Cross posted at The S.N.A.F.U. Principle.
I've an online friend who is convinced that the Conservative attitude towards global warming is stuck in neutral not because they are in denial but because they are simply too dumb to get it.
And, I've been resisting this perspective for awhile, but of late find myself leaning into it with a bit more interest. It's a harsh assessment to be sure, but it does have some merit. Conservatives just don't get the science. And, evidence of this fact is piling up all around.
Certainly, this post shows that to be true. The reality of the Thermohaline circulation seems to elude them for some reason. The fact that a global rise in temperature can cause seasonal temperatures to rise and to fall dramatically is also lost on them. They don't get the science. As Kurt at Flopping Aces puts it:
So which is it? Can they point out that it's a bit warmer then usual during the winter but not point out when it's freakin cold out at other times. Is it a ice age or global warming?
They don't get the science. They don't get that even a small rise in the global water temperature can have a myriad of effects - glacier melt for starters, which is incredibly well researched- that can have an overall affect upon seasonal temperatures, causing it to be unseasonably warm in the winter and then moving straight into a mini ice age in just a few days. They don't get the science.
In general, many Conservatives dismiss the established consensus by citing a minority, and the scientists in that minority are the same people over and over again. Some of them are even paid shills for the oil lobby. Shocking isn't it? In the end, the right simply keeps repeating the same myths over and over and keeps raising the same objections (isn't it global warming or an ice age?) which simply don't engage the consensus science properly. They don't get the science.
This post at another Conservative site is typical of the "nothing is really happening and if it is we can't do anything about it anyway" meme that seems to be growing ever more popular. They also do not get the science.
As Atrios points out, when a professor at a major US university who also happens to be one of the most trafficked Conservative bloggers in the world doesn't get it, we've got problems.
Denial or dumb? Perhaps it is simply a matter of the lemmings waiting for their dear leader to announce it is all true. After all, the Pentagon is on board and has been for a couple of years.
Either way, the end result is that they will be left behind in the dust. As usual.
And of course, when the issue of the science is raised at a Conservative blog, the denial kicks in, as does the attack mode. The intestinal fortitude is low, and you'll be banned for asking questions they can't/don't want to have to deal with.
Pathetic naysayers indeed.