Doing the right things for the wrong reasons is a serious mistake
Ottawa, Canada, March 28, 2012: “Earth Hour is yet another symbol of how climate activists have hijacked the environmental movement,” said Tom Harris, executive director of the International Climate Science Coalition (ICSC) which is headquartered in Ottawa, Canada. “Most people do not realize that, when they turn out their lights for sixty minutes on March 31, they are not supporting science-based environmental protection. Participants in Earth Hour are unwittingly helping prop up one of the most threatening scientific hoaxes in history—the idea that carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from human activities are known to be causing dangerous global warming and other problematic climate change.”
ICSC chief science advisor, Professor Bob Carter of James Cook University in Queensland, Australia and author of the best selling book, “Climate: the Counter Consensus” explained, “Science has yet to provide unambiguous evidence that problematic, or even measurable, human-caused global warming is occurring. The hypothesis of dangerous man-made climate change is based solely on computerized models that have repeatedly failed in practice in the real world.”
New Zealand-based Terry Dunleavy, ICSC founding chairman and strategic advisor said, “It’s important not to waste energy, and to generate it as economically as possible in terms both of cost and depletion of natural resources. Those are the right reasons for mass gestures like Earth Hour. However, it is a mistake to promote such initiatives as ‘saving the planet’ by reducing emissions of CO2 when so many qualified scientists do not support the hypothesis that man-made CO2 can or does cause dangerous global warming. As the public come to realize that they have been misled about the reasons for Earth Hour, much of the incentive to engage in constructive behaviour will evaporate.”
In announcing his support for Earth Hour, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon asserted, “We do so [turning off lights] in solidarity with the men, women and children, 20% of all humankind, who live with no access to electricity.”
“If we are going to demonstrate solidarity with those who lack adequate energy supplies, then we need to really feel what they feel, not just turn off a few lights,” said ICSC energy issues advisor, Bryan Leyland of Auckland, New Zealand. “Earth Hour should be renamed Energy Hour and citizens encouraged to use as little energy as possible for 60 minutes so that they can get a sense of what societies without adequate power are actually like. For this is exactly where we are headed if governments continue to yield to climate activists and try to replace reliable, base load generation with expensive, intermittent and diffuse energy sources such as wind and solar power.”
“Climate campaigners will undoubtedly once again cite the public’s participation in Earth Hour as broad support for combating climate change,” predicted Professor Ole Humlum of the Institute of Geosciences, University of Oslo, Norway and author of the popular climate science Website http://www.climate4you.com/. “Some commentators have therefore suggested using as much energy as possible during the hour to demonstrate opposition to the climate scare. A more constructive approach would be to change the name and stated purpose of the program to one based on the realities of science and the world we actually live in. Energy Hour would stand the test of time. Earth Hour, based on misguided climate change fears, will not.”
The ICSC is a non-partisan group of scientists, economists and energy and policy experts who are working to promote better understanding of climate science and related policy worldwide. We aim to help create an environment in which a more rational, open discussion about climate issues emerges, thereby moving the debate away from implementation of costly and ineffectual “climate control” measures. Instead, ICSC encourages effective planning for, and adaptation to, inevitable natural climate variability, and continuing scientific research into the causes and impacts of climate change.
ICSC also focuses on publicizing the repercussions of misguided plans to “solve the climate crisis”. This includes, but is not limited to, “carbon” sequestration as well as the dangerous impacts of attempts to replace conventional energy supplies with wind turbines, solar power, most biofuels and other ineffective and expensive energy sources.
For more information about this announcement or ICSC in general, visit http://www.climatescienceinternational.org, or contact any of the following ICSC representatives:
In North America:
Tom Harris, B. Eng., M. Eng. (Mech. – thermofluids)
Executive Director, International Climate Science Coalition
P.O. Box 23013
Ottawa, Ontario K2A 4E2
Canada
Email: tom.harris@climatescienceinternational.net
Phone: 613-728-9200
ICSC Webpage: http://www.climatescienceinternational.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=393
In Australia:
Professor Robert (Bob) M. Carter, PhD, Hon. FRSNZ
Chief Science Advisor, International Climate Science Coalition
Emeritus Fellow, Institute for Public Affairs, Melbourne
Marine Geophysical Laboratory
James Cook University
Townsville, Queensland, 4811
Australia
Email: bob.carter@jcu.edu.au
Phone (mobile): +61-(0)419-701-139
Phone (evening): +61-(0)7-4775-1268
ICSC Webpage: http://climatescienceinternational.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=394
In New Zealand:
Bryan Leyland, M.Sc., FIEE, FIMechE, FIPENZ, consulting engineer
Energy Issues Advisor, International Climate Science Coalition
Auckland 1022
New Zealand
Email: bryanleyland@mac.com
Phone: +64 9 940 7047; mobile: +64 21 978 996
ICSC Webpage: http://climatescienceinternational.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=395
OR
Terry Dunleavy, MBE, JP
Founding Chairman and Strategic Advisor, International Climate Science Coalition
Hauraki, North Shore City 0622
New Zealand
Email: terry.dunleavy@nzclimatescience.org.nz
Phone: +64 9 4863859 – Mobile: +64 274836688
ICSC Webpage: http://climatescienceinternational.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=432
In Europe:
Professor Ole Humlum, PhD
Science Advisory Board member, International Climate Science Coalition
Professor of Physical Geography, Department of Physical Geography
Institute of Geosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
E-mail: ole.humlum@geo.uio.no
Phone: +47 79 02 33 00 (department); +47 79 02 33 20 (direct). Fax: +47 79 02 33 01.
