Ted Cruz: Just Plain Wrong

When Ted Cruz turned a senate hearing into his own climate denier circus, he didn’t just emphasize lower-troposphere temperature data — he deliberately ignored every other bit of climate data that exists. Way to go, Ted.

Voice of Reason

That wouldn’t be the voice of Ted Cruz. As chair of the senate subcommittee on Space, Science, and Competitiveness, he held a hearing titled “Data or Dogma? Promoting Open Inquiry in the Debate over the Magnitude of Human Impact on Earth’s Climate.” What’s blatantly obvious is that his only purpose was to deny climate science. The witnesses included denier William Happer, denier Judith Curry, denier John Christy, and denier Mark Steyn.

But one witness provided the voice of reason: Rear Admiral David Titley, USN (ret.). Unlike other witnesses, he showed intelligence, honesty, and class.

The deniers (including Cruz) harped on the so-called “pause” (the one that never happened), the satellite data (ignoring all the other data), and even managed to claim that sea level rise isn’t because of man-made climate change. It’s hard to imagine how they could get any crazier.

I’ll be posting more about this, especially the sea level issue.

A Tale of Two Politicians

Lamar Smith is at it again. He penned an opinion piece for the San Antonio Express News to repeat his claims that climate scientists have “altered historical climate data to get politically correct results.” He just can’t wrap his tiny little mind around the fact that they improved the way data were processed to get scientifically better results, because scientifically better results undermine his political agenda — keep the fossil fuel companies (Lamar Smith’s biggest political contributors) happy.

Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders has a strong statement on his website which tells the most important truth of the matter: that “the wealthiest industry in the history of our planet has bribed politicians into ignoring science.”

I have one quibble with the statement by Bernie Sanders: some politicians, like Lamar Smith, haven’t been bribed into ignoring science, but into actively denying it while accusing scientists.

Asses Bray

It’s what they do. Some have two legs and come from Texas, like Ted Cruz and Lamar Smith, and what they like to bray about is their belief that global warming isn’t happening.

Idiots

Suppose you were an idiot, and suppose you were a member of Congress; but I repeat myself.
— Mark Twain

Despite deniers’ neverending claim that they’re “winning” their campaign to spread doubt about global warming, they’re losing. Big time. They just can’t win against nature. With heat waves on four continents at the same time this summer, once-in-a-thousand-years drought and flooding, wildfire on the rise in western North America, sea level rise enough that coastal cities now flood at extreme high tide even without storms or rain, an astounding record-breaking hurricane year in the Pacific, their precious “pause” in temperature rise shown to be a sham all along, and two record-hottest years in a row, people are catching on. Even tea party republicans can’t swallow the lie any more.

Lamar Smith Keeps Getting Dumber

Greater flooding in Miami is because of climate change. That’s a fact. So of course, congressman Lamar Smith (R-TX) denies it.

Smith’s intimidation tactics offensive, dangerous

Please read the story in the San Antonio paper, here. Do leave them a comment about how good the editorial is, and how bad Lamar Smith is.