So, why the idiocy? As I pointed out the other day, reporters are generally lazy, but even worse, "For every story, there HAS to be an equal and opposite (aka, "balancing") story, even when there isn't really one." Thus, if 999 scientists say there's gravity, and 1 says that it's actually a bunch of aliens with anal probes forcing them into their flying saucer - and...well, you get the picture - the reporters feel the need to provide "balance" by presenting both "sides" of the story. This is not journalism, it's not responsible, and it's not justifiable in the least bit. It's just lame.
Speaking of lame, how about this from the same article, about Virginia's (lack of) response to global warming:
Virginia is not moving so fast.Local environmentalists were stunned earlier this year when they invited the state's highest environmental officer, Secretary of Natural Resources L. Preston Bryant, to a discussion of global warming and were told that the state does not yet have a policy and that Bryant would not be coming.
"Virginia still doesn't have a global warming plan," said Joshua Lowe, who works on the issue for the state chapter of the Sierra Club, "and they need to get one pretty fast."
State lawmakers earlier this year defeated a bill that would have created a special subcommittee to "study the risks and opportunities created in the Commonwealth as a result of the changing climate."
The bill, sponsored by state Del. Adam Ebbin, a Northern Virginia Democrat, died after one committee hearing.
A bill to study the issue, defeated by flat earth Republicans? Do you see why I care so passionately about getting these people as far away from positions of power as possible? If these people had lived 400 years ago, they would have demanded that Galileo be burned at the stake for his heresy of insisting that the earth revolved around the sun, and not vice versa. Today, they argue that the earth should burn up rather than the remote possibility that we might harm economic growth worse than we are certainly going to harm it - as well as life on this planet in general - if we do nothing about global warming.
Fortunately, we've got state and local leadership on this issue, including from Republicans like Gov. Terminator and Mayor Billionaire, plus Democrats like Paul Ferguson and Gerry Connolly. Now, we need to crank it up to the state level, with Gov. Kaine saying that "The scientific evidence is beyond dispute" on global warming. Now, it's time to act. If Republicans won't help, then as Jim Webb says, it's time to "show them the way." Or, even better, show them the exit door!
And, the kow-towing to Dominion Virginia Power and the coal interests are doing nothing to change this pattern ... NOTHING!!!
We could be investing less money in energy efficiency (negawatts) and reduce loads rather than build power lines and new coal plants.
This requires leadership ... and the fault does not lie fully with the Republicans in the House and Senate.
Have you written a LTE?
Do you plan to?
By the way, to top off the insult, the poll associated with the article is running totally even between 'do something' and 'don't do anything' to reduce global warming impact.
Reading that article makes me want to go wash my hands to get the filth off them.
Okay, please provide one piece of evidence that this is a "burning environmental question". Amid the sloppiness of this travesty of an argument, he doesn't even both to cite Lindzen or some other denialist. He asserts and doesn't provide any evidence of that controversy.
"A survey of Virginia's leaders ... finds that almost everyone believes teh Earth is getting hotter and its climate is changing."
Okay, Harper, where is the 'burning question'? Where???? Everyone agrees with the scientific evidence. Oops .. they "believe" rather than "know" ...
The Denialist in this piece ... Harper, not any of the cited politicians or others.
If Harper wanted to write a controversy piece, that would be over differences over how to deal with Global Warming -- there is legitimate controversy there, legitimate disagreement, real basis for discussion ... not denying reality that is staring us (US) in the face.
Case in point: Al Kamen today (who does lots of original reporting and who I enjoy reading) reported on the possibility of Ashraf Ghani replacing Wolfowitz with nothing more than a rehash of what was on some of the blogs, including this one.
Even so, the buzz around town and overseas was that administration officials had already begun compiling a list of potential replacements for Wolfowitz. The Times of London reported Friday that Ashraf Ghani, a former bank special adviser and the first Afghan finance minister in the post-Taliban government, is near the top of the list.http://www.washingto...Highly regarded by the U.S. defense establishment, Ghani, now chancellor of Kabul University, is credited with overhauling the Afghan economy. He would be the first non-American and the first Muslim to lead the bank.
That adds nothing to the story that first appeared, as I recall, in the Times of London. I e-mailed a contact in the banking community who said Ghani is brilliant. Couldn't Kamen have just made a few phone calls? Ghani taught at Hopkins for years. Someone up there must have something insightful to say.
I know what, Lowell, let's start a rival newspaper, but it will only have an online edition!