Guest essay by Eric Worrall
h/t The Spectator – Guardian author John Gibbons has written an extraordinary piece which blames climate denial on old white people.
Climate deniers want to protect the status quo that made them rich
Sceptics prefer to reject regulations to combat global warming and remain indifferent to the havoc it will wreak on future generations
From my vantage point outside the glass doors, the sea of grey hair and balding pates had the appearance of a golf society event or an active retirement group. Instead, it was the inaugural meeting of Ireland’s first climate denial group, the self-styled Irish Climate Science Forum (ICSF) in Dublin in May. All media were barred from attending.
Its guest speaker was the retired physicist and noted US climate contrarian, Richard Lindzen. His jeremiad against the “narrative of hysteria” on climate change was lapped up by an audience largely composed of male engineers and meteorologists – mostly retired. This demographic profile of attendees at climate denier meetings has been replicated in London, Washington and elsewhere.
…
Short-termism and self-interest is part of the answer. A 2012 study in Nature Climate Change presented evidence of “how remarkably well-equipped ordinary individuals are to discern which stances towards scientific information secure their personal interests”.
This is surely only half the explanation. A 2007 study by Kahan et al on risk perception identified “atypically high levels of technological and environmental risk acceptance among white males”. An earlier paper teased out a similar point: “Perhaps white males see less risk in the world because they create, manage, control and benefit from so much of it.” Others, who have not enjoyed such an armchair ride in life, report far higher levels of risk aversion.
Another 2011 paper observed uncontroversially that “conservative white males are likely to favour protection of the current industrial capitalist order which has historically served them well”. It added that “heightened emotional and psychic investment in defending in-group claims may translate into misperceived understanding about problems like climate change that threaten the continued order of the system.”
A paper earlier this year from Vanderbilt University pinpointed what motivates many who choose to reject climate change: not science denial, but “regulation phobia”. Most deniers accept science in general, and even pride themselves on their science literacy, however, combatting climate change means more regulations and, the paper says, “demands a transformation of internalised attitudes”. This, the authors conclude, “has produced what can fairly be described as a phobic reaction among many people”
…
I have an alternative theory.
The middle age engineers and meteorologists in that room in Ireland, and other similar gatherings, were taught how to think for themselves, back in an age when schools were focussed on education.
We learned our history – we learned that democracy is fragile, that sometimes people trade freedom for safety, even when the threat is imaginary.
We learned we should not believe everything we read – that people who call themselves scientists sometimes lie about their work.
We learned that it is OK to evaluate the evidence for ourselves, to reach our own conclusions.
And yes, we also learned that racial stereotyping is silly and wrong; that not all climate skeptics are white.
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What is the Muslim take on climate change? In one or two generations, they will be in charge in the UK and EU at least. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgL2CGDBYd4
Al Jazeera regularly publishes strongly climate alarmist viewpoints.
eg
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/11/01/al-jazeera-climate-deniers-costing-400000-lives-year/
Obviously they don’t speak for all Muslims, any more than CNN speaks for all Americans.
Isn’t Al Jazeera owned by the Saudis? Of course they’d be against energy independence of the west.
‘
Qatar, not Saudi Arabia, Rhoda. The Saudi’s are so upset with Al Jazeera among other actions by Qatar they are currently holding a blockade and boycott.
Call me what ever you want – Meh.
When the narrative and bullshit doesn’t fit the observable trends and data, color this ol engineer skeptical.
Whatever you old white guy! (-;
There is no end to the loonies screaming racism. It’s incredible how totally stupid and clueless these people are. When you drag in racism, you might as well put up a banner saying “I know I’m wrong and I’m desperate”.
+1
Leftists/Socialists divide people into little groups, which they want to control as their powerbase, and there always has to be a Bad Guy, in this case the White Man, they can flog, to make it look like they are fighting the tyranny of the majority group in society and defending the “little guy”.
Keep in mind, the Leftists/Socialists *always* blame someone else, other than themselves, for all of society’s problems.
When in doubt, the Left always reverts to racebaiting as their final answer.
“Others, who have not enjoyed such an armchair ride in life, report far higher levels of risk aversion”
Bloody hard armchair 🙁
Absolutely.
Thanks to this aptly named Gibbons (with apologies to our many simian friends), I now realise that I have spent my entire life riding in an armchair.
And strange to say that my parents and grandparents and their parents all seem to have had an amazingly cushy life as well.
