I haven't found a single news source that quoted from today's hearing. I did see and converse with several reporters but so far have yet to read any coverage.
I went into the hearing expecting it would be more interesting than your typical congressional hearing and wasn't disappointed. Dr. David Deming, a geophysicist from the University of Oklahoma recounted an experience he had with an NPR reporter who hung up on him after he declined to say that he thought global temperature increases were human-caused.
Apparently I was not joined in my assessment of things by CNN "American Morning" anchor Miles O'Brien who fell asleep during the discussion, according to several witnesses. Only a colleague's nudge prevented the slumbering former science correspondent from missing the entire discussion. One would think that O'Brien could have scared up some more interest considering his ongoing feud with Sen. Inhofe. The two have tangled on O'Brien's CNN show and both have denounced each other from their respective platforms.
Why is this significant? Can't you guess? It's the topic of the hearing. What self-respecting, left-leaning, make-a-difference-in-the-world reporter is going to sit still for being told that he slants the news about climate change?
From the committee's web site:
Scientists testifying at the hearing described how much of the media has over-hyped the coverage of global warming and used scare tactics to garner public attention. Paleoclimate researcher Bob Carter of Australia’s James Cook University, who has had over 100 papers published refereed scientific journals, noted that “there is huge uncertainly in every aspect of climate change.”
"If you look at the ice core records, you will discover that yes, changes in carbon dioxide are accompanied by changes in temperature, but you will also discover that the change in temperature precedes the change in carbon dioxide by several hundred years to a thousand or so years. Reflect on that. And reflect on when you last heard somebody say that they thought lung cancer caused smoking. Because that is what you are arguing if you argue on the glacial time scale that changes in carbon dioxide cause temperature changes. It is the other way around,” Carter testified.
Carter also noted that the media promotes “Could-sm, might-ism and perhaps-ism, fueled by computer modeling.”
Carter explained, “If, could, may, might, probably, perhaps, likely, expected, projected ...Wonderful words. So wonderful, in fact, that environmental writers scatter them through their articles on climate change like confetti. The reason is that – in the absence of empirical evidence for damaging human-caused climate change – public attention is best captured by making assertions about “possible” change. And, of course, using the output of computer models in support, virtually any type of climatic hazard can be asserted as a possible future change.”
On Thanksgiving day I read "State of Fear" by Michael Crichton. Haven't read an entire book in one day in quite a while. Very good book in which the environmentalists are bad guys with guns! The plot involves the foiling of a number of horrific environmental disasters brought on by eco-terrorists. Great stuff! Very refreshing tonic for the looming disaster din from the media.
I was reminded of Crichton's speech, Aliens Cause Global Warming, given three years ago. Give it a read.
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