With all the excitement of COP21, which of course incites denier frenzy, it's worth recognizing a few articles that have effectively put a lid on denier attacks.
Climate scientist Michael MacCracken published a debunking of the Ridley and Peiser WSJ column that claimed there is still debate over the fundamentals of climate science. MacCracken has a detailed response, but his conclusion is especially worth reading, where he says that "following Ridley and Peiser’s advice and aiming for the deteriorating world that will result from continued reliance on fossil fuels will literally be like following the lemmings over the cliff." Carbon Brief also exposes Ridley by asking a group of scientists to correct the transcript of an interview Ridley gave on BBC. This resulted in an annotated version of the interview showing scientists' corrections to Ridley’s many mistakes.
Here’s a grab bag of some other notable, recently published pieces:
- The American Wind Energy Association posted a blog collecting some of the many, many fact checks needed of statements by fossil fuel funded author and “journalist”, Robert Bryce.
- Mike Mann penned a great oped in the New York Times on the Lamar Smith witch-hunts. Mann's perspective—as someone who’s been subject to just this sort of persecution—is uniquely informative.
- The International Energy Agency challenged Bjorn Lomborg’s serial misrepresentation of their work, calling his claims “absolute rubbish.”
Meanwhile, Exxon is still under the microscope. A piece in the Huffington Post outlines the climate denial Exxon has funded over the years, and a video contrasts Exxon's public statements with actual science. Along those lines, but expanding the scope of his investigation, John Mashey highlights some of the history of Big Oil and Big Tobacco’s funding of denial efforts.
Finally, Peter Dykstra at the Daily Climate recounts how deniers are getting more unhinged as they are pushed to the fringes of respectable society. Dykstra covers some of the more shocking examples of denier nastiness in a piece asking if we’ll “reach peak denial soon?”
As much fun as it is writing these roundups, we certainly hope that the peak of denial comes soon. Considering how high it seems Mt. Denial has risen, the ride down should be thrilling. (Though we’d argue that denial peaked with Climategate, and has been waning since all the investigations disproved the deniers’ conspiracy theories.)
---—
Top Climate and Clean Energy Stories:
Watch This Navy Admiral Destroy Ted Cruz's Climate Myths | Titley shot back that the satellite measurements—which are frequently touted by climate change deniers—have a number of significant problems.
U.S. Lawmakers Press Oil Companies on What They Knew About Climate Change | In the Dec. 7 letter, representatives ask a pivotal question of the fossil fuel companies: what did they know about the risks of global warming and when did they know it
Lord Lawson's climate think-tank under review after adviser offers to write paper for sham oil company | Exclusive: Charity Commission investigating a range of 'potential concerns' about the Global Warming Policy Foundation
Feeling of Optimism at Paris Climate Talks Despite Disagreement | More than 180 nations submitted plans explaining how they would address climate change in their own countries in the lead up to Paris, only leaving negotiators to deal with the broader framework once they arrived.
U.S. Pledges $400 Million for Climate to Close Rift With India - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry pledged to double funding to countries struggling to adapt to climate change to more than $800 million
Activists arrested in Louvre oil protests | The group, clad in black, walked barefoot through an “oil spill” created by molasses poured on the museum’s marble floor.
Autumn Was Warmest on Record For Lower 48 | That heat across the U.S. fits the global picture for the year, with 2015 expected to best 2014 as the hottest year in the books.