Funny how much we all seem to have achieved whilst riding armchairs from the most humble beginnings through war, tempest, armchair -fighting not only well armed opponents (many of which were obviously by their race, themselves bloody pampered armchair riders) but ignorant savages into the bargain (without an armchair between them on which to ride).
And my indolent ancestors seem to have had the gall to rise from crushing poverty to become doctors, scientists, engineers (gasp!!), teachers (lots of them!), NCOs and officers in army and navy. Without any silver spoons in sight. And despite coming (on my father’s side) from an Anglo-Indian background.
Just goes to show what cushy lives they all had and how none of them became even tollerably rich apart from in intelligence, humanity and experience. And in the quiet knowledge that they had improved the lives and prospects of so many others.
The Gibbons of this world no doubt have much to be ashamed of – their fathers, their Country, their parents’s beliefs. Would that they could all be back in those halcyon days, dancing round maypoles in the snow.
Better than earning your crust writing drivel for a failing crapsheet like the Grauniad.
Poor little petals wouldn’t have a clue what a “hard ride” is.
All most of the AGW alarmista have had is a soft armchair ride….
….. thanks mostly to “old white men”. !!
…say an old white privilege male.
See how effortless it is to win an arguements if you are a snowflake.
“From my vantage point outside the glass doors, the sea of grey hair and balding pates had the appearance of a golf society event or an active retirement group …”(Gibbons).
===================================
Over at Alarmism Central™ DesmogUK (“clearing the PR pollution”) your intrepid reporter Gibbons describes the Irish Climate Science Forum (ICSF) as “secretive” but managed to take this micro spy-camera snap from outside the glass doors, possible disguised as a hatcheck girl:
“Old and Wise” … that is a well known saying … “young and wise” … not so much
This evening I’m kind of identifying as a climate alarmist. Which bathroom do I use again?
Stick with being a photon. No one will be able to localize you in which space.
Reductio Ad Absurdum
It can’t be the fault of “White” people, since all “White” people have surely originated from Africa. Therefore, certainly the sins of the fathers have passed to the sons:
“It is only in Europe that you will find large numbers of blondes and redheads, brunettes, pale skins and olive skins, blueeyed and green-eyed people living together in the same communities. Across the rest of the world people are almost uniformly darkhaired and dark-eyed.
Why this should be remains unknown, and in particular how such mutations can have arisen so quickly since Europe was colonised by Africans just a few tens of thousands of years ago.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-511473/All-blue-eyed-people-traced-ancestor-lived-10-000-years-ago-near-Black-Sea.html#ixzz4tTMfk8W
“sy computing September 22, 2017 at 9:29 pm
Reductio Ad Absurdum
It can’t be the fault of “White” people, since all “White” people have surely originated from Africa.”
mDNA suggests that is true.
Patrick:
“mDNA suggests that is true.”
I’m aware. I meant the absurd part to pertain to:
“Therefore, certainly the sins of the fathers have passed to the sons:”
“sy computing September 22, 2017 at 11:08 pm”
At last! Someone who knows what I am talking about. Thank you!. So few even consider this even with evidence.
I prefer cash or check…3.5% surcharge on credit cards.
😉
I read an article yesterday that claimed blue eyes can be traced back to one individual. Supposedly, all blue-eyed people share the same one ancestor.
It’s highly unlikely that a bunch of people would have the same mutation.
TA:
I saw that article as well.
Oh my have I married my sister??
I though blue eyes and red hair were attributable to our Neanderthal ancestors.
Anomalous snow is falling very early in California and Alberta:
http://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-us-canada-41370699/snow-comes-early-to-california
https://www.iceagenow.info/unprecedented-early-season-snowfall-in-alberta/
Snow is also white, politically incorrect, and as old as the earth.
…and has the privilege of going through diverse phases.
It used to be that the elders in all tribes were the repository of history and knowledge, they were listened to and the tribal leaders came from their ranks. They were the data base of the tribes.
(young=below 50)
Now societies have become youth worshipping, with the consequent rashness and hubris. Look at North Korea, and the bizzare government in Greece presently, who act like a highscool committtee. Isn;t even Trump pretending at youth?
Yes, it used to be that a tribal member’s very survival depended on those, older, experieced members telling them what to do and what not to do.
As for Trump, the people around him can’t keep up with him. He may not be young in years, but he sure doesn’t show it.