Webpage: http://www.unis.no/35_staff/staff_webpages/geology/ole_humlum/olepersonal.htm
The Sydney Morning Herald is asking readers whether they are going to turn the lights off for Earth Hour or leave them on. My answer:
You can send your own to loadeddog@sunherald.com.au. 150 words max. “Earth Hour” in the subject line.
Earth hour is a great dry run for the impending energy crunch to come in the not too distant future here in the UK. Once all our coal fired capacity is ended by legislation from Brussels environmentalists up and down the land will be the first to complain about power cuts as they won’t be able to log onto the various climate related websites which they love to read forecasting the death of the planet.
It’s all about trying to create a warm fuzzy feeling that “you are doing your bit” to help.
At least the act of turning off a few lights is harmless, unlike all the other economically damaging stuff being proposed to combat the non-existent problem of man made global warming.
I thought about turning on all the lights and electrical appliances in my home to mark Earth/Energy Hour, but decided that was a petty response to someone trying to guilt trip me.
If all the many tens of billions of dollars currently being wasted on the West’s ‘climate science’ industry was used instead to provide electricity generation facilities in the Third World, then the problem of so many people being without power would be much alleviated. Any chance of that happening? Absolutely none – there are far too many comfortable lifestyles amongst the CAGW cult leadership which need protecting.
Tim Blair has a great article on this subject, called ‘Come on baby light my fire’.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/…light-my-fire…/story-e6frezz0-.
I shan’t be able to follow his example as I can’t afford to. However, I shall most certainly not turn anything down or off!
There are a lot of power cuts where I live (because of weather intolerant power cables that keep being damaged) so we are forced to do without power for many more hours than one per year. It’s a bloody nuisance! If we didn’t have a stove that burns coal as well as wood, we’d be cold as well as having to do without light and all the other useful things that need power. Perhaps if more people had to do without power for several days in the middle of winter, they’d rethink. Or maybe just think at all.
If we are going to demonstrate solidarity with the 20% of the people who have no electricity we aught to support programs to help them get electricity. That means making electricity cheaper and more widely distributed. All this “feel what they feel” symbolism tends to do just the opposite.
The ICSC is trying to move in the right direction, I wish them well. But I fear the green movement has so dominated “earth hour” publicity that participation will be widely seen as support for reduction in fossil fuel use, increased regulation of coal fired electric generation, and increased use of expensive alternative generators.
Rather than try to change the name of “earth hour” let’s ridicule the whole “feel what they feel” idea. WUWT is already a powerful voice in advocating sensible energy policies. That is how to really help those who do not have access to electricity.
More people will have access to electricity if we “drill baby drill”, produce more coal fired electric generators, build more dams, and build more nuclear plants. Sure, work on research to find greener ways to produce cheap electricity. But we should stop government subsidies that push alternatives into the market before they are economically competitive.
The green movement is a disaster for the poor around the world. Let’s not let the greens get away with these meaningless gestures of support for those they hurt the most.
What the PDREU needs is a harsh winter when all the lights go out for a few days, no electricity to fire up central heating boilers, like it did a couple of years ago, Britain got off lightly this time round, eastern europe didn’t, again! It certainly brings home the importance of modern day living to survive the elements, but then the activists don’t want us to survive, do they? Blow Earth Day, it’s so pointless as it is! Reality checks are so essential for people, I know it’s not pleasant, but how would they feel if it was their son/daughter/mother/father/sister/brother/significant other, on a ife-support machine when the power goes & the back-up generators fail to kick in? If things like this are planned they are nothing more than a feelgood factor, whereas real tragedy has more trauma & effect & significance, although I would not wish it upon Al Gore et al, not so sure it would be reciprocated though!
If all the lights on earth go out then everyone will be delighted!
(I hope it dosen’t apply to vehicles.)
Just thought! we can make a lot of money out of this. We can have an accident in the dark and then sue the organisers!
the watermelon heads don,t know if the lights are on or off due to to much pot smoke in the air
A working link here:
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/opinion/come-on-baby-light-my-fire-but-watch-the-cat/story-e6frezz0-1226309663925
Ban Ki-Moon asserted, “We do so [turning off lights] in solidarity with the men, women and children, 20% of all humankind, who live with no access to electricity.”
Far better to light one candle than to curse the darkness. How foolish these world leaders are, and how foolish we are to let them lead.
If Earth hour became compulsory and the power companies pulled the plug, everyone would become much more aware of how much we depend on energy and wouldn’t be so willing to replace it with sunbeams and fairy dust.
Keeping in mind the “sound science” reference, and knowing that we’ve all been watching events unfold for the past decade here that were NOT based on same, I found it interesting that the same problem arose in a different field, that of cancer research.
“But they and others fear the phenomenon is the product of a skewed system of incentives that has academics cutting corners to further their careers.
