Monday, January 21, 2008

New Poll 1/21/08

First of all congrats to Soda for dominating the vote from last weeks poll with over 52% of the vote. Soda easily outdistanced Pop in a somewhat surprising vote. Thanks to all who voted.

Thank you also for all the good suggestions in comments and by e-mail for a poll this week. After taking a look at all of them I decided that the poll for this week should come from something that AbsolutGator had me post in response to Grape Nutz' Ask Doc and the Mt. Cat question. It seems that Absolut took issue with Nutz' stance that global warming may exist. There seems to be some bit of controversy surrounding this issue so what better idea for the next poll question?

What do you think about global warming? Please vote on the right hand side of the page for one of the 3 options available. Global warming may be possible, global warming is a hoax, or I don't care screw the environment.

Let's see if this generates a few votes....

-Doc

44 comments:

The Mountain Cat said...

I smear my face with the Manhattan corner white sauce to protect myself from the ultra violet rays caused by global warming.

Anonymous said...

LOL! Vin, you have issues...

The Mountain Cat said...

In the summer I use the hot sauce too.

Dan Pangburn said...

Climate obviously has changed and will continue to change. The observation that ice is melting, which can look dramatic on TV, does not show that human activity is the cause. The assertion that humans are or ever can have a significant influence on climate by limiting the use of fossil fuel (a.k.a. limiting human production of carbon dioxide) is not supported by any historical record. The only implication that carbon dioxide level has a significant effect on climate comes from huge but still incomplete computer programs that attempt to predict future climate.

Avoid the group-think and de facto censorship by Climate Scientists. Directly interrogate official government data that taxpayers have paid for from ORNL and NOAA as follows:

If the carbon dioxide level from Lawdome, Antarctica http://cdiac.ornl.gov/ftp/trends/co2/lawdome.combined.dat is graphed on the same time scale as fossil fuel usage from http://cdiac.ornl.gov/trends/emis/tre_glob.htm it is discovered that the current carbon dioxide level increase started about 1750, a century before any significant fossil fuel use.

If average earth temperature since 1880 from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/anomalies/anomalies.html is graphed on the same time scale as fossil fuel use it is discovered that there is no correlation between rising fossil fuel use and average global temperature at least until 1976.

The asserted hypothesis that, since 1976, increasing carbon dioxide level has caused the temperature to rise is refuted by the carbon dioxide level from http://cdiac.ornl.gov/trends/co2/vostok.html and earth temperature from http://cdiac.ornl.gov/ftp/trends/temp/vostok/vostok.1999.temp.dat determined from the Vostok, Antarctica ice cores. If these are graphed on a higher resolution time scale it is discovered that the change in atmospheric carbon dioxide level lags earth temperature change by hundreds of years.

If Lawdome and recent carbon dioxide data and Vostok and recent temperature are plotted on the same graph since 1000 AD (or before) it is observed that temperature oscillates up to plus or minus 1.5 degrees Celsius (half pitch about 100 yr) while carbon dioxide level remains essentially unchanged (between 9000BC and 1750AD). This will also show that the average global temperature 200 years ago was about the same as now, 400 years ago was significantly higher than now and current rate of temperature change is fairly typical. Recent measurements show that average earth temperatures in 2006 and 2007 were actually lower than in 1998.

For most of the history of earth carbon dioxide level has been several times higher than it is at the present as shown at http://www.geocraft.com/WVFossils/Reference_Docs/Geocarb_III-Berner.pdf .

The conclusion from all this is that carbon dioxide change does not cause significant climate change. Actions based on the human-caused global warming mistake put freedom and prosperity at risk.

Jay said...

It pretty much seems to me that there is some sort of climate change going on. Now, whether or not that is "global warming" caused by man I have no idea.

Doc said...

See - I thought we might get some interesting discussion here...

Doc said...

Jay - It was either global warming or what New TV should Doc get for the Super Bowl? - This might get a tiny bit more discussion.... BTW I think I am going to go with an LG Plasma

Karen said...

This is a hard question for me. I know that humans are certainly hurting the environment in some ways, but I think the historical cyclical weather patterns are a factor also. I do think that the issue of "global warming" has been exploited by the media and politicians.

Jill said...

I'm not sure what to believe but I'm really enjoying the comments. :)

The AbsolutGator said...

Dan and Karen - Thanks for not being swayed by the media! They keep stating their headlines like the hoax is a fact. I'm glad to see not everyone if falling for it.

Let's take a look at an interestingly not-so-well known thing I learned in college and apply it to this past weekend's football games. The ozone layer ebbs in and out like the ocean has tides. It runs on roughly a twenty year cycle. Coldest games in NFL history: 1962, 1985, and 2008.

Climate changes on a cyclical basis and it has been on a warming trend for 6,000 years. Many scientists actually believe we are at the end of that cycle and will see cooling (not to be confused w/ global cooling from the 1980's) begin.

The Mountain Cat said...

I also use Parkay as suntan lotion. This way I will look nice and crispy on those summer days just like Kramer.

Anonymous said...

TMC - is the hot sauce in the summer so you can get a little color??

Parkay?? Why not just use "butter"??

Dana said...

I'm with Karen on this one. Although I have no doubt we have had a negative impact on the environment, I also know that the media and politicians seem to focus on that and skim right over the things we are doing *right* for the environment.

I too, know that there are cyclical weather patterns. Is this something we should be aware of? Sure. Is it something we should be all doom-and-gloom over? Not a chance.

Doc said...

So it's not possible that human beings who created millions and millions of gasoline powered engines have anything to with anything.... It's all just cows farting right ?

The Mountain Cat said...

Cow farts burnt a hole in the side of my barn. That stuff is pretty toxic!

