Climatologist Mike Hulme, who worked at the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit, gets the big picture in a WSJ Europe op-ed. Some excerpts: One thing the episode has made clear is that it has become difficult to disentangle political arguments about climate policies from scientific arguments about the evidence for man-made climate change […]
Author Archive | Jonathan H. Adler
ClimateGate Updates
Last night, the University of East Anglia announced that Phil Jones, a central figure in the e-mails and other documents disclosed last month, would temporarily step aside as head of the Climate Research Unit pending an independent review of the matter. Penn State University has also announced an investigation regarding the conduct of Michael Mann, […]
MIT’s Lindzen on “ClimateGate”
MIT’s Richard Lindzen is one of the world’s leading climate scientists. He is also a climate “skeptic,” rejecting claims that anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases are likely to create a climate catastrophe. Above all others, he is the climate skeptic environmental activists most fear, as he has unimpeachable credentials. As a prominent climate scientist who […]
Sunday Song Lyric
I’m sure you know Adam Sandler’s “Hanukkah Song,” but did you remember that he has a Thanksgiving Song too? It’s almost as funny. Here’s a taste of the lyrics — much funnier sung by Sandler than read. Love to eat turkey ‘Cause it’s good Love to east turkey Like a good boy should ‘Cause it’s […]
“‘We’re the Experts, Trust Us,’ Has Clearly Gone by the Wayside”
The NYT has a follow-up story on the continuing controversy triggered by the leak of e-mails and internal documents from the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit. The story provides a quick summary of the central issues in the controversy. The most serious criticisms leveled at the authors of the e-mail messages revolve around […]
Excess Ethanol
Congress demanded oil refiners use more ethanol, but meeting the federal targets is going to be a problem. Now it’s up to the EPA to ease the mandate. Will they act?
More Responses to the CRU E-mail Leaks
Rajendra K. Pachauri, Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, responds to the leak of e-mails and other documents from the University of East Anglia Climate Research Unit with a statement (posted on Dot Earth). He writes in part: The unfortunate incident that has taken place through illegal hacking of the private communications of […]
Franksgiving
Melanie Kirkpatrick on the Thanksgiving politics of the New Deal.
More Monbiot on CRU E-mail Leak
George Monbiot has a follow-up to yesterday’s column on the lead of e-mails and other documents from the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit. It begins: I have seldom felt so alone. Confronted with crisis, most of the environmentalists I know have gone into denial. The emails hacked from the Climatic Research Unit (CRU) […]
Conservatives Discover Criminal Defendants
The NYT reports on increasing involvement by conservative organizations and business groups on behalf of criminal defendants. While libertarians have long complained about “overcriminalization” and excessive federalization of criminal law, such concerns have gained increasing currency in more traditional conservative circles. This is a good thing. [UPDATE: But not according to Media Matters.] QUICK ADDENDUM: […]
Dean Flier on Health Care Debate
Last week, Harvard Medical School Dean Jeffrey Flier commented on the debate over health care reform. His article begins: As the dean of Harvard Medical School I am frequently asked to comment on the health-reform debate. I’d give it a failing grade. Instead of forthrightly dealing with the fundamental problems, discussion is dominated by rival […]
Monbiot: Leaked CRU Docs a “Major Blow”
Noted environmental writer George Monbiot, author of Heat: How to Stop the Planet from Burning, calls the leaked documents from the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit a “major blow.” On his website and in The Guardian, he writes: The emails extracted by a hacker from the climatic research unit at the University of […]
An Emerging Majority for Marijuana Legalization?
The Washington Post reports on growing support for marijuana legalization. The shift is widely described as generational. A Gallup poll in October found 44 percent of Americans favor full legalization of marijuana — a rise of 13 points since 2000. Gallup said that if public support continues growing at a rate of 1 to 2 […]
NYT Policy on Illegally Acquired Documents
The NYT‘s environmental blog, Dot Earth, covered the disclosure of e-mails and other files from the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit, noted that the files are available on various other website, but did not reproduce any files on its site. As Andrew Revkin explained in the post: The documents appear to have been […]
Puffery Plaintiffs
The NYT reports that more companies are challenging claims made in competitors’ ads. Companies that were once content to fight in grocery-store aisles and on television commercials are now choosing a different route — filing lawsuits and other formal grievances challenging their competitors’ claims. Longtime foes like Pantene and Dove, Science Diet and Iams, AT&T […]