It’s been interesting, it’s been challenging, and it’s been exhausting. It has also been a bit surreal. What follows is a combination of my experiences and events taken from news reports and social media.
Let’s start with my arrival at the airport Monday morning after a red-eye flight. Leaving baggage claim, the first thing I see is a TV reporter doing a report from in front of an information kiosk for COP25.
Then on ride from the airport to the hotel, a couple of billboards touting “climate emergency” or “climate crisis”. I didn’t get photos of those since I could not get a clear shot from the shuttle, but there’s this one from Greenpeace covering up some legitimate and paid for advertising. I guess they don’t like cars.
Here are some other photos. The policia were everywhere, they really put the “Cop” in COP25.
Inside, they really lay out the welcome mat for you. I have no idea what “climate debt” is, but it’s probably just another excuse to extract money.
The world on ice….nice imagery, but just as stupid as the previous photo.
Time for action? Hmm seems like every conference says that. Yet, the world is unmoved it seems:
These kids apparently didn’t get the action memo:
Here, some extinction rebellion people did something. This report from AFP will have to suffice because I didn’t want to get close to any of these people:
UPDATE: AFP Blocked the video from appearing on WUWT, so when you press play, you’ll get a notice. However, you still can view it on YouTube by following the link directly: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsuZY_xpi7M
They like to hand out awards at these events, here’s some kids getting awards on behalf of their countries for daring to keep the lights on:
Then, there were the ubiquitous polar bears. I’m not sure how they fit into nuclear energy, but I’ll take it:
Nancy Pelosi and Sheldon Whitehouse showed up with an entourage of like minded political simpletons and made some blah blah claims to make it look like the U.S. really hasn’t left the 2015 Paris Climate Accord:
Here is what she said:
source: https://www.speaker.gov/newsroom/12319-1
“Today, our delegation concluded a successful two-day visit to COP25 in Madrid with a message on behalf of the U.S. Congress of ‘We’re still in,’” Speaker Pelosi said. “Combating the climate crisis is the existential threat of our time and it was essential that our delegation stand with international partners, who are continuing to build upon and solidify their commitments to meet the Paris Agreement’s goals.”
Ummm, riiiight. That ship didn’t sail, it already sank. And for the record, President Trump did in fact start the process to pull the U.S. out of that quagmire. I think Pelosi is holding onto the hope that Trump will be impeached or un-elected before the one-year withdrawal deadline is up.
Sheldon Whitehouse had to get his licks in too, citing the imaginary funding from “big oil”.
Then there was Greta Thunberg, and the media frenzy around all that. This video from Euronews sums up the non-event of fossil fueled chase boats trying to get a glimpse of the eco-saint-in-waiting pretty well:
There was lots of shouting from the McKibbenites too:
While all this circus action was going on, I was involved in a live video feed sponsored by The Heartland Institute. Here is Dr. Will Happer, former science adviser to President Trump:
And, we made the news in the local newspaper in Madrid, the “El Confidencial” ran an in-depth piece on The Heartland Institute live feed.
I somehow managed to capture front-and-center, the headline says:
Skeptic counter-summit in Madrid: “Where is the weather emergency? There isn’t one!”
In the photo above, Heartland’s James Taylor is on the left, and on the right is hurricane researcher Stanley Goldenberg who has his head down because he’s typing a response to some troll on the YouTube Q&A feed.
This is what they had to say about me:
Translated:
Some, such as Anthony Watts, a former television meteorologist who became a successful blogger within the skeptical sphere, supported the existence of climate change although they claimed that the homogenization of data by scientists was nothing more than a manipulation to present temperature rises. as much more pronounced in the name of the algorithm. “Where is the climatic emergency?”, He asked himself, “there really isn’t one: they take pristine data and modify it in the name of homogenization, thus moving from a mild warming to an alarming warming.”
Where is the weather emergency? There really isn’t.
Watts wondered why all those scientists and activists at COP25 insisted on denying this evidence of theirs: “They think they are on a mission.”
source: https://www.elconfidencial.com/tecnologia/ciencia/2019-12-04/contracumbre-escepticos-negacionistas-cop25_2363471/
When my live feed presentation is ready on YouTube, I’ll add it.
