Happening in Antarctica : Climate terror !

Some scientists have used climate scares to attempt to increase both their ties to politicians and to increase their project funding. Are we fooled? What should be done about this practice?

1. A scientist makes a claim : The sky might be falling.
2. A scientist gives an informative talk: Skies have fallen and will again.
3. Finally a scientist makes a request : Please increase my funding so I can study whether or not the sky is falling.

These tactics had been more friendly in the past, but after 9/11 they have taken on a more sinister tone that borders on fraud; scientists are making false claims to frighten people. Sometimes these people are barely credible, but the public assumes they know what they are talking about.

The latest case in point is reported in the current issue of science (A Closer Look at the IPCC Report, Science Jan 25, 2008, pg. 409-10). Concern on the part of some climatologists is about whether Antarctica is melting or not. Richard Alley of Penn State gave a talk to the IPCC indicating a concern and knowledge about Antarctic glaciers and ice sheets. His input reinforced the conclusions of the IPCC. He was nodding agreement in France. Now he is saying he needs to study more to know what the situation actually is. He needs to acquire ice cores and look at the paleoclimate in Antarctica. So there is an existing crisis - it may be too late - but we will just have to wait for Alley to do his work. I wonder if Alley is working on the weekends, rushing to understand. Actually I haver never known him to work on a weekend or after 4 PM. He needs to train himself on how to examine ice cores as a start.

The problem here according to the scientists, is Congress. They have held up incremental funding in 2007. They have had to get along at 2006 funding levels which is bollixing everything. It is Rep. John Dingle's fault, for being an enemy to science by asking questions. Actually Congress has been remiss for several decades in interrogating scientists about spurious results, or complete lack of results despite ever increasing funding. They have practically turned NSF into a social welfare system.

Another such case among many is the CFC scare. CFC's were destroying the ozone over the earth and life might be destroyed. So far, we have survived. Is it because there was a movement started to curtail the use of CFC's? In hindsight, the scientists that created the scare say that the value in making their claims was at least partly because of the induced political movement. As to whether or not CFC's are responsible for the ozone hole is a matter of debate however. The same scientists that made the initial claims are still studying the situation, and probably require more funding. The hole seems to be increasing without the addition of CFC's. Conclusion : Third worlders possibly stocked up on spray cans of deodorant.

Since 1980 or so, people noticed there was funding for climate research when other sources of funding has dried up. More and more they flocked in to this arena. Right from the beginning the problem of the climate was linked to the problem of clouds. Who could predict them? What causes them? They have a paramount role in determining surface temperatures - yet no climate model took them into account because they had not developed any methods to deal with them. This is still the case ! There is no sense in delving into every idea, no matter how inconsequential when this big problem is sitting there like the Sphinx in Egypt.

Now, every academician, his uncle, cousin, nephew and niece are in on the climate problem. There are so many that soon we shall soon have a climate crisis ! We have "climatologists" with airplane tickets, two assisting undergraduates, a ruler, a thermometer, some sticks and cellophane, and they are doing this research stuff in cold regions. Wow! Read my lips. Cut my taxes! Arrest the instigators of this. They are bad for science, bad for the economy, and their forays are bad for the environment. Did you know that feeding penguins has resulted in the penguins contracting salmonella? These people should get a honest job.

Some people have called them eco-terrorists. There is just one problem with that. They do not care about the environment. If they did, they would do real science. I was fooled for a time also, believing they wanted to maintain a clean world. In fact, many of these people are eco-slobs, and they do not even pack it out. Some are affiliated with foreign groups and governments. They are no friend of the polar bear, believe me. Just look at McMurdo if you would like to see how they regard the environment. The amount of junk left out on the ice for it to melt into the bay around McMurdo, is like an iceberg made out of garbage - you only see the tip.

Whatever happened to responsible scientists? They did studies, they reached a consensus, and they reported their results and informed the politicians and the public. Today they start by announcing a result and then repeatedly demand funding to do research. Is this not "Feax Science" ? When does it get labeled as a racket punishable by RICO laws? They are a disservice to their country and they block talented individuals from investigating the way it really is, if anyone cares about that.

Please Dr Feax, do not intimidate us, hurt us or our science programs, and stop ripping us off !