Television and newspapers are filled with warnings about the dire consequences of global warming. For instance, in each of two recent consecutive issues of the Leader-Post (June 5 and 6), there were three stories related to this subject. We are told that, over the next 30 years or so, our climate will become so extreme that we will either fry in the intense heat or drown in the floods.
The concept of global warming relies on three basic premises: first, that the Earth’s temperature is rising and will continue to do so; secondly, that this heating is caused by greenhouse gas emissions; thirdly, that human behaviour is responsible for this phenomenon.
Politicians and bureaucrats at all levels from Ottawa to the municipalities have become convinced that we must change our behaviour in order to reverse this trend. All branches of the media have been equally brainwashed, and never a day goes by without some reference to the disaster that threatens the planet.
Meanwhile, former U.S. vice-president Al Gore is making a fortune from a speaking tour promoting his documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, preaching to all who will pay to listen. School board officials have bought copies of this film to show to our children.
Global warming has, in effect, become the religion of the 21st century. Some time ago, during a discussion of this topic among friends, one person remarked that I am the only person he knows who does not “believe in global warming”. The implication is that I am therefore guilty of the most wicked heresy and no doubt should be burned at the stake.
However, anyone who will ignore the hysteria and take the time to read extensively on the subject will find that many reputable scientists have already exposed major flaws in the concept of man-made global warming.
It is a documented fact that there have been several periods of warming and cooling during the planet’s history. In medieval times, long before the invention of SUVs, the Earth was warmer than it is today.
Another piece of misinformation is that the ice caps are melting. Within the last two years, five different studies have shown that although Greenland’s ice cap is shrinking around its margins, it is thickening at higher elevations.
Similarly, while the edge of the Antarctic ice cap is thinning, the ice is thickening in the continental interior.
We continue to hear that melting ice is causing sea levels to rise putting coastal communities at risk, but it is interesting that there are areas in the world where sea levels are actually lower today than they were a thousand years ago.
For instance, the site of the famous Battle of Hastings, where William the Conqueror invaded England, is currently approximately 25 miles from the coast. Information boards at the site show that in 1066 the coastline was much closer to the historic battlefield.
Most convincing, however, is the recent program produced by the British Broadcasting Corporation entitled The Great Global Warming Swindle.
This documentary includes interviews with several scientists who were original members of the IPCC and who resigned rather than have their names attached to the reports issued by that body. They claim that the computer models were seriously flawed and that facts were deliberately distorted in order to make the outcomes more dramatic and potentially catastrophic.
Unfortunately, the citizenry of the civilized world has bought into the global warming theory.
In so doing, they have given carte blanche to governments, public utilities and petroleum companies to victimize us.
Federal taxes will increase in order to purchase emission credits; provincial and municipal taxes will increase to pay for various “green” initiatives; governments will impose numerous regulations on many aspects of our daily lives; energy costs will soar and our standard of living will be drastically reduced, all in the name of environmental responsibility.
It is unlikely that I will still be around in 30 years’ time.
That is a pity. It would be interesting to know if those experts who cannot even get a weather forecast right two or three days in advance, have accurately predicted what will occur three decades from now.
