Beam me to Planet Gore !
Posted on 08/15/2011 9:27:47 PM PDT by AustralianConservative
Tim Blair recently posted this list of things that the media have trumpeted as being the “first casualties of climate change”.
I thought it would be an interesting exercise to check the veracity of each story – but what I was not expecting is that every story up until 2010 (after which some of the claims are too recent to verify one way or another) has either been completely debunked, or has since had some serious doubts placed on it.
So the following examples have not been cherry picked – it’s a quick analysis of every claim made about “the first casualty of global warming” up until 2010. Here are the stories that Tim gathered together, followed by the latest information about them:
The claim:
The golden toad was the first casualty of global warming The reality:
“There is no evidence of a trend associated with global warming. Rather, the extinction of the Monteverde golden toad (Bufo periglenes) appears to have coincided with an exceptionally dry interval caused by the 1986–1987 El Niño event.”
The claim:
Tuvalu: Global Warming’s first casualty. Ten thousand people, Tuvalu’s entire population, are packing their bags as their homes among nine low level atolls are being swallowed by the rising sea.
The reality:
The last census shows that Tuvalu’s population continues to grow.
The claim:
Polar bears are set to become the first casualty of global warming.
The reality:
The total number of the world’s polar bear population is still thought to be between 20,000 and 25,000.
The claim:
The first casualty of global warming is India’s mangrove island on the Bay of Bengal, Lochachara ~ it is now gone.
The reality:
The loss of the island was almost certainly caused as part of the natural erosion of an island in a delta.
(Excerpt) Read more at asiancorrespondent.com ...
Facts? We don’t need no stinkin’ facts.
Polar bears told us that they were shrinking in numbers.
Delta erosion is a myth.
Disappearing toads. Blame Al Gore. He ate them all, and looks it.
Skiing in July in Colorado/Rockies? Didn’t happen. Don’t listen to those skiers who claim they did it. What do they know?
from: Ima Ecofreak - BS, MS, Phd, LSD, MSNBC, and SOL
Thank you for the heads-up.
Caves reveal clues to UK weatherAt Pooles Cavern in Derbyshire, it was discovered that the stalagmites grow faster in the winter months when it rains more. Alan Walker, who guides visitors through the caves, says the changes in rainfall are recorded in the stalactites and stalagmites like the growth rings in trees. Stalagmites from a number of caves have now been analysed by Dr Andy Baker at Newcastle University. After splitting and polishing the rock, he can measure its growth precisely and has built up a precipitation history going back thousands of years. His study suggests this autumn's rainfall is not at all unusual when looked at over such a timescale but is well within historic variations. He believes politicians find it expedient to blame a man-made change in our weather rather than addressing the complex scientific picture.
by Tom Heap
Saturday, December 2, 2000
|
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
