Krugman (NYT) "Swift Boating the Planet"

[underpants]

http://64.226.238.78/PA/pk/pk207.shtml

A brief segment in "An Inconvenient Truth" shows Senator Al Gore questioning James Hansen, a climatologist at NASA, during a 1989 hearing. But the movie doesn't give you much context, or tell you what happened to Dr. Hansen later.

Dr. Hansen was one of the first climate scientists to say publicly that global warming was under way. In 1988, he made headlines with Senate testimony in which he declared that "the greenhouse effect has been detected, and it is changing our climate now." When he testified again the following year, officials in the first Bush administration altered his prepared statement to downplay the threat. Mr. Gore's movie shows the moment when the administration's tampering was revealed.

But soon after Dr. Hansen's 1988 testimony, energy companies began a campaign to create doubt about global warming, in spite of the increasingly overwhelming evidence. And in the late 1990's, climate skeptics began a smear campaign against Dr. Hansen himself.

In fact, the chart Dr. Michaels showed was a fraud — that is, it wasn't what Dr. Hansen actually predicted. The original paper showed a range of possibilities, and the actual rise in temperature has fallen squarely in the middle of that range. So how did Dr. Michaels make it seem as if Dr. Hansen's prediction was wildly off? Why, he erased all the lower curves, leaving only the curve that the original paper described as being "on the high side of reality."

[redqueen]

1. *sigh*

recommended

[Doctor_J]

5. Hey, redqueen. Please weigh in on my thread

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=103&topic_id=214069&mesg_id=214069

You're a very optimistic sort. Go read my thread and post something that gets me off the ledge.

[immoderate]

2. K&R Krugman turns on the lights!

--IMM

[IndyOp]

3. You're going to have to get tougher. Call LIARS what they are.

Go Paul Krugman!

And it's a warning for Mr. Gore and others who hope to turn global warming into a real political issue: you're going to have to get tougher, because the other side doesn't play by any known rules.

<snip>

Even now, Dr. Hansen seems reluctant to say the obvious. "Is this treading close to scientific fraud?" he recently asked about Dr. Michaels's smear. The answer is no: it isn't "treading close," it's fraud pure and simple.

Now, Dr. Hansen isn't running for office. But Mr. Gore might be, and even if he isn't, he hopes to promote global warming as a political issue. And if he wants to do that, he and those on his side will have to learn to call liars what they are.

[glitch]

4. Thank you for this link. K & R nt

[tex-wyo-dem]

6. What this boils down to is...

a few elitists have systematically prevented the public from learning the truth and put the entire planet at risk to line their bloated bank accounts beyond reason.

These bastards have absolutely no conscience.

[Joanne98]

11. We should seize their assets.

[geardaddy]

7. I feel sick

[blossomstar]

8. Also feeling sick..... this stinks to high heaven!

but what else is new?

[NMDemDist2]

9. Welcome to DU geardaddy!

:hi:

[underpants]

10. Welcome-yes they have been this organized for a long time (Ike quote)

Now it is true that I believe this country is following a dangerous trend when it permits too great a degree of centralization of governmental functions. I oppose this--in some instances the fight is a rather desperate one. But to attain any success it is quite clear that the Federal government cannot avoid or escape responsibilities which the mass of the people firmly believe should be undertaken by it. The political processes of our country are such that if a rule of reason is not applied in this effort, we will lose everything--even to a possible and drastic change in the Constitution. This is what I mean by my constant insistence upon "moderation" in government. Should any political party attempt to abolish social security, unemployment insurance, and eliminate labor laws and farm programs, you would not hear of that party again in our political history. There is a tiny splinter group, of course, that believes you can do these things. Among them are H. L. Hunt (you possibly know his background), a few other Texas oil millionaires, and an occasional politician or business man from other areas. Their number is negligible and they are stupid.

http://www.snopes.com/politics/quotes/ike.asp