Climate 411

Glaciers in Andes mountains
frozen for 5000 years
now melting.

ignoratio elenchi n.
A logical fallacy of presenting an argument that may in itself be valid, but has nothing to do with the proposition it purports to prove. Also known as “irrelevant conclusion”. [Lat. ignorance of refutation.]

On Monday, an article appeared in the Washington Times that offers so many outrageous examples of the logical fallacy of irrelevant conclusion (formally, ignoratio elenchi) that I’m beginning a new series of posts – the Ignoratio Elenchi Awards – for the most flagrantly misleading arguments against curbing greenhouse gas emissions.

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This post is dedicated to the two great Americans we will honor on Presidents’ Day this Monday.

Everybody knows about Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation and Gettysburg Address; they are a big part of why Lincoln’s birthday is honored. Most people don’t know that Lincoln also established the National Academy of Sciences (NAS).

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If you live in the Northeast or upper Midwest of the United States, it’s cold outside – very cold. I did a series of radio interviews on global warming yesterday, and I kept getting the same question: “How can there be global warming when it’s so cold outside??” Indeed, some talk radio hosts are now proclaiming that global warming is clearly a myth, given the current cold snap.

The science skeptics are at it again, so let’s go over the facts. Read More »

Reports about the new 2007 IPCC assessment on climate change have been all over the news. The findings are sobering – the globe is warming largely because of human activities, the effects are already being felt, and if we don’t curb greenhouse gas pollution soon the consequences could be catastrophic.

But some folks are not so sure about this IPCC thing. They want to know: “What is the IPCC anyway, and why should I trust what they have to say?” Our good friends at the Wall Street Journal tell us not to trust the IPCC, it’s written by a bunch of “policymakers.” (See the editorial.)

Not so fast. Here’s what the IPCC really is. Read More »