5 ms·

BBC shunned me for denying climate change

16 points by gibsonf1 18y ago

alecco 18y ago
A Daily Express article about a TV botanist talking about climate change... On HN? Sorry, no up.
- cdr 18y ago
  No kidding. Flagged. A story about Michael Crichton dying is not open season on climate change conspiracy.
- fallentimes 18y ago
  Flagged. What the heck is going on today? I think I've flagged more articles today than I have the past two weeks.
  - tdavis 18y ago
    I'm rubbing off on you.
- yters 18y ago
  Why does someone have to be a climate scientist to analyze climate data? Anyways, the points he makes do not seem loony, or at least not loony enough to require BBC to shun him. Finally, we have to do something about this automatic "controversial = trolling" shutdown. Being rational and levelheaded does not mean avoiding controversy. A good forum does not necessitate that nothing difficult is discussed, but that when difficult subjects are discussed they are handled in a constructive manner.
  - Tichy 18y ago
    He does not make any points, besides saying "in my opinion there is no man-made global warming". It is well known that there are cycles of global temperature, I was even taught so at school, 25 years ago it was already known. What pro-global warming people claim is that even taking those cycles into account, something is amiss. I have no way to judge it, but overall it seems unlikely to me that human activity on the planet has no effect whatsoever.
  - bootload 18y ago
    "... Why does someone have to be a climate scientist to analyze climate data? ..." True. Bellamy is also looking at empirical evidence. Looking at what is happening in the ecosystem is another form of research. He's also a bit of a lefty ratbag and I'm sure this also plays some part in it. Interesting to note how Attenborough, Oxford educated and establishment to the core has been repeating the same message. It is also reported he changed his mind on this topic quite a few times ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bellamy#Views_on_global_warming http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bellamy#Views_on_global_w... I also know Bellamy was one of those lefty ratbags being arrested demonstrating & not letting a corrupt Tasmanian government (Australias smallest, most southern state) rip up the Franklin River all those years back on December 14th, 1982 for a hydro dam ~ http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2008/07/01/2291193.htm http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2008/07/01/2291193.htm World needs more Bellamys ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bellamy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bellamy
  - alecco 18y ago
    Because this isn't peer-reviewed research. There are many reasons for having standard procedures to publish scientific work (theories.) I love discussion, as long it isn't a time waster on basics. You don't peer review on BBC or MSM. It creates a false debate confusing people. And Daily Express is usually full of exaggerations and fallacies. Also, I don't see very well the HN worthy angle. But that's just me.
    - yters 18y ago
      I think people upvote it b/c a number of people here consider global warming skepticism to be one of those "things that can't be said" that pg mentioned in an essay, and think this article is evidence supporting that view.
ars 18y ago
When I see that you need laws and social pressure to force people to believe something, then I start to have major doubts about that thing. If something is real it speaks for itself and you don't need social pressure to say so.
- msie 18y ago
  "If something is real it speaks for itself..." There's a lot of physical phenomena out there that doesn't speak for itself. It requires scientists to speak for them.
  - ars 18y ago
    But the scientists simply present the info - they don't campaign for it. That's the difference.
- khafra 18y ago
  The Flat Earth Society doesn't get a lot of credulous media attention either--don't mistake correlation for causation. PG's essay on taboos carried a lot of insight, but it may not be applicable here.

16 points by gibsonf1 18y ago

alecco 18y ago

A Daily Express article about a TV botanist talking about climate change... On HN? Sorry, no up.

cdr 18y ago
No kidding. Flagged. A story about Michael Crichton dying is not open season on climate change conspiracy.
fallentimes 18y ago
Flagged. What the heck is going on today? I think I've flagged more articles today than I have the past two weeks.
- tdavis 18y ago
  I'm rubbing off on you.
yters 18y ago
Why does someone have to be a climate scientist to analyze climate data? Anyways, the points he makes do not seem loony, or at least not loony enough to require BBC to shun him. Finally, we have to do something about this automatic "controversial = trolling" shutdown. Being rational and levelheaded does not mean avoiding controversy. A good forum does not necessitate that nothing difficult is discussed, but that when difficult subjects are discussed they are handled in a constructive manner.
- Tichy 18y ago
  He does not make any points, besides saying "in my opinion there is no man-made global warming". It is well known that there are cycles of global temperature, I was even taught so at school, 25 years ago it was already known. What pro-global warming people claim is that even taking those cycles into account, something is amiss. I have no way to judge it, but overall it seems unlikely to me that human activity on the planet has no effect whatsoever.
- bootload 18y ago
  "... Why does someone have to be a climate scientist to analyze climate data? ..." True. Bellamy is also looking at empirical evidence. Looking at what is happening in the ecosystem is another form of research. He's also a bit of a lefty ratbag and I'm sure this also plays some part in it. Interesting to note how Attenborough, Oxford educated and establishment to the core has been repeating the same message. It is also reported he changed his mind on this topic quite a few times ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bellamy#Views_on_global_warming http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bellamy#Views_on_global_w... I also know Bellamy was one of those lefty ratbags being arrested demonstrating & not letting a corrupt Tasmanian government (Australias smallest, most southern state) rip up the Franklin River all those years back on December 14th, 1982 for a hydro dam ~ http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2008/07/01/2291193.htm http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2008/07/01/2291193.htm World needs more Bellamys ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bellamy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bellamy
- alecco 18y ago
  Because this isn't peer-reviewed research. There are many reasons for having standard procedures to publish scientific work (theories.) I love discussion, as long it isn't a time waster on basics. You don't peer review on BBC or MSM. It creates a false debate confusing people. And Daily Express is usually full of exaggerations and fallacies. Also, I don't see very well the HN worthy angle. But that's just me.
  - yters 18y ago
    I think people upvote it b/c a number of people here consider global warming skepticism to be one of those "things that can't be said" that pg mentioned in an essay, and think this article is evidence supporting that view.

ars 18y ago

When I see that you need laws and social pressure to force people to believe something, then I start to have major doubts about that thing. If something is real it speaks for itself and you don't need social pressure to say so.

msie 18y ago
"If something is real it speaks for itself..." There's a lot of physical phenomena out there that doesn't speak for itself. It requires scientists to speak for them.
- ars 18y ago
  But the scientists simply present the info - they don't campaign for it. That's the difference.
khafra 18y ago
The Flat Earth Society doesn't get a lot of credulous media attention either--don't mistake correlation for causation. PG's essay on taboos carried a lot of insight, but it may not be applicable here.