global warming

The Real Global Warming Disaster: Is the Obsession with "Climate Change" Turning Out to Be the Most Costly Scientific Blunder in History?
$29.95
Booker focuses his attention on the mother of all environmental scares: global warming. This original book considers one of the most extraordinary scientific and political stories of our time: how in the 1980s a handful of scientists came to believe that mankind faced catastrophe from runaway global warming, and how today this has persuaded politicians to land us with what promises to be the biggest bill in history. Christopher Booker interweaves the science of global warming with that of its growing political consequences, showing how just when the politicians are threatening to change our Western way of life beyond recognition, the scientific evidence behind the global warming theory is being challenged like never before. The book exposes the myth that the global warming theory is supported by a 'consensus of the world's top climate scientists'. It shows how the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is run by a small group of 'global warming' zealots, who have repeatedly rigged evidence to support their theory. But the politicians, pushed by the media, have so fallen for its propaganda that, short of dramatic change, our Western world now faces an unprecedented disaster.

Global Warming: The Complete Briefing
$59.00
As readers of my reviews know, I am skeptical about the theory that civilization is in danger because CO2 emissions are causing catastrophic levels of global warming. Of the books that I have read, the skeptical books are of higher quality than the pro-global warming books. For some time, I have been looking for a solid statement of the science that supports the Al Gore theory.

At first, this book looked like it provided the science that Gore does not. John Houghton is a qualified scientist, and he knows this field. The book is filled with cool charts, graphs and photos. It contains a great deal of information. It is grounded in the scientific literature.

Despite this, however, this book is not science. It is a "briefing" in the sense that lawyers use the word "briefs." It is a sustained argument for one point of view. It never takes the other side seriously. It is an advocacy piece.

Let us be clear what the argument is about. No one disputes that a lot of CO2 is going into the air. No one disputes that CO2 is a greenhouse gas. The questions are: (1) is the globe, in fact, warming; and (2) if so, is this warming caused by CO2?

Beneath all of the charts, graphs and photos, Houghton has two pieces of evidence, and two pieces of evidence only, for the Al Gore theory. First, global temperature rose from 1970 to 2000. Second, scientists have constructed computer models which suggest that, if CO2 levels keep rising, the globe will get warmer. That is it; that is ALL the evidence that Houghton has.

The rise in temperature from 1970 to 2000 is suggestive, but, in itself, proves little. Temperature fell from 1940 to 1970. Temperature has stayed about the same since 2000. In short, the trend lines are all over the place. There is, it is true, a long-term rise in temperature since the 19th century, but given that the 19th century was the end of a cooling period -- called the "Little Ice Age" -- one would expect temperature to rise since then.

As for the computer models, Houghton makes no effort to prove that they work. Instead, he simply asserts that they work. He says, "I am a big deal scientist. I say the models work. Accept it."

This is an appeal to authority. This is not an appeal to reason. Here is what an appeal to reason would look like. If someone like Houghton seriously wanted to persuade a non-believer of the accuracy of the computer models, he would give us examples of the models working. For example, take one of the models, as it exists today. Feed into it raw data from the 1980s. See if it is able to predict the weather of the 1990s. The advantage of this approach is that, since we know what happened in the 1990s, such an approach tests whether the model actually works or not. If the model can accurately "predict" the past, then the model has some credibility

There are other ways to show that the models work. Houghton uses none of them. I assume that, if he had any arguments like these, he would use them. He is, after all, an advocate. I trust him to find all of the arguments for his position. If he has nothing to show that the models work, except pounding on his chest and telling us to believe them, then I assume there is no evidence that the models work.

Cool It: The Skeptical Environmentalist's Guide to Global Warming (Vintage)
$14.95
I started reading this book thinking I'd get a few chuckles over the manipulations of fact and common-sense that clearly show the need for drastic action today to curb greenhouse gas emissions. What I got instead was a thoughtful dissection of the issue that left me questioning many of my own assumptions. I now find myself asking far more questions when reading magazine articles or news stories on this issue. If you're serious about wanting to do the right thing for our planet and the children we bring forth to inhabit it, this is a must-read. Lomborg makes a strong case that the feel-good policies so popular today may actually harm both our planet and its people over the long run. His book hasn't changed my mind or commitment about environmental issues, but rather, it broadened my understanding of other effective ways to tackle the challenges of climate change.

The Deniers: The World Renowned Scientists Who Stood Up Against Global Warming Hysteria, Political Persecution, and Fraud**And those who are too fearful to do so
$27.95
Deniers is so fun to read. Solomon is an environmentalist himself so he shows no animosity towards the arena. He has so much evidence that I used the book as a reference for my state's US senators in a letter I sent them imploring them not to vote for the Cap and Trade Bill.....do you believe in miracles?