Global Warming only proves there re many many very stupid people in the World. Now why doesn’t that surprise me?
“Global Warming only proves there are many, many very stupid people in the World.”
Sadly, I have to agree with you. There is a lot of misinformation floating around in too many people’s heads, and they apparently don’t have the ability to separate the wheat from the chaff.
That is funny : “Climate deniers want to protect the status quo that made them rich” – so climate affirmers want to change status quo to become poor.
I’m a skeptic but don’t see a way to make any money out of it. Can someone help me out here? I could use a little extra cash.
We could get together and market homeopathic voodoo accupuncture/s
Is he actually claiming that everyone who is a climate skeptic is rich????
I resent the idea of being called a climate denier. I am not a climate denier.
Firstly it belittles victims of the Holocaust by rating a lack of faith in people’s work with clear cut evidence of being not of the standard an engineer would rate as minimally acceptable as being equally important as the death of millions of people and those doing it should feel total shame.
Secondly I believe climate exists. I see evidence of it every day.
Thirdly. What I do not believe in is the pronouncements of those charlatans who call themselves climate scientists. They call themselves scientists and since they call it science I have a right to demand external funding and verification of any aspect of their work before I believe it.
As an amateur I have tried to measure temperatures and found that it is impossible to get accurate to one degree the temperature across even a relatively small garden. One major reason for the failing is that any passive enclosure now that we have air quality that was a dream in even pre industrial society solar effects on measurement is more extreme than it used to be especially in the presence of different ground characteristics. Even dried grass compared to green areas means we get nearly half a degree difference and gravel in one corner of the garden and concrete in the other result in reading changes depending on wind direction even though more than the stated distance from the measuring point in the standard requirement That far too many readings are taken in areas of now urban but originally rural locations is ignored by these sloppy so called scientists.
Perhaps it is just that the old have learnt not to trust blindly and require successful prediction as the only real reason for trusting a soothsayer or doom monger who demands faith not enquiry into the basis of their predictions.
Never mind an accurate temperature in a garden. I have two thermometers in my lounge. When in the same place, they read the same temperature, When they are separated they are different by up to a degree C.
SteveT
La inteligencia,la educación,el conocimiento,el respeto,la cultura,la honradez,el amor,el perdón,la caridad,no depende si eres blanco o negro,si eres rico o pobre,si eres joven o viejo;DEPENDE de que quieres ser o que quieres hacer con tu vida. El problema del Calentamiento Global es que fue explicado por alguien que no sabia de lo que se trataba,solo se imaginaba,suponía y termino explicando mal y lo “peor” es que “no quieren rectificar” no quieren aceptar que se equivocaron. Pero no todo esta mal,hay muchas cosas buenas y en lo que no se equivocaron es que el CALENTAMIENTO GLOBAL ES CIERTO. En mi Teoría demuestro que el Calentamiento Global – Cambio Climático se da cada fin de siglo 1980-2020 y lo causan 60% las ERUPCIONES VOLCÁNICAS, 30% SOL,10% HOMBRE. Se termina el Calentamiento Global (se esta terminando) y el CLIMA de este hermoso planeta se debe a 60% SOL, 20% ERUPCIONES VOLCÁNICAS, 20% HOMBRE. El hombre CONTAMINA y eso es algo que no se debe permitir.
Or translated said:
https://www.google.com/search?q=spanish+to+english&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8
In Britain today, old white people are the only ones who have education.
Sadly, true.
The young can’t even manage joined-up writing, still less joined-up thinking.
Not true. Many young people are giving up sciences if they question climate change as they know they cannot get the university grades required if they do not spout the climate change mantra. We are losing good engineers as well from this. Also they see that there is little money or prestige in the sciences as they have in general lost respect of many people I believe largely as a result of the antics of the climate fraternity.
What is most striking tome is that people whose one skill is in making fiction appear true ie actors etc are the biggest and highest profile believers in man made climate change while engineers whose one skill is in applying science to the real world and making things work based on it are the greatest disbelievers. Surely that should tell us something about the nature of this particular field of science.
I think it tells you something about this particular brand of story-telling.
Is this debate coming down to a tussle between technically qualified people, like engineers, who have some idea what is going on, and arts graduates, such as journalists, who have none?
Yes and who has the ear of the public? The Guardian does not even join in the press complaints procedure so it cannot be touched for its racist and ageist articles. It can spread its message to hundreds of thousands while we get a few hundred if we are lucky.
