Link: https://cornwallalliance.org/2019/02/the-real-climate-change-deniers-exposinga-mainstreammyth/?utm_source=Cornwall+Alliance+Newsletter&utm_campaign=c4e71c9ad5EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_02_11_06_19&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b80dc 8f2de-c4e71c9ad5-153356321&mc_cid=c4e71c9ad5&mc_eid=7b6b1bcd37 Please see link above for original text, embedded hotlinks and comments.
The Real Climate-Change Deniers: Exposing a Mainstream Myth February 11, 2019 By Vijay Jayaraj Lately, more focus has been on “climate-change deniers” than on the science of climate change. They are called science-denying, narrow-minded and selfish. They face ridicule every day. For example, in “The Depravity of Climate-Change Denial,” economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman argued that climate-change denial risks civilization for profit, ideology and ego. But who are the real “climate-change deniers”? (Or “climate deniers”? He uses the terms interchangeably.) Krugman never defined the terms. He failed to quantify the change in Earth’s climate. He ignored the finer details of temperature change. Instead, he focused on President Donald Trump’s skepticism. “Republicans … are, necessarily, bad people,” he wrote. ‘SKEPTICS ARE DENIERS’ IS NONSENSE This is the sad state of news articles on climate change. They use fallacious, personal attacks. They ignore genuine challenges to the doomsday narrative. The idea that “skeptics are deniers” is nonsense. It flies in the face of science. As the sociologist Robert K. Merton wrote 80 years ago, “Most institutions demand unqualified faith; but the institution of science makes skepticism a virtue.” Merton isn’t alone. For centuries, scholars have hailed skepticism. The motto of the world’s oldest scientific society (England’s Royal Society), Nullius in verba, means “Take nobody’s word for it.” Scientific method relies heavily on skepticism. Every claim is cross-checked against realworld data before it gains respect even as a theory, let alone a law or a fact. Even then, it remains open to question in light of new evidence. A scientist publishes her theory, and her evidence for it, in a journal. Peers examine it. Often they publish counter-evidence. Or they criticize her methods. This cycle repeats as long as potential refutations arise. When they stop, if the theory hasn’t been refuted, it 1