Sometimes I wonder whether the news editors in the media “join the dots”, to coin a phrase. Scanning my Bloomberg machine this morning (part of my day job), this headline was prominent:
Chicago’s Snowiest Winter Since 1979 Depletes Budget
Then, on the same Bloomberg front page, is this:
Gore Invests $35 Million for Hedge Funds With EBay Billionaire
Gore has, of course, made himself a mint and also burnished his Green credentials with his film, An Inconvenient Truth, a film that has had great influence in encouraging the idea that the Earth is at serious risk from man-made global warming, although others remain to be convinced. Fair play to Gore: if he has managed to make a lot of cash by producing a film and persuaded enough paying customers to see it, well who am I, as an ardent capitalist, to complain? If he wants to invest in those mysterious-sounding things called hedge funds, even better (they are not all that bizarre, by the way, just a form of investment fund with a few tricks). But if the city of Chicago is running short of cash to pay for all the snow clearance, maybe the councillors should phone up Al and ask for a donation. After all, the current freezing weather in so many places must be er, Man’s fault, right?
Also on Bloomberg……..
Sydney’s Coolest Summer in 50 Years Leaves Empty Cafes, Gloom
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=ae6GlcvBtldY&refer=home
Its called ‘Global Cooling’…. for those not paying attention…….
I believe more snow suggests a warming climate.
Then again, I also believe Al Gore is a whore.
Well, Ham. We’ve have totally blown away our all time snowfall record. We’ve topped 8 feet for the year and we’re not done yet. And we’ve have also had the most consistently cold winter I recall. It started early and hasn’t ended yet.
On March 7 of 2000, we hit a high of 70F. On March 7 of 2008 we have a forecast high of 16F. Tonight is forecast for -6F. It appears that getting Gore out of Washington reduced the biggest source of hot air on the planet.
Of course the winter needs to be cold (though not too cold) for it to snow, but all that extra moisture has to get into the air first, a process which requires warmer temperatures.
It says nothing regarding its cause, but more snow is typically evidence of warming air.
Not when you have a commensurate drop in rain fall. Two things this winter, less rain, more snow. Simple physics says it is colder when it precipitates. Our average high for today should be around 40. Trust me, it is colder here. A lot colder.
If you know my past comments, you know I have never denied and have in fact provided evidence for a 150 year at least global warming trend. But I have always doubted that it was anthropogenic. I even suspect that our activities have actually influenced the environment in the direction of global cooling. I personally think that the sun is the only significant factor. The sun was running hot, now it is running cold.
And trust me, where I live I can absolutely assure you, we have had a very cold winter. And the absolute silence on the temperature trends is interesting. I watch my weather on a station that makes a big deal about global warming in their news, community interest and editorial content. But the meteorologists have been totally mum on the issue. Curious, that.
Also, Sydney and Wisconsin are far enough to suggest a global trend. They are anecdotal, true. So where are the anecdotal record warmth places on the planet this year to counterbalance them. (That last question is a serious one. I presume even if there is a scientifically valid cooling measured for this year, that there must still be a number of places that are excessively hot. And the AGW campaign being what it is, I would expect them to be well discussed.)
“well who am I, as an ardent capitalist, to complain?”
Well how about because he’s made his money by fraud? That’s not capitalism, is it?
It’s only fraud if the audience believes it… fiction isn’t fraud, it’s just fiction. I’m sure his audiences are getting something for their entertainment dollar. (not from me I hasten to add)
One could argue it’s SF, a giant “what if” scenario. I’d put Al Gore in the same category as Orson Wells and the Martian invasion thing… or more recently Jerry Springer as another example of a politician getting rich (er) by turning entertainer and working the “reality” beat.
No, it’s fraud if you try to convince the audience that it’s true, when it isn’t.
IT pains me to report this, in view of my opinion of Algore (Rush Limbaugh”s label), but I believe Gore assigned all proceeds from his “Book” and the “Film” to the “Foundation” (name slips me).
He does the Clinton et al turns on the lecture circuit for more $$ than I would ever contribute to, given I hit “mute” when he or WJC come on (and have now added HRC and BHO).
Proof one can do good AFTER doing well!
First things first and what is always first with a politico?
No, it’s fraud if you try to convince the audience that it’s true, when it isn’t.
OK, I retract that remark, but I’m still not convinced that mere lying or making broad statements of unsupported opinion, especially in an art form like film (or music, or literature) constitutes fraud… while I have a low opinion of Mr. Gore, do you think it’s likely that he knows what he is saying to be false?
I was mostly being facetious earlier, but there actually *is* a question of whether opinion or advocacy can be considered fraud… and it’s an important issue when one considers that many people think of fraud as one of the legitimate restrictions on free speech.
Another point is did he use his mistaken/false/falsified statements to his direct gain? His customers did, indeed, get an entertainment experience. Did he profit by representing it as true? Did he know it to be false? Can we show that A. it was false, and B. he knew it to be false? Is there a negligence standard? I dunno, not a lawyer and all that. What about Dan Rather? Was that situation fraud?
I guess it sounds like a cop out, but I don’t claim to know the answers, I just find the questions sort of interesting.
Gore’s film is presented as documentary, not fiction, so at least theoretically, it is not supposed to entertain, but to educate. As to whether he knows his “scientific” claims to be false, I suspect the worst, and that is: he had never given it a second thought, because he doesn’t really care. He simply saw a bandwagon that travels in the same direction he does, although not necessarily for the same purpose.
He surely profited, also got himself a Nobel Prize.
He also sincerely, and with a deep degree of certainty believes it to be the truth. I do not doubt the sincerity of his religious beliefs.
But this is not fraud.
When one preaches a religious sermon no one accuses the preacher of fraud.
It is also fraud when your films shill for your carbon offset company.Al Gore is no better than those who used to sell bits of the real Cross,or amulets to ward off plague.
I do. I doubt them profoundly.
Ian B, a question I would put to you is is how do you know that Al Gore consciously lied in the making of the documentary. I profoundly disagree with Gore; I think it is a joke that his scare-story of a film is treated with a sort of reverence, but I don’t think he wakes up every morning smiling to himself at having conned the film-going public into paying for a dishonest film.
The truth is that the Green movement is largely sincere. That does not make it any less dangerous, of course. In some ways it would be more comforting if Gore was corrupt and a liar. The problem is that he and his allies have the fervour of believers.
In any event, he made the film; no-one was forced to pay for it. That is why I, as a supporter of free enterprise, have no quarrel with the money he has made; but at the same time I will lose no opportunity to take the piss out of the Al Gores of this world when it comes to pointing out the mistakes in their theories.