In short, here’s my impression of COP25:
It was a whole lot of hot air talking about cooling the planet, shouting it is “time for action”, while putting out hands asking for money.
The conference seemed subdued compared to the bigger shindigs of Copenhagen in 2009 (which ClimateGate successfully skewered) and Paris in 2015 which got hamstrung by Donald Trump a year later.
Perhaps it was due to the last-minute switch from Chile, perhaps people are realizing these conferences are pointless.
For certain, we live in interesting times.
Next week I’m off to the AGU convention in San Francisco. But, I have to shop for galoshes first.
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Here in the UK an XR protestor dressed as a bee has glued himself to the Lib-Dem battlebus – the Lib-dems are as green as you can get without being Green and the battlebus is electric. No-one is safe!
Even Greenpeace put habitat loss and pathogens before climate change as reasons for decline in bee populations, this nutter puts it first.
Tens of thousands of dollars in anti-science propaganda on display, just between the airport and the conference.
Signs of a scam when they have access to the amounts of money needed to fund that nonsense.
Thanks for the report.
Many of the activists appear to be young, say 20 or so. Lots of money flowing to support these UN Parties.
At that age I sometimes didn’t have enough money for a bus ticket, so made a few trips as a hitchhiker. They are well outfitted for the cold. Nice hats for the folks on The catamaran, La Vagabonde.
And these folks want money from the rest of us to pay a dubious (non-existing) debt.
Kiss off Doomers.
COPs may be pointless but the elites qwont give up on their jollies that easily. Sadly we UK taxpayers have to foot the bill for the next one. I doubt riots in Glasgow will put a stop to it.
I to imagine a prolonged peaceful coexistence between these Authoritarian lying Leftists and Americans.
This story can not end well.
Just in time for COP25:
https://hosted.ap.org/article/9898308e485f8dea65adb699cb2054a0/climate-simulations-are-mostly-accurate-study-finds
Where’s Steve McIntyre when you need him?
I think Steve McIntyre would puke.
It is as stupid as saying in a*b=f that f is only dependent on a.
They said the average score of the models’ was 69%. Whoop de do! How did they do on the tropical tropospheric hot spot? Or lack thereof.
The recent efforts made by you, Anthony, and by others have been excellent!
Please take a look at the Bossmaker website out of Amsterdam.
We’re in the final phase where those who have been complicit in propping up and benefitting financially from the deceptions will be openly identified and brought to justice.
https://bossmaker.nl
Take a look at what they are saying about corruption in the energy sector.
Meanwhile in Lisbon:
“Greta Thunberg Warns that People Underestimate ‘the Force of Angry Kids’”
I thought President Trump said something in direction of Greta being such a happy young woman – somehow I love Trump’s dry humor.
Interesting. So, St. Greta has now become “Greta Vader”. She really has turned to the dark side.
His comment is even more amusing (in a doleful sort of way) if you’ve read anything about the family that Greta springs from – or her earlier activities:
https://notrickszone.com/2019/10/26/german-portrait-of-the-thunberg-ernman-family-acutely-dysfunctional-an-infinitely-sad-family-history/
The first question I would ask is how the pay-for-play situation is in Madrid this week. As I recall, in Copenhagen 2009 the selection was bountiful and excellent.
The phrase “skeptical sphere” has a nice ring to it. 😉
For lefty causes the sign makers sure make money during these events. The make some very pretty signs, so who pays for them?
UN?
So, Australia is equal worst. As an Aussie, I am proud to win this award, but it is probably not deserved. We are one of the few countries that will actually reduce our emissions and meet our Paris targets. We have not built any (that is zero) coal fired power stations in the last decade and all new power generation in this time has been wind and solar. We also have the highest domestic roof top solar installation in the world. Yes. as a country we believe in self harm.
COP25 should be renamed HUBRIS25.
Humans do NOT control the climate.
Humans do NOT control atmospheric CO2 levels.
Climate is a chaotic process and not some kind of (on average) thermal engine.
