Why Politicians Need Science
Remember: Before the triumph of science, we burned witches at the stake and thought that kings ruled by divine right.
By MICHAEL SHERMER, Politico.com
April 04, 2015
Sen. Ted Cruz, who recently announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential ticket, thinks, like many conservatives, global warming isn’t happening. As he said on Seth Meyers’ talk show on March 16, “Satellite data demonstrate for the last 17 years there’s been zero warming, none whatsoever.”
It’s no surprise that Cruz picked that figure: 17 years ago was 1998, an “El Nino” year, when global temperatures were artificially elevated after which they returned to their normal gradually increasing rate. When you look at all the data published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (not just the cherry-picked data that fits neatly into a political ideology), the long-term increase in global temperatures is unmistakable.
I’m not saying that liberals don’t have their own science problem. They have no trouble railing against GMOs and nuclear power, and they ignore the obvious benefits of fossil fuels to pull impoverished people into the age of prosperity (burning cow pies in makeshift fireplaces in mud huts is not an efficient means of heating homes or producing wealth). Don’t even get me started on “anti-vaxxers,” a vocal and determined group that seems to make up a small minority in both parties.
The Founding Fathers would be ashamed.
(More here.)
By MICHAEL SHERMER, Politico.com
April 04, 2015
Sen. Ted Cruz, who recently announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential ticket, thinks, like many conservatives, global warming isn’t happening. As he said on Seth Meyers’ talk show on March 16, “Satellite data demonstrate for the last 17 years there’s been zero warming, none whatsoever.”
It’s no surprise that Cruz picked that figure: 17 years ago was 1998, an “El Nino” year, when global temperatures were artificially elevated after which they returned to their normal gradually increasing rate. When you look at all the data published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (not just the cherry-picked data that fits neatly into a political ideology), the long-term increase in global temperatures is unmistakable.
I’m not saying that liberals don’t have their own science problem. They have no trouble railing against GMOs and nuclear power, and they ignore the obvious benefits of fossil fuels to pull impoverished people into the age of prosperity (burning cow pies in makeshift fireplaces in mud huts is not an efficient means of heating homes or producing wealth). Don’t even get me started on “anti-vaxxers,” a vocal and determined group that seems to make up a small minority in both parties.
The Founding Fathers would be ashamed.
(More here.)
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