Saying something or hearing it over and over does not make it true. For example, let’s say a number of talk show hosts showcase guests who say, “Dogs can speak.” Friends, family, or even you have heard one or more of the hosts repeating that claim. People start talking about it and younger people start Tweeting it (because they don’t actually talk anymore), and Facebook goes wild with the ‘trending’ story. Social media contributors circulate claims their dog speaks to them. This really gets rolling now because the ‘news’ media has picked up the story along with the assorted claims. It’s on the news so it must be true!
However, some people, the sane ones like you and I, know a little something about dogs and perhaps have owned one or more in our lifetime. We ‘know’ dogs don’t speak, at least not in the manner humans typically refer to speech. If we express our opinion on the subject we are labeled skeptics, nuts, or worse; we are cast as the outcasts of current social ideology.
Okay, this may be a little simplistic. But that is the point. We all know dogs, and I’d say the overwhelming majority of ‘we’ agree dogs can’t speak and so we don’t believe that silly claim. Unfortunately the overwhelming majority of us know little to nothing about climate. For eons humankind has discussed and tried to understand the weather (and by extension, climate). Faced with the often repeated ‘authoritative’ claims by ‘experts’ many people tend to be receptive to the ‘facts’ the so-called experts throw around. Once again talk show hosts showcase appearances by ‘experts’, then social media heats up and the ‘news’ media picks up the story. Politicians, who know less about anything except their own self-image, pick up the cause. Impending doom and human tragedy is a big draw.
One large volcanic eruption dwarfs the human contribution to greenhouse gases but we hear little to nothing about that fact. The ‘experts’ pick and choose their facts carefully. Have any idea how many active volcanoes there are on Earth? “There are about 1500 potentially active volcanoes worldwide, aside from the continuous belt of volcanoes on the ocean floor. About 500 of these have erupted in historical time. Many of these are located along the Pacific Rim in what is known as the ‘Ring of Fire.’“ https://www2.usgs.gov/faq/categories/9819/2689
If you are interested in truth and reality don’t swallow everything you read or hear. Check for yourself and objectively listen to differing points of view. To that end, it is worth watching, Do 97 percent of Climate Scientists Really Agree? https://youtu.be/SSrjAXK5pGw
John Traynor
Carefree
