Angela's Blog 

Looks like the vote was straight down party lines. Now I know why they say the science is too political. They made it political and not about the science. ... They flip the switch and we are back to the dark ages. The days were superstition and ignorance would dwell deep within the minds of the people. ... The easiest way to control the minds of the people is to keep them uneducated. ... North Korea ring any bells?

...But the Billions of Dollar's in Tax cuts for the Industries responsible for the Co2 Rise and Warmth Globally, shall continue unabated.

This is no way to run a Planet.

nice Post..thanks!

It's ashame, nice North Korea analogy, post #1!

Angela, your answer to my comment on your previous blog was spot-on!

Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is issuing a stern warning to Congress to stop adding unneeded programs and aircraft to the federal budget. :^/

well...the good news here is that the Senate is not dominated by the Flat Earth Party...

Another excellent post Angela!

It is really becoming a bit scary when we consider what might happen next fall if the flat earth (i.e. anti-science) types take over Congress.

Thanks.

Thanks Angela for another informative and timely post. It's a very sad commentary on the state of the U.S. Congress when one political party has allowed itself to be co-opted by fear and ignorance. Apparently they do not understand that the laws of physics can not be legislated....or ignored.

Quoting weatherhistorian:
Another excellent post Angela!

It is really becoming a bit scary when we consider what might happen next fall if the flat earth (i.e. anti-science) types take over Congress.

Thanks.

it frustrates me that I'm only allowed to 'like' this comment once....

When it comes to climate science, the GOP is just as demonstrably wrong as it is about so many other things: women's rights, say, or crime, or guns, or education, or jobs, or the economy, or pretty much anything else. And its position is just as intractable; once they've stubbornly dug in their heels, there's no chance of moving them with any facts, stats, studies, common sense, reason, logic, historical precedent, or sense of decency.

I am this morning at a client's office. A handful of us were standing around sipping coffee a short while ago, and talk invariably turned to the upcoming election. We weren't thirty seconds into that topic before someone mentioned how, if reelected, Obama was going to raise gas prices "to over $8 a gallon" as a way of "shoving global warming down our throats", something I'd heard the group discuss before. I was going to argue, but a) they know where I stand, and b) they wouldn't have been able to hear me over "Fox & Friends" blaring from the TV in the break room. The point being: much as we believers in and followers of the science have truth on our side, there is a huge chunk of the population happily feasting on a nonstop diet of bad, dis, and mis-information. And in large part because of that, folks like Maryland's Congressman Harris are emboldened to spout their incessant streams of nonsensical blather. To put it bluntly: it's what the simpletons want.

We are this close () to a scientific McCarthyism...Christopher is correct: this Fall will tell the story....if the Flat Earth crowd does well, I expect to see Sen. Inhofe waving a handful of papers and screaming "Ladies and gentlemen...I have here a list of over 100 known proponents of climate change working within the Federal government!!!!!!!!" and this time, y'all....I'm not kidding....we are this close ()

Quoting presslord:
We are this close () to a scientific McCarthyism...Christopher is correct: this Fall will tell the story....if the Flat Earth crowd does well, I expect to see Sen. Inhofe waving a handful of papers and screaming "Ladies and gentlemen...I have here a list of over 100 known proponents of climate change working within the Federal government!!!!!!!!" and this time, y'all....I'm not kidding....we are this close ()

Funny you'd mention Inhofe. Did you see his latest howler?

James Inhofe's worst idea ever?

Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), champion of climate denial in the world's most dysfunctional legislative body, has a lot of terrible ideas. But this one may be the worst ever: He wants to require Senate confirmation for all of EPA's 10 regional administrators.

...

That law, and Inhofe's proposal, are not, contra conservative rhetoric, about "accountability" They are about the fact that Republicans want more ways to hobble the administration and prevent it from accomplishing anything. Just imagine if this Republican Party got the power to block the appointment of all 10 regional EPA administrators. It would cripple the agency.

And that's just what Inhofe wants.

Look....I know this may sound shrill....but I truly believe two groups in this country are very close to being in serious danger: legitimate scientists and gay people...I'd like to see the scientific community follow the example of the gay community....and begin to organize and fund a meaningful resistance....

and by 'danger' I mean exactly that: imminent threat of real harm....

Quoting Neapolitan:
When it comes to climate science, the GOP is just as demonstrably wrong as it is about so many other things:.....

Quoting presslord:
We are this close () to a scientific McCarthyism...

