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McCain's fake climate science
May. 20th, 2008 05:32 pmEver since I finished writing my book Corrupted Science a little over a year ago, there have been countless instances of my clapping my forehead and muttering foul oaths because yet another classic corruption or misrepresentation of science has been perpetrated by a government (usually the Bush Administration) or by an individual politician. Indeed, I have a bulging file of such stuff to draw on in the fanciful event of my ever being asked to write a Corrupted Science II.
The most popular area of science to be perverted is, obviously, environmental science, with climate change being a primary target for ill informed or deliberately distorting hogwash. Sex education isn't far behind. (Of course, if you count economics as a science we're into a whole new ballpark.)
As a presidential candidate, John McCain has shown his readiness to throw himself wholeheartedly into the same sort of cesspit of science corruption as the outgoing administration, although at least he seems to have cottoned on to the fact that the US public is not entirely ignorant, not entirely stupid. When it comes to climate change, for example, he recognizes that the old lies -- it doesn't matter, or that the jury is still out, or that it's a hoax mounted by climatologists worried they might lose their jobs, or whatever crap next falls out of Il Buce's mouth and miraculously forms itself into a comprehensible sequence -- won't wash any more: McCain has to recognize that global warming is here and now, and he has to pretend to have some relevant policies. If only he weren't so in hock to corporate lobbyists he might even be able genuinely to have such policies; as it is, he's being forced to bluff.
And, since his ignorance of science is almost as great as his contempt for it, his bluff would be hilarious in its inadequacy were the situation not so serious.
These thoughts were brought on by my reading an excellent piece in the environmental webzine Plenty (you can sign up for their useful free e-mail updates) called "McCain’s climate plan falls short". Here's a taster:
. . . it’s refreshing to see a GOP candidate acknowledge climate change, let alone try to tackle the problem: If we take the Bush presidency as our benchmark, the fact that McCain even has a climate strategy is genuinely revolutionary. Unfortunately, though, McCain’s “better way” is pretty small beer: Where McCain’s Democratic rivals would aim to reduce carbon emissions to 80 percent of 1990 levels by mid-century, McCain would aim only for a 60 percent cut - well short of the level of reduction scientists say is needed to halt climate change.
He’d also include a number of business-friendly provisions that would further reduce the impact of his plan. Companies would be allowed to make unlimited use of foreign carbon-offsetting operations, making it far harder to ensure genuine emission reductions. Worse still, McCain would give companies a starter-pack of free carbon credits based on their past emissions records, ensuring massive windfall profits for big polluters and introducing an extra layer of pork for politicians and polluters to scrabble over.
You can read the piece in full at http://www.plentymag.com/blogs/political/2008/05/mccains_climate_plan_falls_sho.php#more.
