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California Academy of Sciences

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Why Do Americans Continue to Deny Climate Change?

03 min 19 sec

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Journalist Mark Hertsgaard argues the United States is the only advanced industrial nation that continues to debate the actuality of climate change. Though climate deniers only represent a minority of the country, Hertsgaard says their megaphone is large. He compares them to the tobacco industry lobbyists who denied smoking caused cancer.
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01 hr 19 min 23 sec

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Previous FORAtv comments:

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Presque_Vu

Posted: 11.15.11, 12:32 PM

So disappointing to see climate deniers in this comment thread. Yes, the earth goes through climatic cycles. Why do you people think that a booming human population has no effect on the process?

neilrieck

Posted: 07.30.11, 07:31 AM

To all climate deniers who like to confuse the issue with a barrage of secondary and tertiary facts, please set aside all information from proxy sources for a moment and only consider recent direct measurements. http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/graphs It is a fact that global temperature has increased 0.9C (1.62F) since 1880 and is still rising despite the fact that our sun is in an unusually quiet period. Direct world-wide measurements only became possible in 1880 due to the formation of the International Meteorological Organization (IMO) in 1873 combined with the manufacture, sale, and export of inexpensive glass thermometers in the mid 1850s. Remembering that the petroleum business doesn't start until the development of the first commercial oil field in Poland in 1853, one can surmise that the explosion of industry which followed is to blame for the CO2 releases we see in the Keeling Curve (measurements only began in 1958). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keeling_curve CO2 release also triggered environmental feedbacks (melting permafrost, melting methane clathrates, melting ice which reduces albedo (causing the surface to change from 90% reflecting to 90% absorbing), forest fires, etc.) which only made things worse. Having the human race grow from under 1 billion in 1850 to nearly 7 billion today did not help.

Eric25001

Posted: 07.27.11, 08:23 PM

@Fora2 Is any evidence enough to make you question AGW? If not; Why not? Why not write about the decline of temperatures between 1940 to 1975 when CO2 levels were going up? How much warmer is it than 1800? As we came out of the 1400 to 1800 era little ice age? Is 8/10 of 1 degree in 200 years what you call AGW? What model predicted in the year 2000 that in ten years the co2 would increase and temperatures not jump?

Atom299

Posted: 05.22.11, 07:45 PM

What a load of old cobblers. These people should be arrested for terrorism. Yes that's right trying to terrorize the public for their own gain. It's a con and and a hoax. Climate change is a natural phenomenon it has always ocurred and always will. So far I haven't heard him come up with a single piece of evidence for his position. Take a look at this youtube video: Global Warming US Cities Getting Warmer /watch?v=F_G_-SdAN04 There's been NO change in average temperature on the US mainland in over 100 years.

Fora2

Posted: 05.18.11, 07:31 PM

You are really full of false disinformation. Average Global Land/Ocean Temperatures have risen 0.6C+ in just the last 35 years since 1975. For more data & info on Temps., CO2 levels, Arctic sea ice, Antarctic & Greenland land ice losses, and global sea level rise, check: NASA/GISS & NOAA http://climate.nasa.gov/keyIndicators/

Fora2

Posted: 05.18.11, 06:51 PM

CRU & NASA, both measure global temps +0.16C per decade the last 35 years. Dr. John Christy, world renown AGW denier at UAH, says average RISE in global temps. for the last 35 years was +0.14C per decade. OMG, a discrepancy of 0.02C per decade? What a scandal. For the latest SCIENTIFIC YouTubes see: Monckton Bunkum Part 1 - Global cooling and melting ice /watch?v=fbW-aHvjOgM&feature=relmfu AND Unwinding "Hide the Decline" /watch?v=tz8Ve6KE-Us&feature=channel_video_title

Fora2

Posted: 05.18.11, 06:31 PM

Australia has a very large COAL industry. The corporate rich now OWN our politicians, both locally & in Washington. The Supreme Court "Citizen's United" decision reversed 100 years of legal precedent giving corporations the right to use stockholder's money to give unlimited campaign donations. Predatory corporations like BP, EXXON, Goldman Sachs, & Halliburton care only about deregulation, dodging taxes, short-term profits, and BIG BONUSES. America has become a corporate Plutocracy, "Of the corporations, by the corporations, and for the corporations"

amsadl

Posted: 05.18.11, 04:09 AM

Unfortunately its not just in U.S.A. Australia has a very vociferous climate change denier lobby. Perhaps the Murdoch press is the common factor.

Eric25001

Posted: 05.09.11, 12:43 AM

Mark is a journalism guy. Do not confuse him with someone who is open minded or understands math, science, and history. No need to fear! Read about the Eemian 130,000 - 114,000 before present Maybe the Holocene climatic optimum 9,000 - 5,000 Before Present and let us not forget the medieval warm period about 1,000 years ago! If you think you were hoaxed or hoodwinked by CO2 fear-mongers! Forget about it! Move on. That's right move on-- Temperatures and sea levels have been higher and have been lower. It has happened before and it will happen again. By the way when was the sea level and temperature perfect? What year, what decade? What century? Remember Ben Franklin told us that a person convinced against their will was as if not convinced at all so==== MOVE ON Lesson learned about Hoax and fear-mongers! Unless you attribute the Eemian, Holocene, Medieval warm period, and the period from 1940 to 1970 when CO2 went up and temperatures dropped etcetera etcetera to a vast right wing conspiracy to test your belief and faith in Al and the AGW model of the universe!

ferd berple

Posted: 05.07.11, 12:01 PM

every 30 years the earth switches from warming to cooling and back. we had cooling from 1940 to 1970 and the worry then was ice ages. now we had warming from 1970 to 2000 and the worry was CO2. we are now started cooling as can be seen by the recent winters. the problem for many young people is that have not lived though the full 60 year climate cycle. they can be manipulated using fear to part with their future paychecks in the name of saving the planet. the author in this case has been manipulated by fear of his daughter's future without understanding that in the US the killer is cold and poverty.

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