A couple of disturbing developments have occurred in recent days in the exciting and expanding field of global warming.
First, new data shows that 2007 was the second warmest year on record (for those of you keeping score, another group of scientists says it was only the fifth warmest. WHOOPIE!). Both groups, however, are in agreement that seven of the eight warmest years on record have occurred since 2001.
The second item concerns Antarctica. For years, it has been assumed that the continent and its massive ice sheet were largely immune from global warming. New satellite mapping data, however, now suggests otherwise. And since Antarctica holds 90% of the world's ice, large scale melting there would have dire consequences for sea levels around the world.
There are skeptics out there who will continue to argue that global warming is not occurring. Or, IF it is occurring, it has not yet been linked to mankind's activities.
To be blunt, those people are retards.
What more proof do they need? The data is there, staring us in the face. The mechanism behind global warming is very well understood. To simply deny its existence doesn't cut it. Provide us with some compelling proof that the consensus of the world's scientific community is wrong! But to just say "I don't buy it" without looking at the facts is not a legitimate argument. It's just plain stupid.
On the other hand, there may actually be a scientific basis for the skeptics' denials. Rising levels of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere could be displacing the oxygen in their brains, thereby causing a massive die-off of neurons.
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