WARMING: So far, it's a good thing

Interesting! I have read Jeff Bourget’s letter three times and did not find any suggested relationship between warming and man-caused conditions.

All rational scientists believe that the Earth has warmed. Once ice covered our area, but the Earth has continued to warm since the end of the last ice age, about 10,000 years ago. There has been, however, little or no warming over the past 10 years.

The question is to what extent man is adding to that warming. All animals exhale carbon dioxide. Volcanoes, fires and rotting vegetation also produce carbon dioxide.

The point, of course, is does increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere cause warmer temperatures, or are warmer temperatures the cause of increased carbon dioxide? Remember that most of the Earth’s carbon dioxide is in the ocean and as the ocean warms it gives off carbon dioxide.

Warming weather is generally beneficial. More people die in cold weather than die in warm weather.

Carbon dioxide is beneficial to plants. Eliminate carbon dioxide and there would be no plants. When the dinosaurs lived on the Earth there was lush vegetation and lots more carbon dioxide.

The biggest problem today is that many refuse to consider any evidence that global warming or even climate change is not going to cause a global disaster. Even Mr. Bourget predicted that humanity will be wiped out if we don’t stop producing carbon dioxide. It is a common theme. Dr. Hansen wrote a book widely acclaimed with the subtitle: “The Last Chance to Save the Human Race.” Their minds are completely closed. We are all on this planet together and we need to know the truth, but it is literally impossible to know the truth when we will not even consider contrary evidence.

More than anything else the Chicken Little Alarmists appear to be more concerned with controlling people than solving any perceived global problem. Even a cursory inspection of the Internet will reveal many scientific studies at odds with Mr. Bourget’s thesis. Go back and review the Hockey Stick Graph produced by Michael Mann. We are well past the point where he said temperatures would begin to skyrocket. Yet temperatures have not changed statistically for more than 10 years. Are we really in danger as a world, or is this just one more method of gaining control over our lives and actions? You be the judge.

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JIM HOLLINGSWORTH

Coeur d’Alene