Oh? Arts graduates are morons eh?
Mr. Hill I submit to you I will *destroy* the theory of AGW with my BA: Philosophy quicker and more efficiently than you will do with your BS:MSc:PhD[Whatever] and I will do it with the words of the IPCC itself.
And you?
Philosophy is not Arts.
Its even cooler than fizzix. That’s why they have Metterfizzix. That like – Fizzix, that goes up to eleven!
sy, you have touched on the reason technically qualified people fail to get their points across. The selling of climate change alarmism is just that, selling. Sales 101 teaches you that most people make decisions based on emotions and “what’s in it for me”. Climate change alarmism is clearly based on emotional fear and the desire to appear intelligent and concerned about the future world. Facts just get in the way. Look at all the emotional appeals used by organizations looking for funding: pictures of dirty, hungry children living in shacks; pictures of animals in small cages looking at you with sad eyes; pictures of people with cancer and every other disease looking helpless. All these are intended to entice you to send money. Sales 101 is alive and well in the climate change alarmists corner.
Leo:
“Its even cooler than fizzix. That’s why they have Metterfizzix. That like – Fizzix, that goes up to eleven!”
Nah dude twelve!
It’s like, “Whoa”, that Metterfizzix of Fizzix…what do they call that…”Stringery Theoretically” or whatever…who needs angels, demons, gods and flying dragons!
Tom:
“The selling of climate change alarmism is just that, selling.”
I hadn’t looked at it from the aspect of a Sales pitch, but I can see where you might make that point.
I look at it from a logical perspective. I don’t understand why this shouldn’t be enough to reject the theory outright as pure speculation:
“In sum, a strategy must recognise what is possible. In climate research and modelling, we should recognise that we are dealing with a coupled non-linear chaotic system, and therefore that the long-term prediction of future climate states is not possible. The most we can expect to achieve is the prediction of the probability distribution of the system’s future possible states by the generation of ensembles of model solutions. This reduces climate change to the discernment of significant differences in the statistics of such ensembles. The generation of such model ensembles will require the dedication of greatly increased computer resources and the application of new methods of model diagnosis. Addressing adequately the statistical nature of climate is computationally intensive, but such statistical information is essential.”
http://ipcc.ch/ipccreports/tar/wg1/505.htm
No one needs a STEM degree to understand the above invalidates the proposition of AGW. I don’t need to do any lab experiments. I don’t need to “understand” complex mathematics, physics, climate science, etc.
All I need to do is look at the “Bible” of AGW and notice it contradicts everything they propose to be true.
And of course climate ‘scince’ is full of young none-white , females like Mann.
Pierrehumbert.. Schellnhuber…….. now there you have CRAZY old white men !!
And of course.. Wadhams !!
John Gibbons has declared his hatred against defined groups of people, his motivations and decided to provide them for distribution in a newspaper. And Guardian has decided to disseminate them.
?w=720
Difficult to find a clearer cut case for a court to lift “presumption of innocence” and hold them accountable for inciting race crimes.
This is slightly off topic but seeing as how they introduced the race theme…if you want to annoy these people simply remind them that Slavery was in fact abolished by old, white, Protestant, men!
And they were Republicans…
*shudder!*
Only after slavery was made economically unnecessary by white men who mined coal and built machines that made heavy manual labour no longer economically a mainstay of society.
And English too.
Long before Africans, Arabs and Asians abandoned the practice. In fact they never did.
Plenty of white slaves of course. ‘To the shores of Tripoli;’
Michael Greenwood (1731-1812), a Faversham man enslaved overseas before being ransomed by Britain, is remembered by a plaque at 89 Abbey Street. Greenwood, after being press-ganged in Faversham’s Market Place in 1748, was serving in HMS Lichfield when she was wrecked off Morocco in 1758. He and other survivors were enslaved by the Moors for 17 months until ransomed by Britain. Greenwood kept a captivity diary, now in the possession of descendants in Queensland, Australia. After returning to Faversham, he lived at 89 Abbey Street and worked as an oyster dredger.
http://www.faversham.org/history/wall_plaques_-_people/michael_greenwood.aspx
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbary_slave_trade
Wiki willl have to do as a reference for now, plenty more to look up for those interested.
what is it with the progressive left’s hatred of old people
The guardian wrote that old people stole young people’s future re the Brexit vote.
