Burner Trouble » Denial

To hell with the deniers

martin — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:58:19 +0000

Check out Paul Krugman’s chart created to quell global warming deniers like George Will who use inaccurate and carefully selected datasets to make their case that warming is not taking place.

You might want to check out this image too.

temperatures 1880-2006

Bruce Sterling offers 7 situations that could cause widespread panic in 2009

martin — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 17:15:08 +0000

I hope Sterling is wrong but he makes a compelling case.

“1. The climate. People still behave as if it’s okay. Every scientist in the world who isn’t the late Michael Crichton knows that it’s not. The climate is in terrible shape; something’s gone wrong with the sky. The bone-chilling implications haven’t soaked into the populace, even though Al Gore put together a PowerPoint about it that won him a Nobel. Al was soft-peddling the problem.

It’s become an item of fundamentalist faith to maintain that the climate crisis is a weird leftist hoax. Yet, since the rain falls on the just and the unjust alike, an honest fear of the consequences will prove hard to repress. Since the fear has been methodically obscured, its emergence from the mists of superstition will be all the more powerful. Unlike mere shibboleths of finance, this is a situation that’s objectively terrifying and likely to remain so indefinitely.”

And that’s just one of seven…

25% of Mammal species may become extinct

martin — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 19:05:06 +0000

Due to warming and deforestation, a new study finds that mass extinctions are taking place with up to 25% of land mammals and 33% of sea mammals disappearing during this century. Biodiversity is essential to maintaining a healthy bio-system and a genetic pool that can support continued evolution. The loss of these species will have incalculable effects on humanity.

We’re destroying this planet as fast as we can and we have a vice-presidential candidate who does not believe in science.

Newsflash: God is not going to bail us out.

Friedman on the Hillary/McCain Gas Tax Cut

martin — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 13:51:23 +0000

The idea that we should cut federal taxes on gas for the summer is an appallingly cynical, politically motivated panacea only two candidates for President could cook up. Do they really think Americans won’t recognize this for what it is: A cheesy handout to warm up voters?

Read Tom Friedman on this:

“The McCain-Clinton gas holiday proposal is a perfect example of what energy expert Peter Schwartz of Global Business Network describes as the true American energy policy today: “Maximize demand, minimize supply and buy the rest from the people who hate us the most.”

Good for Barack Obama for resisting this shameful pandering.

But here’s what’s scary: our problem is so much worse than you think. We have no energy strategy. If you are going to use tax policy to shape energy strategy then you want to raise taxes on the things you want to discourage — gasoline consumption and gas-guzzling cars — and you want to lower taxes on the things you want to encourage — new, renewable energy technologies. We are doing just the opposite.

Are you sitting down?

Few Americans know it, but for almost a year now, Congress has been bickering over whether and how to renew the investment tax credit to stimulate investment in solar energy and the production tax credit to encourage investment in wind energy. The bickering has been so poisonous that when Congress passed the 2007 energy bill last December, it failed to extend any stimulus for wind and solar energy production. Oil and gas kept all their credits, but those for wind and solar have been left to expire this December. I am not making this up. At a time when we should be throwing everything into clean power innovation, we are squabbling over pennies.”