When elected officials, such as Jim Inhofe, claim that "Climate Change is a Hoax" they are commiting crimes against humanity.

Very scary what might happen this Nov.

Quoting presslord:
We are this close () to a scientific McCarthyism...Christopher is correct: this Fall will tell the story....if the Flat Earth crowd does well, I expect to see Sen. Inhofe waving a handful of papers and screaming "Ladies and gentlemen...I have here a list of over 100 known proponents of climate change working within the Federal government!!!!!!!!" and this time, y'all....I'm not kidding....we are this close ()

+1000

I have not ever heard this comparison before. I cannot think of any better way to describe this. Excellent post, presslord!

Ms. Fritz this is very scary. I don't understand how scientific investigation and accepted scientific facts have become so contentious in a partisan way.

I don't think scientists are in as much danger as presslord suggests but I don't doubt that if Republicans gain full control of the government they would defund most environmental research that would serve to disprove their preconceived notions. The whole ostrich in the sand--if Republicans defund environmental research in general and climate research in particular they can say there is no research showing global warming is a danger.

I am no liberal and my voting record is 5-1 for Republican presidents. Unfortunately Republicans have left me and have chosen extremists to set their agenda.

we may very well see careers and reputations of legitimate scientists destroyed...much like the Hollywood blacklists of the 50's....I just don't see how that's much of a step at all from comparing scientists to psychopathic killers....and there is precious little aptitude within the science community for communicating a response...nor is there much framework from which to execute a response...

How about asking the far right bloggers in wunderground if they renounce McCarthyite tactics against scientists and posting their responses here?

Quoting presslord:
we may very well see careers and reputations of legitimate scientists destroyed...much like the Hollywood blacklists of the 50's....I just don't see how that's much of a step at all from comparing scientists to psychopathic killers....and there is precious little aptitude within the science community for communicating a response...nor is there much framework from which to execute a response...

perhaps this begs for a little clarification....traditionally, scientists just aren't great communicators....it's not a criticism...it's just the way it is...and I'll bet big money most scientists would agree...there are, of course, notable anecdotal exceptions...including Jeff Masters...and Angela...who, in spite of her Georgia Tech education, does quite well ;-)

Quoting angelafritz:
Har har.

you'll be glad to know: my nephew is going there this Fall...I'm really trying to be supportive...but have considered mercy killing...

$542,000? Hmm. That's a rather selective choice by the House to eliminate an informational program. NOAA collects and analyzes the data using taxpayer dollars, yet they're not going to be allowed to make that information available to those who paid the bill? Isn't that a bit like paying for a weather satellite, but not funding the communications network required to download the telemetry?

Quoting BaltimoreBrian:
Ms. Fritz this is very scary. I don't understand how scientific investigation and accepted scientific facts have become so contentious in a partisan way.

I think that there are a number of reasons for this becoming a partisan issue, among them being:

1. Reducing CO2 emissions would impact the bottom line for the petrochemical industry, which heavily subsidizes GOP candidates.

2. The libertarian wing of the GOP doesn't even believe in governance at a federal level and hypes the fears that global collaboration on climate issues will result in a world-wide socialist government and loss of sovereignty.

3. The xenophobic wing (Tea Party) doesn't understand or care about the 95% of the world's population that doesn't live in the U.S.

4. Certain Evangelical Fundamentalists who also believe in Creationism believe that since their GOD put the oil in the ground 6000 years ago, it must be good for us.

Please do not consider these comments to be a blanket condemnation of all Republicans or all Christians, many of whom value scientific discovery and the betterment of humanity across the globe.

An Inconvenient Lawsuit: Teenagers Take Global Warming to the CourtsLink

Quoting presslord:
An Inconvenient Lawsuit: Teenagers Take Global Warming to the CourtsLink

Interesting.

I scanned the comments after the article, lots of ignorance, lies and more "hate" then anything else. I do wonder how much of it is "paid for" hate.

They probably weren't happy when told "You can come along for the ride, but you'll have to sit in the back of the bus".

Hey Angela - Good post, it should be emphasized that it is not too late for people to act if everyone calls or writes their Senators.

In the long run, however, it is my belief that NOAA/NWS will survive only if it is deemed to benefit the majority of corporations more than the existence of private weather and climate forecasters. Think of the demise of the former National Bureau of Standards (leaving NIST as its pathetic skeleton) and the massive relative defunding of the USGS as templates for government funding cuts and privatization of organizations that formerly benefited science and the general public welfare.