Yes, the scientific community has started to come out of the closet. The political closet that is. Not that we shouldn't support gay scientists. Anyway, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, made up of 262 groups, said the bad word. (read from the Daily Grist, Feb. 20) They came out this week saying that climate change is caused by human activities, and well.. that ain't a good thing. This of course comes on the heels of the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which included scientists from 92 countries, which concluded with 90% certainty that humans have been the biggest cause of global warming. This up from 60% certainty in 2001. (Source: NY Times article, Feb. 2)
Hm. And what does our government say? Here's Bush's plan on Climate Change from Whitehouse.gov. It's pretty substantial, and promises a lot. Of course, it's from Feb. 2002, and not much has changed. And his Clear Skies Initiative had weaker regulation than the Clean Air Act of 1990, despite the fact that we have better technology and knowledge of the health affects today. And his climate change cabinet, headed by Cheney, is comprised of Industry bigwigs that weaken EPA regulations. Crikey!
But, I guess we should be thankful that anything's happening at all. Nixon was a reluctant environmentalist, and ended up being our most environmentally friendly president we've had. So perhaps Bush can turn around, despite his reluctance and his clients. After all, the Bush Administration is smart and saavy, no matter how many people call them dumb and slow. They're just smart and saavy for a different side. Blast!
Jeff Parker Cartoon from this website.
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