David Bellamy or Al Gore?

[James Deuce]

I know who I respect more.

http://www.nzcpr.com/guest57.htm

[janno]

I know who I respect more.

http://www.nzcpr.com/guest57.htm

Thanks for posting that Jim, another side to ponder.

Must admit, I get sick of feeling guilty for everything these days, like not riding a bicycle or wearing natural cotton clothes hand sewn from cloth I've woven myself by candlelight.

Hmmm. Think I'll ponder this one over another slice of banana cake. Gak! Which I baked using electricity!!
Which was made by a coal fired station!!!

I'll just sit still and not move. Might be safest.

[Hitcher]

Not a badly constructed line of logic, for a tree-hugger. Bless him!

[Grahameeboy]

I have always been sceptical of the global warming knee jerkers and David Bellamy is not alone in his view.

A lot of money is made from global warming......go figure.

[Dave Lobster]

I think I'll go outside and rev up a couple of filthy two strokes.. always makes me feel better.

[Steam]

Old Man's Beard Must Go!

[Hitcher]

Old Man's Beard Must Go!

I thought you were a vegetarian?

[Steam]

I thought you were a vegetarian?

*Steam smiles and nods as if he knows what Hitcher is on about*

[Flatcap]

I put Global Warming in the same category as Y2K and Bird Flu. All are unlikely, and I've got more pressing concerns.

Anyway, I could do with a bit of global warming right now - my feet are freezing....

[James Deuce]

Y2k - I started working on my first Y2K project in 1992. Despite what most people think about useless IT workers, we worked our arses off, as well as continuing with standard service provision to stave of many potential disasters.

The one major bank that did nothing - Barclays - lost billions because their credit card transactions failed. They rolled back to 1901 when they had no customers. Billions of debt gone in an instant. Barclays also signally failed to to keep their voice recording and security recording systems up to date and their entire call centre and telephony system as well as physical branch security died at the same time.

There were very few failures to fix problems ahead of time. Y2K was NOT a myth.

[rwh]

Got any more detailed references Jim?

I've seen Al Gore's movie, and now read that article - unfortunately neither addresses the points made by the other very well ...

Currently I'm going with the one that had more info; it made sense when I saw it. Bellamy just says 'it's wrong' without saying much about what's wrong with it.

Richard

[Babelfish]

I just disabled my o2 sensor....OF COURSE I'M WITH HAIRY DAVE!

[Krayy]

I feel a need to go "cwaling fwough the undergwoth"

No faulting the logic, and anyone who wants to get rid of all the ferals has my vote. Too many Westies around for my taste.

[Skyryder]

I know who I respect more.

http://www.nzcpr.com/guest57.htm

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world...869000,00.html


Maybe someone should ask Bellamy what causing this.


There is no doubt that the earth has undergone climate change in the past. What is unprecedented is the speed that it is taking place. It is not about money, carbon credits or other such bullshit that those with heads in the 'bog' claim.

The article quotes Nature magazine. Nothing gets printed in that mag. untill the research has been subject to peer review.

Skyryder

[Sanx]

I've seen Al Gore's movie, and now read that article - unfortunately neither addresses the points made by the other very well ...

Currently I'm going with the one that had more info; it made sense when I saw it. Bellamy just says 'it's wrong' without saying much about what's wrong with it.

Probably 'cos Professor Bellamy had a word count to adhere to. Gore's documentary was absolutely packed with flawed evidence, half-truths and scaremongering. It's hard to debunk them all, as real scientists often don't know the answers. Whilst Gore presented fringe theory as fact, reputable researchers were still trying to figure out what was really happening and why.

But there are some things that are known. In his documentary, Gore presented two graphs; one showing average temperature going back a few thousand years and another graph showing atmospheric CO2 levels going back to the same point. And yes, on the face of it, the graphs seem to bear a striking correlation. That is, until you begin to look a little closer and see that CO2 levels actually lag global temperature by a couple of hundred years. It would appear that atmospheric CO2 levels are dependent on global temperature, not the other round. This actually makes sense, as the ability of water to absorb CO2 is inversely proportional to its temperature.

Gore states that human activity has "dramatically increased" atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. Except, that's bollocks. We haven't. According to artic ice cores, it's gone up about 30% in 200 years. And there's evidence that CO2 levels may have been around today's concentrations between 14,000 and 7,000 years ago.

Archaeological and lieterary evidence plays a part in determining global temperatures over more recent periods. Gore makes much of the rise in temperature over the last 200 years, but conveniently ignores the known fact that a thousand years ago, it was a hell of a lot warmer than it is now. Two hundred years ago, Londoners held fairs and markets on the Thames, as it was frozen solid. But the Romans, who documented everything, never recorded the Thames as freezing. In fact, they shifted the Roman capital of Britain from Colchester to London because of the great year-round river access. As Professor Bellamy states, Romans used to grow grapes in York and it's far too cold to do that now.

Gore talks about the effect of changing climate on wildlife. Pictures of cute polar bears are always useful propaganda tools to use on impressionable children. However, as the world was demonstrably warmer a thousand years ago than it is now, how did the polar bears survive then? Professor Bellamy has spent his entire life working in the fields of ecology, biology and botany. He's campaigned for conservation tirelessly, so his claim that polar bears are doing better now then they did thirty years ago is hardly something he'll have just made up.

There is no doubt the world's climate is changing. As it has done so throughout the world's existence. What is in doubt is the rate at which it is changing and whether it has anything to do with human activity.