DirkStar said...

1. Dan Pangburn is an idiot.

2. Jesus H.Christ on a unicycle is Dan Pangburn an blithering idiot.

3. Did I mention that Dan Pangburn is a freakin idiot?

Yes, global warming is real. As scientists are now discovering it is a problem occurring at a much faster rate than previously believed.

As we now know from the the sub-prime meltdown crises, the stock market collapse and the quagmire of the war in Iraq, just because the NeoCons choose to ignore the truth don't mean it won't sneak up on em' and penis whip em' in their beady-eyed little faces.

4. God damn, I just can't believe what a freakin idiot Dan Pangborn is...

DirkStar said...

Oh, and I didn't vote because there is no D# all of the above...

Jesus God, that guy Dan Pangburn is an idiot...

He must be real gay too spouting off that kind of Christian conservative clap trap.

Why I'll bet he's smoking crack with a gay hooker at this very minute.

In a church vestibule...

With the gay hooker dressed all up in acolyte robes.

And a thong...

DirkStar said...

Jesus, that Dan guy just gets on my last nerve...

Doc said...

Woaaaah calm down Dirk - It will be ok buddy!

YIKES !!

DirkStar said...

Sorry, it's just that, that, that Dan Wangburn is such a freaking idiot...

DirkStar said...

What was the question again?

Doc said...

Dan just registered with Blogger today... Methinks he is trying to conceal his identity...

The Mountain Cat said...

Dirkstar, I've got two words for you: Sheik Yerbouti.

DirkStar said...

My momma always says that people like Dan Wangporn is like a box of Christian conservative candies; just because they is all covered in sweet white chocolate on the outside don't mean the shit they is filled with is any tastier.

Jahooni said...

Dirkstar needs a HUG today. I can tell....

DirkStar said...

mountain cat - I'm sheiking all over...

DirkStar said...

Jahooni - I already left a comment for you in the Giants post...

DirkStar said...

Man,don't you all believe in good old fashioned sarcastic fun?

Doc said...

LOL - Dirky you practice sarcasm at it's highest form... LOL!

The AbsolutGator said...

Dirkstar - Your 'at a faster rate' comment is exactly what I have a problem with. All you hear from the lib left media is that the Antartic is melting at a faster rate than ever. First, it has been melting for 6,000 years...it is not a new phenomenon! Second, it is now freezing at faster rate than ever. If you are going to site one side, site the other.

The Antartic makes up 90% of the earth's glaciers. Guess how many glaciers there are? Over 150,000! In the Antartic, only the Antartic Ice Shelf has shown any significant temperature rise and that only accounts for 2% of the Antartic. The rest of it is thickening; up to 6 miles thick by some estimates.

Don't get me wrong, we are not doing our environment any favors, but don't try and put all the blame on mankind.

DirkStar said...

Gator - Are you kidding me?

Germany's glaciers, gone...

Most of the other world glaciers are nearly gone.

Do you want to pretend Greenland is not melting too?

Spouting conservative B.S. does not make it true.

Towing the "party line" does not change objective fact.

If your belief was true we'd be entering another ice age...

We ain't.

Jahooni said...

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ;-)

The AbsolutGator said...

Dirk - Calm your little alarmist fingers and don't put words in my mouth. I succinctly said that this change in climate is not new. Worshipers of this theory and Al Gore's farce of a film want us to believe that this warming trend has no end, even though the graph he shows proves that every other warming trend has!

And if anyone is 'towing the line' or 'jumping on the bandwagon', it is you! How can you say that something so contested is an 'objective fact'? Probably because MoveOn.org says its real.

DirkStar said...

Gator, who is putting words in whose mouth?

Go outside of the United States and start doing some serious non-biased research.


We're very late to the show on this one...

Stop listening to the Rush man...

DirkStar said...

Gator - go pick up a little film called, Who killed the Electric car."

Watch it between viewings of the Greatest Story Ever Told...

Yes, Heston is hot, but I think you'd learn something from watching another film.

DirkStar said...

Hey guys, how about a more mellow topic?

Maybe gun control?

Doc said...

Ok now we are all friends here. We just have contrasting view points... Good idea Dirk how about gun control... J/K !!

The AbsolutGator said...

I don't listen to Rush; Neil ticks me off as much as he makes me laugh; Sean is okay, but likes tooting his own horn too much. Stop trying to pigeon hole me and my beliefs.

Go outside the country? No thanks. Been there, done that, and like it much better here. Europe and Asia have nothing on the US (I do wish we would annex the Caribbean, not just P.R.!).

BTW, there is only way you get my .357 and 20 gauge!

Let's put this one to bed and agree to disagree.

The AbsolutGator said...

Doc - I think we poked the badger w/ this one. (Okay, you brought the badger and I poked it, so what!)

Plasma TV sounds good to me. Just get it up before the Superbowl on Feb. 17th! (Thats the day of the Daytona 500 to any non-NASCAR fans out there.)

Doc said...

Absolut - I found a deal at Best Buy tonight. I am going to sleep on it before buying. BTW - DirectTV is turning into a big rip off.

Anonymous said...

Southern Hemisphere sea ice area is the highest it's been since satellites started measuring the data in 1979:

http://arctic.atmos.uiuc.edu/cryosphere/IMAGES/current.area.south.jpg

Schmoop said...

GW is probably happening but not in the last couple of days here. It is butt cold. Cheers!!

Tink said...

Aw man, I missed the Soda/Pop survey! Here they just call it "Coke". Everything is a "Coke", Sprite, Dr. Pepper, Pepsi. It took awhile to get used to it.

Dana said...

I told you the "Do you fold or wad your toilet paper?" was a far better choice of poll questions!