An Inconvenient Lie?

[funscout 11]

Oops, just as Al Gore wins a Nobel Peace Prize, a truck driver in Great Britain has filed suit to prevent Gore''s film from being shown in Enland''s public schools. Problems with showing this film in the Public schools are:

 

"1. The film is a political work and promotes only one side of the argument.

2. If teachers present the film without making this plain they may in breach of section 406 of the Education Act 1996 and guilty of political indoctrination.

3. Eleven inaccuracies have to be specifically drawn to the attention of school children."

 

You can read about the 11 inaccuracies on Newsbusters'' website:

 

http://newsbusters.org/node/16209/print

 

It''s too bad this didn''t come out earlier, so my nieces in California wouldn''t have been harassed by their teachers when they declining to watch "An Inconvenient Truth" in school.

 

I wonder if we can get this documentary out of U.S. schools, as well.

[LongHaul 10]

Lets get something straight here. "The Government" refereed to in this article is the government of Great Britain. The credentials of the "Governments expert" are not given and the background of the case are not given. Let's all think back to the Reagan days when Secretary of the Interior James Watt and his experts justified lumbering the National Forest because trees produce oxygen which is a poisonous gas. Just because the "Governments expert" could not substantiate the claims made buy the documentary does not meanthose claimswere false.

For the record I think Gore went overboard and, to put it nicely, has stretched the facts. I agree that the documentary should not be presented as fact but as an opinion. As for subjecting our students to matters of opinion let us all remember that a Democratic Republic is not the only form of government yet Communism, Socialism, Theocracies, Monarchies and the rest get little class time. Should students be allowed to refuse classes that don't give equal time to all forms of government on this planet?

LongHaul(This message has been edited by LongHaul)

[eisely 13]

I am a global warming skeptic. Recently it was revealed that NASA had erred in the way it was calculating temperatures over the years and was ultimately forced to correct the data. No publicity for that though.

 

I look at Gore''s film as another propaganda piece in the same league as Michael Moore''s output. I don''t think Gore has stooped to Moore''s level, but it is propaganda nevertheless. I don''t mind Gore''s film being shown in schools as long as the competing views are given equal time.

[BrentAllen 10]

A more serious blow to the GW crowd, NASA just came out with a report that the melting of the Arctic ice is being caused by changing wind patterns, not warmer temperatures.

http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/quikscat-20071001.html

 

The Peace Prize has now been awarded to Yassir Arrafat, Jimmy Carter and Al Gore. Could it lose any more credibility? It is now just a joke of an award, purely political.

[Beavah 205]

Yah, hmmm.... I think it''s important that truck drivers and courts set the agenda for scientific education in Britain''s schools. Maybe we can catch up to ''em on international tests and competitiveness that way.

 

Amazin'' the modern neo-con willingness to ignore data in order to hold on to what it wants/thinks is right.

 

BA, the Arctic perennial sea-ice results you list are scary evidence of ongoing global warming. The fact that the acceleration of melting the past two years is attributable to unique and new atmospheric patterns that started just in the last 10 years shows how the warming trend is changing atmospheric patterns (the last 10 years were da warmest on record) in ways which further accelerate rather than damp the warming.

 

It''s a scary result. The models were off, but they were too conservative. The warming is worse because it''s being accelerated by atmospheric changes.

 

Like any popular movie, Inconvenient Truth simplifies the underlyin'' science for the layman. In so doing, it does "lie" in the same way that any simplification lies by being too simplistic. That''s different than those that ignore the data and best analysis in order to create doubt so as to bolster a political agenda.

 

Beavah

[Trevorum 24]

Those who deny the fact of global climate change are, by and large, the same as those who deny the fact of biological evolution. It''s the same mind-set.

[BrentAllen 10]

Trev,

Same as those who believe humans are causing GW are, by and large, part of the "blame America first" crowd, who think we are to blame for the 9/11 attacks and for all of the world''s problems.