George Robertson of Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia previously worked at Merck on neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s. While at Merck, he also found many academic studies that did not hold up.
“It drives people in industry crazy. Why are we seeing a collapse of the pharma and biotech industries? One possibility is that academia is not providing accurate findings,” he said.
Sound familiar?
JimB
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/03/28/in-cancer-science-many-discoveries-dont-hold-up/#ixzz1qV753WgX
“Earth Hour is yet another symbol of how climate activists have hijacked the environmental movement…”
…and the environmental movement was itself hijacked from “traditional” conservationists decades ago.
Friends:
Concerning ‘Earth Hour’, the article reports Tom Harris (Canada) saying;
““Most people do not realize that, when they turn out their lights for sixty minutes on March 31, they are not supporting science-based environmental protection.”
And Bob Carter (Australia) saying;
“Science has yet to provide unambiguous evidence that problematic, or even measurable, human-caused global warming is occurring.”
And Tom Leavey (New Zealand) saying;
“it is a mistake to promote such initiatives (i.e. such as ‘Earth Hour’) as ‘saving the planet’ by reducing emissions of CO2 when so many qualified scientists do not support the hypothesis that man-made CO2 can or does cause dangerous global warming.”
But they are all considering the mistaken idea that ‘Earth Hour’ has anything to do with science, reason and/or logic. The real reason for ‘Earth Hour’ is explicitly stated by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon who the article reports has asserted,
“We do so [turning off lights] in solidarity with the men, women and children, 20% of all humankind, who live with no access to electricity.”
So, there you have it. The purpose of ‘Earth Hour’ is a pointless and futile activity which has the intention to achieve nothing, to affect nothing, and to help nobody, but it may make its participants feel smug that they have meaningless “solidarity” with the poor.
Such activities as ‘Earth Hour’ deserve to be reviled as being the hypocritical nonsense that they are.
Richard
My letter to the editor, published today:
———————————–
Earth Hour has an irony. It should carry the caption “keeping people in the dark about climate”. I’ve had countless arguments with climate alarmists. I always ask one simple question “what is the evidence for man caused global warming ?”. Alarmists always go weak at the knees or run away, because there is no evidence. There is just a shonky theory held aloft by political hot air.
East Timor a poor country who are just getting an oil windfall have decided to make their top priority providing electricity to villages outside capital. To that end they are building a coal fired power station.
When they ask villagers in Africa what they want, 2 things always top the list, electricity, and a school.
At root, the problem with the greenie environmentalists is that they have no experience or concept of not living with the benefits of a developed world civilization and they have no concept of how it works.
Paul says:
March 29, 2012 at 12:47 am
//////////////////////////////////
This morning 3 of the largest UK energy suppliers announced that they were pulling out of Nuclear in the UK. So if there is a pull back in coal and nuclear and no development of Shale Gas, things look very bleak on the energy front for the UK.
Meanwhile in the States, yesterday, gas prices have hit a 10 year low. The States are pushing ahead with Shale Gas and are set to become one of the largest energy suppliers in the world. This development will continue to keep gas prices low in the States and it explains why the US gas industry is campaigning so hard for EPA to effectively ban coal, ie., to give a market for all the new gas that is coming on stream. The low gas prices in the States is helping the domestic gas consumer with their energy bills. Quite a startling comparison with the UK.
The low gas price in the States may also promote new developments in the car industry. The prospects for gas powered cars looks good and these cars make much more sense both environmentally and practically than do electric cars.
I agree that the environmental groups having aligned themselves with CAGW are likely to suffer long term damage to their movements once the CAGW scam is fully revealed. People will be paying for this fiasco for decades to come, and this is bound to cause them to view enviromentalists in general with suspicion.
I have no intention of supporting Earth hour. I will not be switching off any energy to support some pathetic pr stunt. That said, I will not deliberately waste any energy either, but weather permitting, perhaps it would be a good day to do the washing.
Dr Burns says
, because there is no evidence.
—————
The creationists use this argument a lot when referring to The Theory of Evolution. Seems they close their eyes ever time evidence comes along, so as to maintain the appearance of sincerity.
I would also refer readers to this simply excellent comment in WUWT
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/03/10/earth-hour-is-it-worth-the-effort/#comment-918732
and also this link to Ross McKitrick’s great paper on the subject of hypocrisy of Earth Hour
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/03/10/earth-hour-is-it-worth-the-effort/#comment-919241
The comments resonated with me. Having lived much of my life in northern Australia where mothers rubbed liberal amounts of Vix Vapour Rub into their childrens’s open and copiously infected skin sores in effort to both stave of the nightly mosquitoes and in the absence of a rational health service, where a family of 4-5 each lived in one bedroom of a three bedroom house and where there was no hot water, or insufficient solar powerered water to shower, wash clothing or children. And the jerry cans, flown in by fixed wing, filled with diesel instead of for washing machines, store and household refrigerators, mechanics workshop and fans at the school and in the houses, were used to fuel the generator that chugged from sunset to dawn (in the tropics) to power the outside spotlights to keep the sorcery at bay…………………. it truly was a frightening and shortened 24 hours for these people. And the children. Those that owned the small generator and the network of cables and paid for the fuel, owned the [miserable] lives of many.
