Global warming worries me.

Not the actual (as yet unproven) warming, but the tactics that are being used. You may find it unusual that a Pagan pagan doesn't automatically support the global warming craze, but the science just doesn't hold up.

The question isn't if the weather is changing. We know that it is. Just as we know that in the Northern Hemisphere this time of year the days are getting are getting shorter and the nights are getting longer. Just as we know in America that weather in January will be colder than the July weather now. These are natural cycles of changes, we know that humans aren't responsible for these changes.

We're told that the slightest weather change is a sure sign that global warming is just around the corner.

The reasoning usually goes something like this.

"The polar ice caps are retreating. Therefore, we must restrict all industry that produces greenhouse gases."

It's not logic. We go from A to Z without passing through B, C, D and others. When it comes to global warming (or ANY environmental issues for that matter), I have four questions that must be answered before I can justify taking action.

1). Is it unusual?

2). Is it entirely or mostly human caused?

3). Is it evil or bad?

4). Can human action reverse or slow it?

Is it unusual?

Going from the archeology, no, we've yet to see any unusual weather changes. Remember this planet of ours has been through several ice ages and warm tropical periods.

When it comes to proof of global warming, the data has been either carefully selected or fudged. The computer models aren't accurate (the infamous hockey stick) and the predictions have not been subject to peer review, a key evaluation tool in modern science.

Is it entirely or mostly human caused?

See question above. If drastic climate changes happened on the face of the planet before humanity existed or before humans had the present technological ability, it's more likely that any changes we see now are either part of a natural cycle or something imposed from outside.

We know for example, that the "danger period" of the 20th Century corresponds directly to a period of increased sunspot and volcanic activity . At the very least, that should be considered in any debate about global warming.

Is it evil or bad?

That's a value judgment, and it really depends on your perspective. For a polar species, global warming is bad, but an equatorial species would find it good.

Can human action reverse or slow it?

Based on the first two questions, I'd have to say no. As a pagan, I think that the real question is not can we stop it, but should we stop it?

Since the science doesn't hold up for the first two questions, we can only look at the motivations of the global warming movement. If the science could be verified, motivation would be the last thing I would look at. But in this case, a global warming scare brings economic and political benefits to those who are making the most noise about the "problem."

Somehow the solutions have an anti-industrial bias. Considering that the solutions have a crippling cost for almost no measurable results, and it is amazing that anyone takes the "solution" seriously.

Posted: Wed - July 13, 2005 at 05:25 PM