A Question for all you Global Warming skeptics

[AstylahAthrys]

I believe that the Earth is going through a climate change, but I don't think me bringing my own bag to the store to not use a plastic one is going to change a damn thing. I'm all for being environmentally conscious, but not on the terms of preventing global warming. The Earth will do what it wants, nothing we do can change that.

Also, it's the middle of April and I just got hit with the biggest blizzard of the year. I'm a bit skeptical that the planet is dangerously heating up at all.

 

[Carlston]

Sorry 100 years isn't even a micro second to the world in it's billions of years.
A downed 7000 year old redwood rings were examined and the world's weather was shown to get warm, cold, wet, dry and it fluctuates.

Basically, scientists who don't cry the sky is falling lose their jobs.

In the 70's it was global cooling, Time Magazine had glaciers in New York bay, then global warming, now "climate change" when it cools.

Which means hot in the summer, cold in the winter...

That's not the planet in peril that called "Seasons"

So you know I'm all against waste, pollution. But the warming/cooling scam has to end. If you point out their full of it they hide behind you hate the planet and wanna see everyone dead.

But honestly... if you look at the entire "Green company" equation it has nothing to do with being eco friendly, but more donating money to the people who label you green as "clean up money" and clean up they do...if you don't pay my extortion money we give you a bad rap in the public eye...really?

 

[TheRealCJ]

Believe me, I'm no greenpeace nut. I spend most of my free time either playing videogames or destroying bushland in a big diesel fourbie.

Ahaha never said you were a yuppie either...though I did rant about them somewhat.

My problem is all the people who think along the lines of "Global warming = Myth, so there is absolutely no reason to research renewable fuels, environmentally sound alternatives to current systems, or any forward thinking whatsoever"

I may believe Global Warming is a load of yuppie bullshit but I'm all for new fuels.


For example, diesels will burn just about anything. Including their own oil. So fuel them off plant oils, of which plenty is just discarded. Gasoline engines, meanwhile, will run happily on H2 gas, so all you have to do is pop an H2 canister where the fuel tank used to be, a new H2-safe fuel system, re-map the ECU, and you're done. On the power generation front, nuclear and hydroelectric plants produce no gaseous emissions whatsoever. They're as clean as we have from the 'feasible' bucket, though that doesn't stop people from yammering on about pipe-dreams.

Oh, and for the record, the Prius is a terrible car. Perhaps in the US where everything is petrol, but here, a decently-tuned diesel will result in less emissions a much higher mileage.

Oh they're terrible cars here, too. My 25 year old Ford truck is greener than a Prius could ever hope to be. It doesn't pollute Canada(nickel for the batteries), and it doesn't pollute the atmosphere(All the times it's sent 'round the world en-route to becoming a battery)(And I do keep it tuned properly and with a fitted catalyst, the only thing coming out the back is harmless plant food. Aka CO2), nor does my Ford pollute when that battery is fried(Recycling a Prius battery makes WAY more pollution than recycling a bog standard 500cca lead acid one). On top of that it's absolutely hideous, soft, weak-kneed, has no redeeming soul or passion, can't handle snow and ice properly(Half the time they won't move at all, lol cold battery), can't even handle dry roads, and are driven by the most obnoxious, smug motherfuckers to ever grace American highways.

In short, Prius, you're outdone at your own game by your arch nemesis. Check mate, Toyota!

I honestly think it's a shame that Americans have yet to adopt diesel as a more mainstream fuel.

 

[Dana22]

All of them happened before we were here and all of them happened due to massive climate change.

Yes, because NATURAL climate change is cyclical.

Humans do not affect the climate.​

Yes, we do.

The Earth will cool and warm long, long after we go extinct and the cycle of life and death will be unaffected. The hippies are wrong. The science is right.

You are the hippie, you do not understood the science.

Humans affect the natural amplitude of climate change, thus making change happen faster then it would naturally. Obviously.

 

[GWarface]

Sure, global warming is real.. A more fitting name would be "solar system warming" since its the whole solar system that is warming up, even melting some of the ice moons of.. Jupiter as far as i remember..

So to sum it up, global warming is real, but WE ARE NOT THE REASON! Is a solar cycle.. It heats up, it cools down, heats up, cools down etc etc..

And since its a cycle that we havent got anything to do with, i pity the fools that thinks we can actually make a difference..

Sure, dont chug beer-cans and bubblegum paper around in nature.. Its a pretty good rule.. But dont think it will cool down the entire solar system...

