The dangers of nuclear power are real, but the accidents that have occurred, even Chernobyl, do not compare to the damage to the earth being inflicted by the burning of fossil fuels — coal, gas and oil. That’s from an editorial in today’s New York Times, which will make for uncomfortable reading…Continue Reading…
Several weeks ago, this was the headline for a press release: Mayor Bloomberg announces New York City’s air quality has reached the cleanest levels in more than 50 years. That’s quite a claim. Most media outlets reporting this story cut and pasted from the press release; few bothered to delve into the report Bloomberg was…Continue Reading…
To frack or not to frack seems like a good question to ask in the context of the climate debate. To ignore it or dismiss it out of hand won’t make it go away. And now that Michael Bloomberg and a leading environmental organization are teaming up to make fracking environmentally friendly, you can bet…Continue Reading…
It has been suggested by some that political action on climate change will require a grassroots uprising similar to the Civil Rights movement. The analogy strikes me as wishful thinking. In 2010, Leigh Ewbank laid out why: Unlike the civil rights movement, climate change has a complex causation. Its effects are indirect, systemic, difficult to…Continue Reading…
It’s the bridge that everyone seems eager to build, from the oil & gas industry and Texas high-roller Slim Pickens to liberal think tanks and brainy MIT experts. Yes, I’m talking about that dreamy natural gas bridge to a “low-carbon future.” Hold on a minute, reports Pro Publica, or you might get a serious case…Continue Reading…
As I mentioned here, enviros and climate advocates have gotten all starry-eyed about unconventional natural gas. But the Oil Drum says that the future of natural gas production is a puzzle. In fact, pointing to this recent article, TOD suggests that some caution is in order.
Has anybody noticed that Sarah Palin and Joe Romm are walking hand in hand across a certain bridge? To be fair, many environmentalists and progressives are suddenly scrambling aboard this bridge too. Those in the West who have endured the latest drilling boom must find the bi-partisan lovefest for shale gas a bit jarring. Strangely,…Continue Reading…