[funscout 11]

It''s interesting that some of us are willing to look at both sides of an issue, while others stick to their point no matter what evidence is shown. Based on some studies, I DO believe global warming is happening. Based on other studies, I think maybe it''s NOT happening. I have an open mind on the subject. I am willing to look at ALL studies instead of just one side. It''s too bad Al Gore didn''t look at all the studies before he made his documentary. He is not an expert on this issue and neither am I.

 

By the way, I didn''t realize I was a neo-con. I don''t care what I get called, I know what I am, in my heart. If that''s a neo-con, then I guess neo-cons are good. If neo-cons are not good, then I''m not a neo-con. Oh, aren''t labels fun!?

 

And Beavah, don''t tell me you are a snob and look down on truck drivers? No, I know you aren''t. Sometimes it takes someone who can think outside the box, to state the obvious. I''m reminded of the Emperor''s New Clothes where it took a child to state the obvious. Every one in that fable went along with the idea because an important person said it was so. If Al Gore had instead insisted there was no global warming, I''m sure he would have just as many followers who took his word over that of true experts.

[GernBlansten 10]

Kudos to the Gore man!

The fourth American president to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Joins the ranks of Teddy Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson and Jimmy Carter. Glorious day to be an American isn't it? I sure like it when our guys do good.(This message has been edited by GernBlansten)

[RangerT 10]

funscout and Brent

you both falsely accuse others of not looking at both sides when both of you just shove the GOP bull at everyone else. If GW had come up with the concept you would both be patting yourselves on the back in support of it, of course we all know the possibility of GW ever being that articulate about anything, a big ZERO. Beavah made some excellent points but both of you are too prejudice to try and see both sides.

 

Brent and funscout if you ever took any physical science in college you would have learned that changing wind patterns alone could not cause the damage that we are seeing now, try watching NOVA instead of the WWE once in awhile you might learn a thing or two. If Gore has done nothing else he has brought this worldwide concern to the global community and only with a worldwide effort can this problem be solved. Kudos Al!

[evmori 11]

When was Al Gore the President?

 

Al Gore is a classic homer! He invented the internet, too! Remember!

 

Ed Mori

1 Peter 4:10

[funscout 11]

I DO look at both sides. If I only looked at the supportive studies, and ignored all others, then I wouldn''t have posted this. Even though I believe global warming IS occurring, I am willing to look at studies that show that it is not. It''s too bad others are not willing to look at both sides.

 

If George Bush had come up with an Inconvenient Truth, I still would not have wanted it shown in the schools, since it is not fact, but theory, and only shows ONE side of the theory. It does not show the scientists'' theories who do not believe global warming is happening.

 

I DO disagree with Bush on some things, such as illegal immigration. Anyone who knows me, knows that I am very disappointed in Bush''s failure to do anything to stop illegal immigration.

 

I also disagreed with some of Bush''s "No Child Left Behind" policies. There are some kids who will never read, write, etc. because they are mentally challenged and I was disappointed that Bush didn''t take that in to account.

 

Perhaps I sound like I am not taking Gore''s position into account, but it''s not his position that I object to the most, it''s the fact that he makes himself out to be an expert, when he is not. He should have looked at both sides of the issue before making his documentary. I would have been just as upset if George Bush had done something like that.

 

Well, I know what I believe, and it''s a free country, so you are free to believe what you will, about me. Isn''t it great that we can even have debates like this? In some countries any opposing views would be shot down, literally!

[GernBlansten 10]

Although technically never sworn in as 43 president, he was elected until the activist supreme court stepped in and took it away from him.

Good on Al! Good on Americans! We are the good guys.

[funscout 11]

That''s right, Gern, we Americans ARE the good guys! Let''s not forget that even when we disagree with each other, we are all still Americans, and Americans are GOOD!

 

Hey, here''s an idea. Okay, so I''m not a truck driver from Great Britain, but I think I''m still qualified to throw out an unscientific idea.

 

How about if we ask all able bodied people in the world to hold their breath at the exact same time, for 30 seconds or more? Do you think the reduction in CO2 emissions would be enough to bring the global temperature down a notch? Of course, this is just one side of a theory, so feel free to chime in with an opposing view.

[Aquila 10]

>>>Although technically never sworn in as 43 president, he was elected until the activist supreme court stepped in and took it away from him.