How To Embarrass Yourself: Argue Science with Scientists

Stephen HawkingHere’s a typical story, given the March for Science last weekend.  It’s an example of how our society has come to accept totally illogical garbage, as long as it fits in with what we’d like to believe.

It’s something I saw on Facebook, shared by an old friend from high school.  The claim: CO2 doesn’t cause global warming.  The (fallacious) reasoning:  The entire phenomenon of the warming of the atmosphere is the result of warming the oceans, miles deep, from the sun’s radiation. Again, this is total nonsense, but it’s a good example of how our society has replaced its understanding of and interest in science with grasping onto whatever supportive bullcrap we happen to run across.

I’m not outraged, though perhaps a tad disappointed, that my old friend apparently doesn’t understand the first thing about science.  What blows my mind, however, is that he uses that position of ignorance to promote an idea that flies in the teeth of the work of tens of thousands of top professionals who have made this subject their life’s work.  Did all of these people miss a basic point of physics that most of us learned before we got our driver’s license?  Ah….no.

I don’t have any theories on how to train for marathons, or what dark matter is composed of.  And if I did, I think I would keep them to myself.

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One comment on “How To Embarrass Yourself: Argue Science with Scientists
  1. Silent Running says:

    Craig ,

    Place of acceptance of the irrational and ignorant positions that seem to plague too many of our fellow citizens re global warming is that

    Big Money has a vested interest in continuing the same business model that has run the World – so they cirlce the Wagons, surround the villagers with fear for their nice way of life and they monopolize the air waves and media with distortions on the subject.

    People being frail well they want to beleive what tells them they can have what they think they need or really want ( like excess of everything0 so they accept the lies and distortions and fund a fuzzy way of going into deep denial.

    it s safe to be in Denial we are taught by the culture….many seek Wisdom and enlightenment and many find some and escape the cultrual bondages that are imposed uupon us from birth in a market oriented culture – this type of deviation from logical sound thinking is clearly uinder stood for what it is – negative cultural conditioning – people ar esocial and if the social buzz is denial its comfortable and one will fit in.

    Then when the number of people who think deeply make their break through s and see the pitfalls in denial then we collectively get upset that the others still cling to these false irrational and self limiting mis beliefs….so there it goes …a convert or two a day may be more than we can get …till some natural disasters start

    One could explain the ignorant loyalty to a Buffoon and CON man trump in much the same way it becomes a Cult like experience for them perhaps…etc…

    Don’t trouble your fine mind too long on it my take …it is what it is ! dysfunctional

    later on