The climate changes as it REACTS to environmental changes about it. The largest environmental variables are solar and oceanic changes, and these two parameters initiate later atmospheric changes that cause greater climate variability than all other environmental put together.
The very idea that humans ‘know’ why, what, and how the sun and the oceans vary is testament to the level of hubris that UN ‘climate science™’ propagandizes on the peoples of the world. In reality they (Climate Scientists) know very little, and certainly do not understand to any significant degree, how interconnected are the climate parameters and processes.
Saint Greta is late for the party, because there’s apparently not enough wind over the Atlantic. That means she’ll have X days less available to save the world when she gets there.
Although Speaker Pelosi and Senator Whitehouse have no real power to re-commit the USA to the Paris accords, they did emit several tons of CO2 in planes on their way over, for no useful purpose. One side benefit of Pelosi’s trip to Spain–she’s not in Washington trying to impeach President Trump!
Saint Greta has yet to respond to the fact that yacht crew members flew from Europe to the USA in order to sail her back. The same thing happened on the out ward journey. There would have been less flights overall had she flown herself (but no headlines).
Fact-check: Over 100% of climate zombies prefer protest signs created from 100% fossil fuels.
O/T …I was looking through and comparing different graphs one of which was the MEI. From my saved folder I used MEI from 12/1/18 (last one prior to V2) for the purpose. Then I wanted the more current MEI, and so saved the recent V2 of the MEI. It then crossed my mind to cross compare the MEI with V2 MEI. What reason would there be for so altering the past data?
Some quick examples of significant changes, ie the 97/98 El Nino peaks at 3.0 C on the original. V2 shows the peak of 2.5 C. Original MEI shows first peak of 97/98 El Nino close to 1 2018, and a second smaller peak 9 or 10 months later. V2 shows the first peak as smaller, and a year later a second larger peak. How can such a severe change be justified. The entire graph has been changed along the same lines. Every El Nino has been minimized in its relationship to the following La Nina. And that has been exaggerated because every La Nina has been changed to a slightly colder temp on every low point, ie 2010 La Nina of -1.9 C on the MEI drops to -2.4 C on V2. Does this mean that for the decades prior that all of those scientists who gathered the MEI data had been wrong?
Concerning climate justice. Based on the paleoclimate record and the work done with models, the climate change that we have been experiencing caused by the sun and the oceans over which mankind has no control. Despite the hype, there is no real evidence that CO2 has any effect on climate and there is plenty of scientific rationale to support the conclusion that the climate sensitivity of CO2 is zero. So the entity responsible for any climate related problems is Mother Nature. Lots of luck on collecting a judgment fro Mother Nature.
Seems lik“El Confidencial” gave a refreshingly honest report about you, based on the translation given here.
I wonder if they also realize that US foreign policy is the purview of the President, Secretary of State, and the Senate, and not Nancy Pelosi?
Australia wins the CAN ‘Fossil’ award?!
WOOOOO!!!!
IN YOUR FACE REST OF WORLD!!!
Oi! Oi! Oi!
It’s been a big day, we got last in global academic standards too! “Not Yet Satisfactory!”
damn right!!
thats a first prize to be proud of;-)))
cooooeeee cobber boing boing!!
Saint Greta has yet to respond to the fact that yacht crew members flew from Europe to the US in order to sail her back. The same happened on the outward journey. Had she flown herself, there would have been less flights overall (but no headlines).
Her holiness winks at the naughtiness and hands out indulgences by the fistful.
Anthony I give you an A+ for guts. Some of those people on the left have become dangerously psychotic. They are not tolerant of free speech if it conflicts with their notions. Your life could be at risk around them.
Oh no. Thunberg’s catamaran runs out of wind and motors the last stretch. Can’t be late for the circus.
They look all bundled up and cold for December 2 in Madrid
no idea what “climate debt” is, but it’s probably just another excuse to extract money –
“Climate debt” is extortion to keep them green gangstas satisfied.
These kids apparently didn’t get the action memo:
Photo from my friend Keely Drukala of Heartland
: seemingly a photograph of the REAL 3rd world loosers no one gives a 2nd look.