Donna Laframboise, exposes the trans-national corporations behind the idea of “Earth Hour”
http://nofrakkingconsensus.com/2012/03/26/the-wealthy-corporations-behind-earth-hour/
Celebrate human achievement during Earth Hour and turn on every electrical appliance you can find!
In support of the Gweenies, Aerosmith and, wait for it, Cheap Trick, are currently on their “Global Warming” tour. Cheap Trick indeed.
Economical use of resources and efficient use of energy are always commendable goals. How WELL people use resources is a much better measure of stewardship than how LITTLE is used.
Waste and inefficiency is rarely, if ever, commendable. It is sheer folly to think that using less energy resulting from the high cost of ineffective, politically- inspired solutions will lead to a better future.
I tell you what…I’ll turn off my lights for
EarthEnergy Hour if NASA, NOAA, NCAR, GFDL, ORNL, etc. turn off their computers (especially those servers/clusters running useless climate simulations) for one hour. I doubt they will, just like they refuse to stop using fossil fuels while simultaneously trying ruin the lives, jobs, and reputations of those in the oil and gas industries, who everyday are working hard to bring us energy to make our lives better.In support of the Gweenies, Aerosmith and, wait for it, Cheap Trick, are currently on their “Global Warming” tour. Cheap Trick indeed.
Shouldn’t that be Gweenies, Airwoesmith and Cheap Twick? The wimps.
In announcing his support for Earth Hour, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon asserted, “We do so [turning off lights] in solidarity with the men, women and children, 20% of all humankind, who live with no access to electricity.”
***
As I’ve said before, how can they reconsile the fact that we just had a complete day added to the calendar (Leap Day), and that the extra 24 hours negates the last 24 years of “Earth Day”.
Also, after Hurricane Katrina, my house power was off for a full month.
I think I’m caught up for the next century…
Having an “hour” of any kind is persuasion PR. Question the necessity and effectiveness of any “hour.” It’s likely vague and likely political. You get people for something nearly meaningless as support for a collection of societal forcings and commercial exploitations. For example, “I’m Green, so give me your money and I will use it to throw African farmers off their land so I can pretend to plant a forest.” Or, “I’m Green and I support X, so you must too.” In a decade or so, you get a government agency running the country. To paraphrase a current series of commercials, “Don’t get a government agency running the whole country or you’ll end up in a roadside ditch.”
I was going to say an “hour” should be saved for a real crisis, but then a real crisis never requires an “hour” to raise awareness.
Years ago I read an article in “Scientific American” called
“Goldilocks and the Three Planets”
“This is the complete carbon cycle: rainwater removes CO2 from the
atmosphere and puts it in the crust, and volcanic action releases CO2
from the crust and puts it back in the atmosphere.” The article went
on to argue that the earth has a natural thermostat: When temperatures
are warm, there is more rain, which removes CO2 from the atmosphere.
When temperatures are cool there is less rain. CO2 builds up, warming
the planet until there is a rough balance.
AGWers ascribing 100% of the increase to humans and my familiarity with
the Goldilocks argument made me think of an analogy. I admit I’m a
layman. I know nothing of atmospheric chemistry, but I AM familiar
with getting older, getting less exercise, and putting on weight. The
CO2 naturally occurring in the atmosphere is my body weight. At one
point my body is in balance- I consume and burn the same amount of
calories each day and maintain a steady weight. I then discover
blueberry pie-fossil fuel, and consume an additional 150 kCAL slice of
pie each day. Since 3000 additional kiloCalories puts on a pound, A
CAGWer would assume that I would gain 1 additional pound every 20
days, or 18 pounds a year, or 720 pounds in 40 years. I DID run that
experiment over 40 years. Needless to say I didn’t gain 720 pounds
between the age of 20 and my current age of 60- more like 30 pounds –
from 190 to 220. Carrying that extra weight burned additional calories
and my body quickly reached an equilibrium at a somewhat higher
weight.
The same argument will work with our atmosphere. If we were able to
continue burning the same amount of fossil fuel each year, atmospheric
CO2 would not increase indefinitely, but would reach a somewhat higher
equilibrium. The question to be answered is, what fraction of earth’s
calorie intake is CO2? CAGWers would argue that we’re currently a 97
pound inactive weakling, burning only 1200 kCAL a day- in that case
consuming that 150 kCAL pie will result in a significant weight
increase. If they were right, cutting back 20%, 30%, or 40% wouldn’t cut it. The only way to stop AGW would be to cut CO2 production by humans 100%, putting us back in the stone age.
In reality, the earth is a 250 pound pro football player
during the regular season – consuming 3000 kilocalories a day. That
additional slice of blueberry pie will have a negligible effect on his
weight.
Arguing that 100% of the increase from pre industrial times is
due to humans is equivalent to the argument that I now weigh 720 lbs.
Both are silly- A. McIntire
Let’s all join Jo Nova in celebration!
http://joannenova.com.au/2012/03/the-hour-of-power-celebrate-human-achievement-this-saturday/#more-21089
I have a better idea. Why don’t we provide electricity to those 20% of people without it! Instead of lowering ourselves to the poor, why don’t raise the poor up? Just think, if we diverted all the money spent “climate change” — whether it is through grants or organizations that promote the idea such as Greenpeace and the UN IPCC — then we could easily provide cheap electricity to everyone!
