Global Warming: Skeptics Unite

Say Global Warming out loud. What do you think of? Is there someone around to respond? What do they have to say on the subject? You would think it’s almost common knowledge that man is responsible for the earth’s current warming trend. Surprisingly, according to the Pew Research Center, people are roughly split right down the middle on the subject, with 41% saying global warming is man-made, and 41% saying it’s either naturally occurring, or there is little evidence to support global warming at all (The Pew Research Center). However, if you were to turn on the nightly news, global warming is always portrayed as fact. There is no uncertainty surrounding the issue, and it is a forgone conclusion that man is responsible for the warming of the globe.

In fact, if one was to research the topic on one’s own and not blindly accept what Brian Williams or Katie Couric say each night, one would quickly realize we’re not all doomed to burn up by rising temperatures or drown from melting ice caps. The evidence presented to uphold the theory of man- made global warming is not grounded in fact as there is no scientific consensus on the subject, there are relatively few melting glaciers in the world, sea-levels have been rising for the past hundred plus years, most deserts are receding, not spreading, species are not going extinct due to warming, and man’s impact is so tiny when compared to the atmosphere as a whole.

First, and most importantly, we need to define global warming. That’s easy enough. Taken directly from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s website, global warming is defined thusly:

“The term Global Warming refers, without any implications for the cause or magnitude, to the observation that the atmosphere near the Earth’s surface is warming. This warming is one of many kinds of climate change that the Earth has gone through in the past and will continue to go through in the future.” (NOAA)

Alright, now we have something to work with. The globe is warming. My argument is not with that. However, the degree to which man is responsible for that warming is not agreed upon. There is no scientific consensus regarding anthropogenic (man-made) global warming. We are constantly told that the vast majority of scientists are in agreement on this subject (Oreskes). Those few who say otherwise are labeled extremists or industry stooges who lie for big business. In fact, those who speak out against global warming face possible loss of grant monies, ostracism, and even threats (Harper). Global warming was first seriously studied in the 1950’s by Roger Revelle (NOW).