NOAA reports on Global Warming

I have no idea what you mean by that.

 

We can't go back in time and study the atmosphere or record temperatures. We have to go by the data we are able to collect.

 

And that would change the current reality, how? Does it really matter what happened 100 or 200 years ago if what has happened the last 50 years (man-made causes in large part) have sped up the process? Shouldn't we instead be focusing on how to deal with it rather than quibbling over your attempt at a point?

 

Problem is, we don't know if we're speeding up the process unless we know what caused it in the past.

 

Again...does it matter? And to me, people a lot smarter than both of us are saying this is indeed the case. Why continue to belabor the point rather than, y'know, try to do something about it?

I know...because it's easier to pretend it's not a problem, or too big a hassle to fix it, than to actually try to resolve the issue.

 

I'm not saying we shouldn't do something about it.

I'm saying there's no way to know how much an affect "man made" causes are in the grand scheme of things. I also think it's the height of stupidity to force a few countries that aren't the biggest part of the "man made" problem - US, EU, Canada, etc. - to change their economies to "fix" it while letting the countries that are the biggest polluters - India, China - slide.

 

Science doesn't prove anything and never will. It only disproves alternatives. Gravity is only a theory, but it's universally accepted. That we don't know manmade climate change to be a "certainty" is a non-starter as an argument, and to fail to act on scientific conclusions that indicate a need for action because we can't access information that is forever lost to history seems short-sighted.

 

Not saying that those countries SHOULDN'T clean up their act, but do we really want to continue down the same idiot path of "If those countries won't do it, then neither should we!" That's like sticking your tongue out at an enemy. It's childish.

And if you don't believe the U.S. is a big contributor to the problem, then, well, we have a problem. Not as bad as the others you mentioned, but we're not a drop in the bucket, either.

 

The planet's climate has been changing for billions of years. We can't stop that process and I doubt we can slow it down much either.

 

I would choose to try.

 

<sigh>

No one is arguing that the planet's climate hasn't changed over billions of years. I don't recall that claim EVER being made by anyone here, so maybe it's a good idea to stop using that tack.

But if you feel that there's nothing we can do to slow it down if our actions have indeed sped it up, well, then your logic simply doesn't work.

And by going back to the same old argument (how do you explain the last xxx years?), you conveniently ignore the scientific evidence FDP referred to.

I have a feeling, however, that you'd rather argue these points because you don't feel it's a real issue. If you persist in that vein, well, I doubt ANY amount of evidence will convince you otherwise.

 

Remain calm. All is well.