That one statement shows what the green revolution is all about. It is all about padding the wallets of selected few while wanting everyone else to sacrifice. It is all about taking the wealth and freedom away from the majority to give it to a select few.
“LazyTeenager says:
March 29, 2012 at 4:22 am
Dr Burns says
, because there is no evidence.
—————
The creationists use this argument a lot when referring to The Theory of Evolution. Seems they close their eyes ever time evidence comes along, so as to maintain the appearance of sincerity.”
Yes, they do.
LazyTeenager:
You make a silly and irrelevant point in your post March 29, 2012 at 4:22 am.
Whatever creationists may or may not do is not pertinent.
It is a simple fact that there is no evidence – none, zilch, nada – for a discernible human effect on global climate.
Decades of research at enormous cost (more than 5 billion p.a. with the US alone spending US$2.5 billion p.a. on it) aimed at finding evidence for a discernible human effect on global climate have failed to find any.
But that same research has found much evidence that refutes the AGW hypothesis; e.g.
Missing ‘hot spot’,
Disappearance of ‘committed warming’,
Missing heat,
Lack of global warming this century while atmospheric GHG concentration continues its rise,
Etc.
So, if you have found any evidence for a discernible effect of human activity on global climate then publish it and get the Nobel which awaits any person who can find any.
Richard
There are women and men among us tasked with keeping electric grids stable. Do you suppose they are dancing with delight as they await the off/on surges?
*****
Patrick Plemmons says:
March 29, 2012 at 4:46 am
In support of the Gweenies, Aerosmith and, wait for it, Cheap Trick, are currently on their “Global Warming” tour. Cheap Trick indeed.
*****
Aerosmith? I thought Joe Perry, at least, was smarter than that.
Rush & Geddy Lee would never sell themselves for something like that….
Yep, no facts in evidence at WUWT. No research, no ideas, no hypotheses, no graphs, no charts…
Just gossip, gossip, gossip as far as I can tell.
[but do feel free to make a comment with some content whenever you feel it is appropriate . . in the meantime you could be easily mistaken for a troll . . kbmod]
/
Science at its best: Professor Piers Corbyn at the Internationale Klima- und Energiekonferenz in München, Nov 2011
http://youtu.be/tbGWLgpylKc
My house will glow, inside and out.
In the not too distant future, everyone will have to comply with Earth Hour.
This will be possible by the installation of smart meters in every home….
If sixty year old has been rockers is the best the alarnists can do, then maybe we are winning afterall.
I will not be turning off a single thing. I’m sick of these PR stunts.
Nice analogy Alan (Alan D McIntire says: March 29, 2012 at 5:49 am), but I think a heck of a lot CO2 is pulled out of the atmosphere by green plants which have – what a surprise- been growing rather nicely in the higher CO2 atmosphere we have at the moment (Satellite photos show shrinking of a number of deserts especially the Sahara).
Even forests are growing back in temperate zones (North America and Europe) after being logged out in the 19th century (forest cover in the US has increased steadily since about the 1920’s) which sucks quite a bit of CO2 from the atmosphere.
As I’ve mentioned before, even our annual crop plants are so much more efficient now (breeding, fertlizers to remove soil nutrient limitations, irrigation to prevent water stress) that even though they are annuals and the CO2 will cycle back into the atmosphere relatively quickly when the crops are eaten or used for fuel, there is a much greater flux than there used to be in the carbon cycle than when we relied on hunting and gathering.
Do humans have an impact on the environment (including the climate)? You bet. Does this mean we control it and are causing catastrophic change? ********** (insert favourite epithet for utter rubbish here)
LT, I am not a “creationist”. Also, I lived off grid for 3 years, Canadian winters included. I challenge every “environmentalist” to do this. No power. Read by candle light, heated by wood stove. Hardest 3 years of my life. STFU. Idiot.
Eustace Cranch says:
March 29, 2012 at 6:47 am
Enjoy the darkness.
SPreserv says:
March 29, 2012 at 2:40 am
Thank you for fixing link!
LazyTeenager says:
March 29, 2012 at 4:22 am
Dr Burns says
, because there is no evidence.
—————
The creationists use this argument a lot when referring to The Theory of Evolution. Seems they close their eyes ever time evidence comes along, so as to maintain the appearance of sincerity.
__________________________________________
It seems that whenever CAGW extremists meet opposition they think that opposition is influenced by creationists, such is their faith.
It seems they close their eyes every time evidence comes along.
In announcing his support for Earth Hour, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon asserted, “We do so [turning off lights] in solidarity with the men, women and children, 20% of all humankind, who live with no access to electricity.”
If this is the true meaning of his gesture – “solidarity” with those who have no electricity – then the need he is speaking of is getting MORE energy out there. Not cutting back on ours, but developing sources for others. Unless, of course, he means deindustrialize us and industrialize them, for a net balance of zero, which is a whole different thing from reducing our CO2 output per se.
