Don't Take The Bait: Climate Change Debate not Settled

Here's the bait: "Don't you believe the globe is warming?"

Implication: How you respond determines whether you're a "denier."

No room for nuance or complexity; no discussion about ramifications, solutions, priorities. Just the gavel and the judgment. Welcome to the brave new world state.

I refuse to take the bait. The globe may be warming, but questions of cause and effect, solutions and priorities are still wide open, in my view.

Here are two short videos that are worth considering, both posted on Prager University's website (I have a few words to say about Prager U following the videos).

The first video, "What They Haven't Told You About Climate Change," is presented by Patrick Moore, co-founder of Greenpeace. Moore's focus has to do with the bigger picture of climate change, putting change over time in perspective and raising questions about man's contribution to global warming. Of course, Greenpeace has completely disassociated itself from Moore, including publishing a statement on its website denouncing Moore as a corporate sell-out. To which I say, What's new? Scientists who question the so-called settled science of climate change do so at their own professional risk, which is probably what accounts for the frequently cited but highly dubious statistic that 95% of scientists agree that climate change is a catastrophic problem.

The second video, "Is Climate Change our Biggest Problem?" is presented by economist Bjorn Lomborg, who is director of the Copenhagen Consensus Center and author of The Skeptical Environmentalist. Lomborg's work, too, has been subject to scrutiny and criticism, and he has been accused of flip-flopping (correcting?) previously-held views and conclusions. The video is useful, I think, in its pragmatism.

"What They Haven't Told You About Climate Change,"presented by Patrick Moore.



"Is Climate Change Our Biggest Problem?" presented by Bjorn Lomborg.




A few comments:

For those who were previously unfamiliar with it, Prager University is not an accredited university. Founded by conservative talk radio host and author Dennis Prager, the site offers professionally-created five-minute videos hosted by experts in a variety of fields. The site is free to visitors. More about their mission and vision here. 

I find Prager U to be a good resource as conversation starters or class-writing assignments. Obviously, most (if not all) of the topics can't addressed fully in 5-minute spots. It's up to visitors to do whatever further research or inquiry they wish. Indeed, if I had any "druthers" as to how Prager U might be improved, I would like to see "For Further Reading" sections listed for each topic presented. 

As for those who would dismiss the views of Moore and Lomborg because they've been denigrated by mainstream media and climate change alarmists as "deniers," I can only say, Don't buy it. I refer you to Kirsten Powers' recent book, The Silencing, which illustrates what she calls the "illiberal" left's tactics of silencing by intimidation. She writes about it here in The Daily Signal. You can read my mini-book review of her book in this June 3, 2015 blog entry here.

The Middle East Problem Explained in Five Minutes

Dennis Prager's five-minute video sums up the conflict succinctly by saying, "it may be the hardest to solve, but it is the easiest to explain." 




What's interesting, listening to this brief presentation, is the news reports yesterday about the Supreme Court's ruling siding with the Obama administration about a Jerusalem passport dispute (see article linked at end of this post), as well as the disturbing kindergarten graduation ceremony at a school in the West Bank where little boys performed on stage wearing military uniforms and carrying weapons and singing a song about Palestine destroying Israel. Here's the video, with the transcript following:

Preschoolers with Toy Guns Parade in West Bank Kindergarten Ceremony 

Transcript: 

On the mountains, behind the hills, within the valleys – you will be defeated, you will be defeated. Whether you come by sea, or by air – you will be crushed, you will be crushed. If you stretch your hand, it will be chopped off. If you just look with your eye, it will be gouged out. The defeated army will be too terrified to come back. We come for you before, and woe betide you if we come back again. You come to this land alive, but you will leave it as body parts. On the mountains, behind the hills, within the valleys – you will be defeated, you will be defeated. Whether you come by land, by sea, or by air – you will be crushed, you will be crushed. 

On the mountains, behind the hills, within the valleys – you will be defeated, you will be defeated. Whether you come by land, by sea, or by air – you will be crushed, you will be crushed. If you stretch your hand, it will be chopped off. If you just look with your eye, it will be gouged out. The defeated army will be too terrified to come back. We come for you before, and woe betide you if we come back again. You come to this land alive, but you will leave it as body parts. 

According to the Middle East Media Research Center who reported on this story, "At a kindergarten graduation ceremony held at Anabta, in the West Bank, pre-schoolers wearing uniforms and carrying toy guns performed a song routine. A picture of Arafat is visible on stage. The kindergarten belongs to the Anabta women's charity association. The performance was broadcast on June 1 on Al-Sheraa TV, a local TV channel in the Tulkarm area. 

I find it helps to visualize, so here's a map of the general region, as well as a closer look at Israel with the West Bank.

Court Sides with President Over Congress in 'Jerusalem' Passport Dispute (Nina Totenberg, NPR, June 8, 2015).

Naiveté, Ignorance, and Idealism: A Dangerous Combination

Breitbart article (below) about Kayla Mueller who was abducted and killed by ISIS paints a different picture of this young woman than I previously understood. 

She seems to have been more in sympathy with the plight of the Palestinians in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which would put her at odds with much of what I believe about this conflict (short version: I do not view Israel as an "occupier"). 

A dangerous combination, naiveté, ignorance, and idealism. 

While I sorrow for her untimely death, and am angry at the slowness and passivity of the Obama administration in terms of responding to the evil that is Islamic State ("we missed rescuing her by this much..."), I'm also disappointed in the fact that this twenty-something literally died for a cause that I don't think she fully understood. Millennials in general, and leftists, in particular, don't tend to listen to both sides of an issue. 

Dennis Prager explains the Middle East problem in five minutes in the video below: 



Perhaps people like Kayla would be less likely to jump on the anti-Israel bandwagon if they learned more about Israel's history. Nevertheless, I am sorry for this loss. Such a brave soul. I wish I had a fraction of her courage. 

Mueller Appears to Have Been Misled, by Joel B. Pollack