If you believe global warming is cyclical and mostly natural; human contribution is minor and not dangerous; and attempting to prevent human influence by cuts in carbon-dioxide emissions would cost trillions of dollars, trap billions of people in developing countries in poverty, and so do more harm than good … … then you need to know something and be prepared to act: President Barack Obama has said that “the most important policy he could address in his second term is climate change.” … [Read more...]
Climate Policy: Theological, Scientific, and Economic Considerations
A Panel Presentation to the Fourth International Conference on Climate Change Download the full presentation (PDF). I’m grateful to James Taylor, Joe Bast, and the Heartland Institute for asking me to speak. My remarks today in part abridge, condense, and supplement what the Cornwall Alliance has said in a 76-page interdisciplinary research paper we published last December, A Renewed Call to Truth, Prudence, and Protection of the Poor: An Evangelical Examination of the Theology, Science, and … [Read more...]
Prominent Signers of “An Evangelical Declaration on Global Warming”
Read "An Evangelical Declaration on Global Warming." Updated List: Prominent Endorsers of An Evangelical Declaration on Global Warming through January 14, 2010 Organization and title are listed for identification only, and do not imply organizational endorsement. Members listed in italics are climate scientists. Scientists (including 13 Climate Scientists) and Medical Doctors Robert Stephen Adams, M.D., FACOG, private physician John Baumgardner, President, Logos Research … [Read more...]
Facing Fears & Global Warming
With all of the pending disasters blamed on global warming blasting their way through the media, I can understand why many might fear the future climate. We are told emissions of greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide (CO2), are destroying not only polar bears and petunias, but the planet as a whole. If we don’t “stop global warming,” The End will surely come. I am a climate scientist. My research and that of many others does not lead me to be afraid for the climate’s future. However, I am … [Read more...]
Why the UN’s ‘Developed Countries Should Pay’ Theory Is Flawed
[A]lthough greenhouse gas emissions can be blamed on nations based on the location of emission activities, these emissions are the effluvia of civilization and all its activities. In today's interconnected world, economic activity in one country helps provide livelihoods and incomes for many inhabitants elsewhere, and vice versa. A substantial portion of economic growth in developing countries is attributable to trade, remittances, tourism and direct investment from industrialized … [Read more...]
Norman Borlaug: Still Feeding the World
Norman Borlaug just turned 94 – and is still going strong. During the “Eat This” segment of their docu-comedy series BS, Penn Jillette beat Teller in a round of their “Greatest Person in History” card game. Penn needed just one card: Norman Borlaug. This Iowa farm boy and University of Minnesota agriculture graduate lived Thomas Edison’s maxim to the fullest. “Invention,” Edison once remarked, “is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.” Dr. Borlaug did most of his 99% in the sweltering fields of … [Read more...]
Biofuels Forcing World to Ration Food Aid
The World Food Program is preparing to ration food aid for the world's hungriest poor. Why? Primarily because we're burning food in our automobiles. The rich-country mandates for biofuels have doubled and tripled world food prices in less than three years. The World Food Program's costs are rising by millions of dollars per week and the donations aren't, warns WFP executive director Josette Sheeran. The WFP is trying to feed more than 70 million people in 78 countries with voluntary … [Read more...]
If Global Warming Were Real, It Would Mean Fewer Deaths
A seriously hot summer between now and 2017 could claim more than 6,000 lives, the Department of Health report warns. But it also stresses that milder winters mean deaths during this time of year - which far outstrip heat-related mortality - will continue to decline. The report is to help health services prepare for climate change effects. A panel of scientific experts commissioned by the Department of Health and Health Protection Agency (HPA) has looked at the way the UK has responded to … [Read more...]
Humpty Dumpty Policies
Corporate decisions affect a limited number of workers. Government policies, by contrast, affect millions. The drive to eliminate fossil fuels, switch to a CO2-free economy and prevent computer-generated climate disasters could cost countless jobs and impact families all across America. European industries are already reevaluating investment decisions and canceling projects, largely because of an increasingly strict and unpredictable regulatory climate in the EU, according to World Energy … [Read more...]
Testimony delivered before the U.S. Senate
Download the Annotated Testimony or the Short Version (pdf) Oral Testimony of Dr. E. Calvin Beisner to the Environment and Public Works Committee of the United States SenateWednesday, October 20, 2006 Mr. Chairman, members of the Committee, and distinguished guests, thank you for inviting me to speak to you today. Having never before this year been significantly involved in politics other than to vote in elections, it is strange to find myself here. But my moral convictions as a … [Read more...]
