If you don’t believe in Global Warming, you’re an idiot
If you don’t believe in Global Warming, you’re an idiot; you might think that is a strong statement but really it’s not. Let’s define Global Warming, simply it is the fact that the average global temperature of the earth is increasing. There is plenty of data from ice core samples to support this, as well as the correlation with CO2 but that’s ok, we don’t have to go there, just look at the graph below recording the temperatures we have measured.
Now sure, you can say it’s just a fluke or a short-term trend but you can’t deny that temperatures are rising or that the top 10 hottest years have all occurred in the last 15 years. So Global Warming is a fact plain and simple, if you don’t believe in facts than you’re an idiot.
Now what most people want to argue about are two things, first whether or not there is a long-term warming trend and whether or not the warming is caused by human activity. Below is a NASA site that provides all of the information you could ever want about Global Warming, including the uncertainties we have about climate science. That’s right, as any good scientist will admit, we don’t know everything about how the climate works. There are things that are still mysteries to science, like why winter Antarctic sea ice has grown in area over the last few years. We don’t understand all of the intricacies of how the Earth’s climate regulates itself. But just because we don’t understand every detail of the mechanism doesn’t mean we’re wrong. We don’t understand every detail about how gravity works, and if you think that fact means that the science is crap, well then you go and jump off a roof and we’ll see if the theory of gravity holds for you. And by the way, since you only believe in science where you can easily understand everything, please explain to me the details of the workings of the internal combustion engine, or start walking to work.
A definitive site on the evidence for global climate change showing evidence for each category of evidence showing how the earth is changing. http://climate.nasa.gov/keyIndicators/
To see more of the arguments that skeptics have about Global Warming and the scientific response check-out the following link: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703819904574551303527570212.html
And if you buy the idea that no one is convinced by this, take a look at the following Creation Science site http://www.icr.org/article/evidence-for-global-warming/
On the flip side I also hear a lot by climate deniers about how scientists don’t believe in Global Warming either, well take a gander at the following survey data: http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/americas/01/19/eco.globalwarmingsurvey/
Finally if you don’t think the world is warming, if you don’t think this is a significant issue than answer a couple of questions. Why are the Antarctic ice sheets melting, why are global glaciers disappearing, why is the permafrost thawing?
While most of you can afford not to care, we’re talking about global climate and things moving on a geologic scale, even when change happens quickly by geologic time it typically takes centuries for impacts to show. So most of you will likely be dead when the real nasty effects kick in. However, there has been some recent work that shows that occasionally, and granted this would be a rarity, that massive global sea level change can happen very, very quickly and may be related to cultural memories of the great flood. Additionally, there exists the possibility that melting ice could quickly disrupt Atlantic currents and paradoxically plunge North America and Europe into a mini ice age.
So who knows, there might be a reason for you to be worried after all and I haven’t even mentioned the potential severe weather impacts that might occur. Do you live in tornado country, along the coast in the hurricane zones, maybe near a major river? Sleep tight, I’m sure this is all just a bad dream.
