Rod Liddle Rod Liddle

The heresy of denial

I assume you are au fait with the latest research on solar activity and its effects upon climate change, the research for which was undertaken at Imperial College, London. This latest stuff suggests that contrary to what had been expected, when solar activity increases it has a counter-intuitively depressing effect on the climate of the earth. And, as a corollary, when solar activity decreases, the earth gets warmer. None of the scientists expected this. It is important because climate change monkeys, who know everything about everything, and will not allow you to take part in a debate about climate change because not only do you know nothing but you are also, if you question anything about climate change – the methodology, the motives, the results – a DENIER, a DENIER!, had always assumed that the reverse was true. And, more to the point, had factored this erroneous assumption into their models as to the effect of human activity upon the earth’s climate. In other words, in some cases they grossly overestimated our contribution to global warming. In some cases.

This is a sociological problem more than a problem of physics; in truth, they all know so very little, and yet are splenetic with fury when anyone from outside the discipline attempts to challenge their assumptions. They become shrill with rage, like George Monbiot, and hurl all manner of abuse around. And yet they are frequently, almost daily, discovered to be wrong.

The latest research certainly doesn’t disprove AGW, which I still suspect to be more likely than not. But you fear for the future of what has become one of our biggest industries – climate change – when research like this is allowed to be published.

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