 

[commodorejohn]

I'm not so much a "skeptic" in the unfortunately-common sense of "I fervently disbelieve in global warming, period." Where I fall on this is, I recognize that it might be a thing, but I'm seeing way more of a. Visionaries With Plans trying to use the fear of "oh my God you guys we're going to wreck the planet" to sell people on their plans (or products, or services) and b. bleeding hearts who want to loudly proclaim how Truly Concerned they are so that everybody will applaud them for their Social Consciousness and they can rest secure in their smug superiority over the masses than I am c. people who seem genuinely concerned about the issue and have actually considered plans of action other than "buy everything that labels itself as 'green' and vote for anybody who supports emissions caps on cars" by, say, weighing their probably effectiveness and practicality. If I meet someone who has something intelligent to say about the issue and isn't obviously trying to scare me into doing whatever they say or lord their Eco-Righteousness over me, I might give them a listen, but that has yet to happen.

 

[Zaik]

In my opinion "Global Warming", currently renamed Climate Change post-Climategate, is just one of those silly political stances people take. Kind of like abortion, prayer in school, gun control, etc.

Is it possible? Absolutely possible. I don't think anyone has an objective view on it anymore though. It's entirely devolved into doomsayers and naysayers.

Even assuming all the leaked emails referencing things like re-adjusting charts because they don't show "the right info" and that "nature trick" were all actually legit(http://bishophill.squarespace.com/blog/2009/11/20/climate-cuttings-33.html), you still run into the issue of these guys intentionally manipulating how the scientific community views anyone who disagrees with them, not because of the method they come to their conclusions, but just because they disagree.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

Seriously though plastic bags are part of the problem root. It's the paper ones that are environmentally friendly.

Are you sure on that?

100% sure?

Or is that just what the media are telling you?

What's the global costing between a plastic and a paper bag?

Or are you just going on what's been said?

That's the bit I want to underline. How can you be sure this isn't an elaborate smokescreen?

We need to stop thinking "I am man, everything else can go hang unless it benefits me directly and immediately".

Guy tried that about 2000 years ago. Got nailed to a tree for it.

 

[Stammer]

But my question is thus: You may not believe it's truly happening, but why are you so against preventative measures to stop it happening in the future? Surely you'd agree that to stop it from happening 100 years from now, which is entirely plausible, there should be some preventative measures taken now.

I've got people here in Australia, prominent people, people in Government, saying things along the lines of "Global Warming has not been proven as fact, so just keep right on doing exactly what you're doing now, because it's not causing immediate and noticeable damage."

That seems unnecessarily reckless to me. After all, doesn't the old idiom read "A stitch in time saves nine"?

My thoughts on the matter are that anything that human beings contribute towards global warming is negligible in the grand scheme of things. Every volcano that erupts spews more greenhouse gases than the human race has thrown skyward since history. And so many other fluctuations have a much larger effect than anything humans can do. When Betelgeuse's supernova hits earth (within 100 years), we'll essentially have two suns for two weeks, increasing the earth's temperature by more than what the earth has seen for probably tens of thousands of years.

Though I do still think that it's important to be conscious of our planet's well-being. Even if human beings have only a small impact, anything counts so I DO think that having some kind of care doesn't hurt. I don't drive a hybrid but I also don't start my car and let it idle for half an hour before I get into it.

 

[Matty_J-]

Here, in Scotland, we just had one of the coldest winters in quite awhile. I would almost welcome Global Warming. But we aren't causing Global Warming and even if we were what can we do about it? China is one of the biggest CO2 producers in the world today. Do you think they give a shit about their 'Carbon footprint'?

 

[Kyle Meadows]

The earth has been here for BILLIONS of years. Six major evolutionary extinction events have happened since life began, mostly due to an a drastic alteration in climate. How are human beings actually self centered enough to think that we actually have an effect on the planet's natural cycles? If anything, we've merely sped up the change by inputting more carbon dioxide. But we did not cause it, and the fact is that there are forest fires, methane gas bubbles from the ocean (which release only methane, another greenhouse gas), and volcanic eruptions among various other assorted events that release massive amounts of carbon dioxide. Does anyone here remember the "new ice age" in the 70s? The theory is founded upon and perpetuated by arrogance.

 

[jonyboy13]

There have been 6 major extinctions wherein the majority of the Earth's life died that we humans know of. All of them happened before we were here and all of them happened due to massive climate change. The ice age was the most recent.

Humans do not affect the climate.​

The Earth will cool and warm long, long after we go extinct and the cycle of life and death will be unaffected.

The hippies are wrong. The science is right.

That.
Any of you can look up researches that been made by checking the climate in hundreds and thousands of years ago and it changed drastically both warmer and cooler. Humans don't and won't change global warming.

OP:
'Your' global warming is made by fear mongers.

 

[artanis_neravar]

There have been 6 major extinctions wherein the majority of the Earth's life died that we humans know of. All of them happened before we were here and all of them happened due to massive climate change. The ice age was the most recent.

Humans do not affect the climate.​

The Earth will cool and warm long, long after we go extinct and the cycle of life and death will be unaffected.

The hippies are wrong. The science is right.