Progressive liberalism is a cancer in society that needs to be snuffed out
“what is it with the progressive left’s hatred of old people”
I suspect in the mind of the “Regressive”, the aged take valuable resources away from the young, i.e., tax money. And if not tax money, then inherited money.
I personally know a very wealthy Leftist cattle rancher in TX that was charged with caring for his elderly mother suffering from Alzheimer’s.
He called her an “Albatross across his neck” because she cost him a significant portion of his inheritance money to care for her.
He also complained of high taxes. And this from a Progressive Leftist, who should rather be more than willing to share from his great ability to each according to his need!!
Hypocrites.
Yes progressives forget who built the soft lives they enjoy, the old.
I suggest we conscript progressives to go fight ISIS, without air support or tanks.
In the minds of the leftist, it’s always someone else who doesn’t deserve the money they have.
And the reverse appears to be true as well, i.e., the Leftist always does deserve everyone else’s money.
also note the anti male sentiment too, from this completely cucked ideologue
Leftists divide people in under-dog identities and major identities. Major identities may not not complain, i.e. as a white male you may not complain, according to them, if you are being insulted, for example. Males or Whites are not a real majority, but considered one because some places like western fire departments consist of them. Nearsighted is that, but progressivism is a Western thing anyway.
You could complain as a homosexual, even if you were White and Male. However you may not use those identities, but the basis of your trouble may only be the sexual identity.
Progressives see this kind of sexism and racism, identityism, valid and proper, if not even something to strive for. That racism is racism whatever the race of racist and the target of racism, just is not in their dictionary. If you point it out from a dictionary for real, they’ll just say the dictionary was written by a White Male, which not necessarily is true but is a part of their world-view.
Equality of gender means putting women ahead even when it is chrystal clear that equality means all are treated equally.
One of the worst of these is that Germans are supposed to carry more guilt on what Naczis did, and males are supposed to give a head start for women just because pre WWII society was very inequal (and not only against women). A real liberal does not require an identity group member to take guilt on the deeds of the other in the identity group. Like, no liberal requires Muslims to carry the guilt on the prophet number uno marrying a child. No liberal requires that, but many progressives want that White try more as a group. Progressives require only that Whites and Males and Christiams take responsibility over the deeds of other Whites and Males, and Christins. They have a word for this, I guess, because it is an integral part of their leftist agenda. And it is not racism and sexism, but something like the necessary war against patriarchy, or antihegemonial fight, or something like.
Progressivism stinks on aggression, elitism, and virtue-signalling.
In the mind of a leftist, the daughter of a leading black surgeon is deserving of help. While the son of a white coal miner needs to be held back.
All in the name of equality.
I loved this
And there is an aspect the Guardian has not dared to point: It is not just Old school Scientists who are sceptics. Anyone old enough, even and old grandmother like me, can see clearly that the “climate alarmists” want to make us pay for still being alive, and having to be fed, and housed, and warmed. This especially, as we, old people tend to feel the cold , more than the young.
The young would like to strip us of our right to vote, of our money, of our homes… They think they will be better off without us. And most of the tax measures they want to have in place, are going to be hardest for us old people. They do not understand that, with a bit of luck , they too shall end up being old, and feeling cold…
Thank You All very much for this entry.
Sadly it would seem you have spoken truly.
I can only *hope* with all my heart that such an evil, dastardly, and immoral regard of those with hoary head will *not* overtake the American populace.
Matthew 15:4
For God said: ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
Matthew 19:19
“honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.”
Leviticus 19:32
“‘You shall rise up before the grayheaded and honor the aged, and you shall revere your God; I am the LORD.”
Gentry bigotry. Hatred of the elderly. “All blacks are …” is supposed to be offensive, but “all white people are…” and “all old white people are…” is completely okay. Got it.
Leftists tend to see people as members of groups, rather than as individuals.
They also declare that anyone who isn’t a leftist, who does this is racist, sexist, whateverist.
The entire edifice of modern life with science, democracy, rule of law, the vast increase in life expectancy, the feeding of billions who would otherwise has starved and sensitivity to the needs of those who are different was created over the past 500 years by white men, often when they were young.
The authoritarians amongst us, whether of so called left or right, are aware of the power that has accrued to old white men as a result of their past successes and want it for themselves. Thus they must first, somehow, discredit old white men and turn the rest of the populace against them.
No lie or devious strategy is unacceptable to them since authoritarians always believe that their ends justify any means.
Well put, Stephen.