Eustace Cranch says:
March 29, 2012 at 6:47 am
Yep, no facts in evidence at WUWT. No research, no ideas, no hypotheses, no graphs, no charts…
Eustace, this thread is about Earth Hour, an event which celebrates ignorance, poverty and backwardness.( h/t Ross McKitrick).
What research would you expect ? Research into disruption of the grid during this hour, or maybe the energy wasted keeping turbines spinning as they cannot be powered down and then up again over the course of one hour. What charts would you like ? How about pie charts showing the proportion of numpties actually going along with this futile gesture.
Look around this site. Hardly a climate related paper gets published without it being discussed on this site. You will find plenty of threads dealing with meaty scientific topics including all the ideas, hypotheses, graphs and charts you could possibly want. Evaluate and weigh the arguments. Contribute on any areas of expertise you may have. But don’t do a drive-by snipe.
Reblogged this on Bohls Neighborhood Talk and commented:
This seems to be a constructive proposal.
Lt does not realize that he is a tool of the government and industry too. If he does realize this, he is not only wrong, but evil as well.
Here’s Ross McKitrick’s statement on Earth Hour from which I quoted above. With devastating eloquence, this guy articulates exactly why people on this site are contemptuous of the whole thinking behind Earth Hour.
http://www.rossmckitrick.com/uploads/4/8/0/8/4808045/earthhour.pdf
Lazy teenager says
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/03/29/re-name-earth-hour-to-energy-hour-and-base-it-on-sound-science/#comment-938339
Well, don’t be lazy for a while
and try to understand all that I have written.
http://www.letterdash.com/HenryP/what-was-that-what-henry-said-3
It might help clear up your mind.
For anyone else here who wants to know why I will leave all lights and things on during earth hour,
it’s because I believe more carbon dioxide is better.
Praise God for the presence of carbon dioxide!!
http://www.letterdash.com/HenryP/more-carbon-dioxide-is-ok-ok
Philip Bradley says:
March 29, 2012 at 4:08 am
When they ask villagers in Africa what they want, 2 things always top the list, electricity, and a school.
This fact, Phil, reminds me of one of my rare “hurl anything at the tv” moments. It was some sort of a “sustainable” type of a UN-approved NGO charity ad, in which a pack of fahionably dressed, insipidly smiling pampered white numpties were shown hooking up a solar panel to a hovel of a mud hut and putting up a single bare light bulb while the rag-clad residents cheered and danced. Another take showed a grandmother pedalling like the Devil on a foot-operated water pump. The tv wasn’t mine, so it survived. Africa sits atop mountains and seas of carbon wealth and these racist genocidal freaks with do-gooder certificates want a continent to lick their hands for a 40w lightbulb and to collapse with exhaustion over a cup of muddy water.
Lazy Teenager is too lazy to cite any of the evidence he is so sure exists that CO2 drives climate. Much as I hate to encourage such a truly delinquent level of laziness (contributing to the delinquency of a minor?) I will quote the evidence for him. This from the Met Office’s principle research scientist John Mitchell:
The “evidence” for a CO2 driver is that by playing with a hundred different variables, the Met and the IPCC can construct CO2 driven models that yield somewhat the shape of the last century and a half of temperature.
Actual science looks at empirical evidence. Is there any sign of a CO2 driver in the historical data of CO2 and global temperature? No, not that is discernable. There is a correlation, but CO2 changes follow temperature changes by about 800 years, indicating that it is temperature that drives CO2 (outgassing from warming oceans). This leaves open the possibility that CO2 also drives temperature, but there is absolutely no evidence for it in the historical/proxy record.
In the absence of any empirical evidence the anti-CO2 alarmists have decided to label their model-tweaking “evidence,” rather like a lazy teenager, or a delinquent teenager. Didn’t somebody write a book about that?
LazyTeenager says:
March 29, 2012 at 4:22 am
“The creationists use this argument a lot when referring to The Theory of Evolution. Seems they close their eyes ever time evidence comes along, so as to maintain the appearance of sincerity.”
=========
Did someone steal your “handle”, this comment is beneath you.
Fossil fuel powered stations don’t reduce pressure just because the energy consumption drops a little bit, like Earth Hour.
I would like to see “Earth Month”. This would mean a real reduction of CO2.
Shut down all the coal / natural gas powered generating stations for a month. This gives employees of the coal / natural gas powered generators enough time to do some maintenance. And nothing will make people appreciate their electricity as much as not having it for a month.
The whole thing is an insult to all poor people around the world lacking the “luxury” of a lamp switch.
We should all hit the lights and hope these people will get electricity soon.
I will for sure have my electric guitar plugged in (among other things).
Eustace Cranch says:
March 29, 2012 at 6:47 am
Yep, no facts in evidence at WUWT. No research, no ideas, no hypotheses, no graphs, no charts…
Just gossip, gossip, gossip as far as I can tell.
Eustace, given your own twittering pronouncement of those kind of brainless memes, why do you think any individual with a working thought capacity is going to bend to you and your fellow Totalitarian thought controllists? Why don’t you all just repeat your dumb a** memes amongst yourselves and have done with it?
Every time that Earth Hour comes round I think of the words of Professor Ross McKitrick, which are worth repeating….
