Having got back from the sunniest part of the country, my thoughts once again turn to global warming.
Last summer was somewhat dry, and we were told that Britain would soon become sub-Saharan in a matter of years. Hosepipe bans were enforced throughout much of the country, and water bills soared.
This summer has seen almost constant rain, with flooding throughout the north-east. The government response was pitiful, but that's another story. Neither are we alone. China, the US, Brazil ... all have seen much more than their fair share of the wet stuff. Even droughts in parts of Australia have been ended.
Global warming may be an actuality, but what is clear is that the causes and affects are not understood by those who profess knowledge on the subject. Government funding of the vast amounts of research see these soothsayers spout what their paymasters want to hear. Neutral or opposing opinions are drowned out by the chattering classes.
Meanwhile my summer hols were the wettest I could remember! Even South West England was a bit of a damp squib.
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2 comments:
I've forced myself to bone up a bit more in general on this. My current stance on the matter of 'climate change,' based on this further reading, has perhaps changed a bit and is somewhat in tune with the current moderate conclusion that the planet is warming and that Man's activities may have something to do with it. Worst-case scenarios I tend to dismiss; high impact by human activity I tend to dismiss. And I don't think scientists really know what is causing the current warming, and, yes, I actually expect it to reverse or moderate.
I also call on everybody to remember:
We were supposed to have such world-wide famines that millions would have died from starvation and we'd be in the middle of world war 17 by now as a consequence.
We were supposed to run out of oil by the 80's, instead we had a 20 year glut.[This predicton really suckered me in]
Aids in Africa was supposed to be so bad that it would depopulate the continent. I bought into this somewhat, too; Aids in Africa is a concern, quite shocking in areas, but the continent is not depopulating. Perhaps more on this on my own blog sometime.
So I am pretty determined not to get suckered in by the global warming thing. We shall see what we shall see. Perhaps the main reason to pay some attention: the enormous projected increase in CO2 emissions from India and China.
Carl
Carl,
I pretty much agree with all you've written.
Last year, we were told that less rain and longer summers, associated with global warming, would turn Britain into a semi-arid wasteland. This year, we're being told that the rain is because of climate change. Note the change in terminolgy! We were told that the next war would be fought over water.
It makes sense to clean up the planet, and stop the polluting, de-forestation, etc. However, our government sees it as a chance to levy so-called green-taxes in addition to those already levied.
So how much should we believe? How many times can they call wolf, and expect to be believed. As long as governments continue to pay the researchers in order that they may regurgitate the same unproven theories, why should we believe?
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed your holiday last week ... and look forward to your next blog.
Best wishes,
Mark
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