Of course! Because No one's EVER offered any SCIENTIFIC evidence of Global Warming!
I suppose you think that hole in the ozone layer just willed itself into existence.

yes

CFCs are not naturally occurring compounds.
... are they? =/

I was being a dick i had a long drawn out response to that but realized that i didn't want to type it so i figure "yes" would get a rise out of people

 

[Billska]

Everyone needs to watch "an inconvenient truth" to at least get a basic understanding on climate change before commenting on climate change.

In short:
Climate change is normal.
Humans have evolved technologically so fast that our technology and it's power source is inefficient at sustaining itself.
Due to the inefficiency of our tech we are causing more harm than good to the planet, which in turn speeds up the climate change process.

 

[radarbsm]

I think that all the recent extreme weather is the climate patterns realigning them selves to find where they will be for a while.

This is from an area that has just had the biggest tornado outbreak ever in April last sunday, then one of the biggest snowstorms yesterday, still snowing today, and 3 out of the last 5 snowiest winters happen in the last 4 years. Oh and next week it is suppose to be 70F degrees and/or 21C degrees.

 

[Sampler]

I don't believe in man made global climate change - I've read too much of the science which proves otherwise - one thing I have noted is that a lot of the proponents of the idea aren't scientists but claim "the science" (like it's the word of god) backs them up - when really it's a crappy biased study which should hardly be referred to as science and the real science which is properly carried out* disproves it.

I think the biggest thing here Richard Attenborough - yeah Richard fucking Attenborough, the man's the shit when it comes to nature and when recently interviewed on the BBC (who have a big green bee in their bonnet) was asked what he thought of climate change, his response "I'm not overly convinced" (like a fucking boss) and the host was "and quickly moving on". I'd love to have been taping that when I saw it to roll it out.

Now I'm not saying it's the be all and end all, just a great example.

So why am I against "a stitch in time" and all - because it costs me a lot of fucking money. Electrikery prices in the UK have soared as companies are obliged to pay ridiculous feed-in tarrifs to "green initiatives" such as windfarms - such as the one in the south east which used more electricity than it generated in Q4 last year due to de-icing and has produced some 12% of the total capacity it was rated at on it's best day. Windfarms that use more CO2 to produce than they offset in generation over an expected lifecycle. Windfarms which have proven to destroy wildlife such as birds and bats increasing pest problems of farmers and the use of pesticides.

All of this will have no effect on an issue that doesn't exist so the new world puritans can not only flagellate themselves but the rest of us too.

I have no issue with your beliefs and feel you should be free to believe whatever makes you happy - unless it affects me then you can straight get the fuck out.

 

[AMAZED]

Right now the earth is heating up but it is due to an event called the roman warming period it has happened throughout time and will probably continue happening. As far as the future is concerned right now the alternative energy sources are not yielding adequate amounts of power, with some more work they may begin to but for now we need fossil fuels, and we (america) could supply the energy we need for ourselves and focus our money being spent buying oil from other countries and move it to R and D for renewable resources but we don't.

 

[Jabberwock King]

Some people like to complain about the "Re-branding" of the subject. The term climate change is more popular and useful to academia because global warming is somewhat of a misnomer. While the obvious conclusion that CO2 absorbs and insulates more heat is true, this increase can roll into other effects that do not include a rise in temperature. Among predicted problems are: drought, increased hurricane activity, collapse of numerous ecosystems, an extremely less dramatic stoppage of the North Atlantic current than what was seen in "The Day After Tomorrow", along with many other predicted problems.

 

[artanis_neravar]

There have been 6 major extinctions wherein the majority of the Earth's life died that we humans know of. All of them happened before we were here and all of them happened due to massive climate change. The ice age was the most recent.

Humans do not affect the climate.​

The Earth will cool and warm long, long after we go extinct and the cycle of life and death will be unaffected.

The hippies are wrong. The science is right.

Of course! Because No one's EVER offered any SCIENTIFIC evidence of Global Warming!
I suppose you think that hole in the ozone layer just willed itself into existence.

yes

CFCs are not naturally occurring compounds.
... are they? =/

I was being a dick i had a long drawn out response to that but realized that i didn't want to type it so i figure "yes" would get a rise out of people

I actually thought it was kinda funny.
just... "Yes"

Oh good I feel I've done my duty for today then (no sarcasm intended)

 

[Littaly]

This is probably the most frustrating debate on earth right now. It's not a social cause, it's not about a the philosophy of right or wrong or anything even remotely opinion based, it's about science. There is a right and a wrong answer, why the hell haven't we made up our mind on it yet?!

- Golbal warming is caused by man! Science says so!
- It's totally not! Your science is phony, real science says it's just a phase!
- No, your science is wrong!

People keep referring to studies and scientists, but I never see any sources, never any explanations. Do people even know what they're talking about when they refer to studies and science or do they just believe what they want and points to whatever they find that supports it?