“
In 2009 I was asked by a journalist for my thoughts on the importance of Earth Hour. Here
is my response.
I abhor Earth Hour. Abundant, cheap electricity has been the greatest source of human
liberation in the 20th century. Every material social advance in the 20th century depended
on the proliferation of inexpensive and reliable electricity. Giving women the freedom to
work outside the home depended on the availability of electrical appliances that free up time
from domestic chores. Getting children out of menial labour and into schools depended on
the same thing, as well as the ability to provide safe indoor lighting for reading.
Development and provision of modern health care without electricity is absolutely
impossible. The expansion of our food supply, and the promotion of hygiene and nutrition,
depended on being able to irrigate fields, cook and refrigerate foods, and have a steady
indoor supply of hot water. Many of the world’s poor suffer brutal environmental conditions
in their own homes because of the necessity of cooking over indoor fires that burn twigs and
dung. This causes local deforestation and the proliferation of smoke- and parasite-related
lung diseases. Anyone who wants to see local conditions improve in the third world should
realize the importance of access to cheap electricity from fossil-fuel based power generating
stations. After all, that’s how the west developed.
The whole mentality around Earth Hour demonizes electricity. I cannot do that, instead I
celebrate it and all that it has provided for humanity. Earth Hour celebrates ignorance,
poverty and backwardness. By repudiating the greatest engine of liberation it becomes an
hour devoted to anti-humanism. It encourages the sanctimonious gesture of turning off
trivial appliances for a trivial amount of time, in deference to some ill-defined abstraction
called “the Earth,” all the while hypocritically retaining the real benefits of continuous,
reliable electricity. People who see virtue in doing without electricity should shut off their
fridge, stove, microwave, computer, water heater, lights, TV and all other appliances for a
month, not an hour. And pop down to the cardiac unit at the hospital and shut the power off
there too.
I don’t want to go back to nature. Travel to a zone hit by earthquakes, floods and hurricanes
to see what it’s like to go back to nature. For humans, living in “nature” meant a short life
span marked by violence, disease and ignorance. People who work for the end of poverty
and relief from disease are fighting against nature. I hope they leave their lights on.
Here in Ontario, through the use of pollution control technology and advanced engineering,
our air quality has dramatically improved since the 1960s, despite the expansion of industry
and the power supply. If, after all this, we are going to take the view that the remaining air
emissions outweigh all the benefits of electricity, and that we ought to be shamed into
sitting in darkness for an hour, like naughty children who have been caught doing
something bad, then we are setting up unspoiled nature as an absolute, transcendent ideal
that obliterates all other ethical and humane obligations. No thanks. I like visiting nature
but I don’t want to live there, and I refuse to accept the idea that civilization with all its
tradeoffs is something to be ashamed of.
Ross McKitrick
Professor of Economics
University of Guelph
Eustace Cranch says:
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/03/29/re-name-earth-hour-to-energy-hour-and-base-it-on-sound-science/#comment-938428
Henry@Eustace
Please come back here after you have seen and reported on at least as many data as I have seen
from 22 weatherstations
22 x 12 months
22 x 12 x 30 days,
22 x 12 x 30 x 5 = 39600 data =
from
maxima &
means (daily averages!) &
minima &
humidity &
precipitation
http://www.letterdash.com/HenryP/henrys-pool-table-on-global-warming
that is what you call: doing a job
IF YOU WANT TO FIND OUT.
For reasons I cannot fathom, Earth Hour has moved their global HQ from Sydney to Singapore. Now they are based in the country with just about the highest per capita CO2 emissions on the planet. So those of us who live there are doing our part to fight the return to the next ice age.
LazyTeenager says:
>>Dr Burns says
>>, because there is no evidence.
>>—————
>>The creationists use this argument a lot when referring to The Theory of Evolution. Seems >>they close their eyes ever time evidence comes along, so as to maintain the appearance of >>sincerity.
LazyTeenager, Chris B, so that I don’t seem like a creationist, in your own words, exactly what is the evidence for man caused global warming ? I’ve heard it is “overwhelming” but no one seems to have any.
Let’s see if you guys run away like lead IPCC author Dr Kevin Trenberth did, when I asked him this question. His response BTW, was that the key evidence was sea levels. He did a runner when I pointed out that sea levels have been rising at a decreasing rate for 20,000 years.
Earth Hour is simply promoting wasting energy – not one gram of CO2 is saved by this nonsense.
Earth Week would save some CO2 as it would allow the power stations to gear down to reduced demand – any takers ???
In the UK we have a national grid, with a centralized system to balance energy demand. If a lot of folks participate in Earth Hour, the grid will have a sudden surge in demand around 9.30pm.
I will be doing my bit in the national interest of energy balance. I will be cooking the Sunday roast on the electric cooker, whilst running the dishwasher, washing machine and dryer. At 9.25pm I will switch off for a few minutes to compensate for other folks putting on the kettle and lighting up their hour of gloom.
Alternatively, I could leave it to the Dinorwic 2GW pump storage scheme in the Welsh Mountains to even out the nonsense. It has only twice this century had to run at full power, as large fluctuations in demand no longer occur like they did when construction started in the 1970s.
http://www.fhc.co.uk/dinorwig.htm
Mike McMillan says:
March 29, 2012 at 2:48 am
Ban Ki-Moon asserted, “We do so [turning off lights] in solidarity with the men, women and children, 20% of all humankind, who live with no access to electricity.”
