Will Climate Get Some Respect Now? Sorry, The Answer's Unclear
For those of you who might have missed it, here’s Nicholas Kristof’s op-ed on climate change in yesterday’s New York Times. Referring to the take-away from Hurricane Sandy, the twice-Pulizer winning journalist calls it Will Climate Get Some Respect Now?
Personally, I’m not sure how to answer that question. If Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney can gain political traction by saying of President Obama: “This has not been Mr. Oil or Mr. Gas or Mr. Coal,” it strikes me that we’re about a million miles from real leadership with respect to a progressive energy policy.
Seems unlikely. Satellite pictures and measurements of Greenland, Arctic and Antartic ice coverage and breakup are hardly qualitative assessments, and yet the denying crowd is quite comfortable with their position. Personal opinion is the 21st century take on the definition of knowledge.