The author of the Aug. 30 Public Forum letter, "Public service pledge is key," cited a three-point pledge that was presented to the presidential candidates for endorsement. I strongly agree with the second point: "Protect scientists who report inconvenient truths and remove from office those who manipulate public agency science for political ends."
There are truthful scientists who have exposed global warming as junk science, but they seem to get nowhere when dealing with the politically correct media establishment.
There is no evidence that man-made carbon dioxide is causing global warming. Now compare the United States Department of Energy figures on man-created carbon dioxide (11,880 parts per billion) and natural carbon dioxide (68,520 ppb). These figures are additions to the pre-industrial baseline of 288,000 ppb. Total concentration then is 368,400 ppb which means man-made carbon dioxide comprises about 3.2 percent of the total.
But wait! We forgot water vapor, which comprises 95 percent of all greenhouse gases and that puts all carbon dioxide at 3.6 percent of the total. (Other miscellaneous gases make up the remainder.) Those put man-generated carbon dioxide at less than .12 percent of all greenhouse gases. Spend all the money you want, and you won't change anything.
Experiments have also shown that a rise in atmospheric temperature and CO2 can actually cause a "negative direction" greenhouse effect. This happens because phytoplankton growth in the oceans increases, which in turn produces increase in dimethyl sulfide and iodo-carbon gases, which in turn seed clouds which are more numerous, brighter, and last longer. This in turn reflects more solar energy back into space, thereby causing a cooling effect similar in magnitude to the heat-trapping feature of the greenhouse gas.
ADVERTISEMENT
This issue, like the pseudo-science of evolution, heliocentricity and billions of years' age of the earth, seems to be driven by "hype-power" from the media and politically correct academics. And those who have it in their power to correct the abuse seem to be paralyzed by Charles Peguy's truism: "It will never be known what acts of cowardice have been motivated by the fear of not looking sufficiently progressive."
Phil Drietz
Delhi