Far better to light one candle than to curse the darkness. How foolish these world leaders are, and how foolish we are to let them lead.
————————————————–
How right you are!
It is our fault.
Like parents of a spoiled child we’ve given in to their whims for so long and we’ve let them have their way and now we don’t know how to stop them. Now I fear we may not be able to.
We’ve put them in charge. OOPS!
Energy efficiency hour! What a great idea. Stay as warm/cool as you want in as much light as you want consuming the least amount of energy to do it.
If you really want to see what it feels like to have very little energy try running your refrigerator for 4 hours on and 4 hours unplugged. Repeat that for 24 hours and see how much goes bad.
“Rosco says:
March 29, 2012 at 2:45 pm”
Thats right becaus the power stations are still burning to keep the turbine spinning, spin reserve to manage load demand for when these idiots turn stuff back on.
Geoff says:March 29, 2012 at 12:32 pm
For reasons I cannot fathom, Earth Hour has moved their global HQ from Sydney to Singapore. Now they are based in the country with just about the highest per capita CO2 emissions on the planet. …
Jo Nova had a few interesting comments perhaps worth following up on with bloggers.
pat #34
http://joannenova.com.au/2012/03/the-ground-zero-of-global-corruption-it-starts-with-the-currency/#comment-1017962
Also the recent restrictions restriction proposed of media in Australia. Search ‘media’ on Institute of Public Affairs (IPA).
Australian Taxation Office and legislation pertaining to ‘charities’ and NGOs.
Internet betting [sites] and stock exchanges are also worth a thought, one way or another!
Sometimes, doncha just, you get swept up by the torrent of self-flagellation and depression sweeping out from the gweenies/lemonheads/warmists and you wonder … stuff and things.
My personal wonderation was; if the electric went off in some/any/most of the UK’s large urban centres, and, bearing in mind the state of disgruntlement of many of the population (as what caused the recent riots), what would be left of those urban centres when the lights came back on, apart from possibly a looted, burning and charred wreck.
This sort of ‘energy saving’ guff, if it leads to power stations being closed because they’re deemed dirty or unnecessary, is gonna back-fire. Badly.
I just saw that people are trying to rename it as “Human Achievement” hour. OI! — John M Reynolds
In announcing his support for Earth Hour, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon asserted, “We do so [turning off lights] in solidarity with the men, women and children, 20% of all humankind, who live with no access to electricity.”
To show that support, he should have every light in the UN Headquarters in NY be turned off. For safety reasons everyone should evacuate the building first, especially the women and children.
Be a crying shame if no one ever went back in and no light in that building was ever turned on again. Yup. Absolutely horrific. Sure. A historic tragedy easily on par with the apocalyptic loss of Sodom and Gomorrah, definitely.
Anthony
what gives people like Ban Ki-Moon the notion they can direct anybobys energy usage, but he must be a smart guy – his past
BIOGRAPHY
Ban Ki-moon is the eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations. His priorities have been to mobilize world leaders around a set of new global challenges, from climate change and economic upheaval to pandemics and increasing pressures involving food, energy and water… has sought to be a bridge-builder, to give voice to the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people, and to strengthen the Organization itself.
“Promoting sustainable development
One of the Secretary-General’s first major initiatives was the 2007 Climate Change Summit, followed by extensive diplomatic efforts that have helped put the issue at the forefront of the global agenda. Subsequent efforts to focus on the world’s main anti-poverty targets, the Millennium Development Goals, have generated more than $60 billion in pledges, with a special emphasis on Africa and the new Global Strategy on Women’s and Children’s Health. At the height of the food, energy and economic crises in 2008, the Secretary-General successfully appealed to the G20 for a $1 trillion financing package for developing countries and took other steps to guide the international response and protect the vulnerable and poor.
Mr. Ban took office on 1 January 2007. On 21 June 2011, he was unanimously re-elected by the General Assembly and will continue to serve until 31 December 2016. Highlights of his tenure include:
One of the Secretary-General’s first major initiatives was the 2007 Climate Change Summit, followed by extensive diplomatic efforts that have helped put the issue at the forefront of the global agenda. Subsequent efforts to focus on the world’s main anti-poverty targets, the Millennium Development Goals, have generated more than $60 billion in pledges, with a special emphasis on Africa and the new Global Strategy on Women’s and Children’s Health. At the height of the food, energy and economic crises in 2008, the Secretary-General successfully appealed to the G20 for a $1 trillion financing package for developing countries and took other steps to guide the international response and protect the vulnerable and poor.
UN (AGAIN) hero?
dougieh,
I should add that the UN has consistently refused regular demands for an outside audit of how it spends the money that passes through it, and how much actually ends up where it was intended. Human nature being what it is [“Men are bad unless compelled to be good.” ~N. Machiavelli], it is not surprising that the UN has morphed into an unaccountable kleptocracy.
Very little of the $billions that pass through the UN help the poor. Rather, the money ends up in the pockets of political leaders in return for their support of the corrupt UN.