February 27, 2002 - The morning weather girl at KATU, with the admiring support of the other intellectual giants on the set, once more demonstrated that there isn't a working brain in Portland television.  Using cuts from a famous leftwing special interest group that is known for its artistic interpretation of data, she warned us of the calamitous future awaiting us if we drive the cars we like, live in dwellings larger than a dumpster and, oh, manufacture anything, ever again, anywhere in America.  The dreaded greenhouse gasses, you know. 

Here is a current story from the BBC
 

Sceptics denounce climate science 'lie'
US and UK scientists say climate studies do not prove human activities are warming the world. They say rising greenhouse gas emissions may not be the main factor in global warming. They argue that temperature rise projections this century are "unknown and unknowable". They claim it is "a media myth" to suppose that only a few scientists share their scepticism.  The scientists, a group convened by the American George C. Marshall Institute, first published their report in the US.  The US group included ... Richard Lindzen, professor of meteorology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 
 

The world temperature, by the way, has either been going up or going down since the planet formed.  We are quite fortunate that it has been going up geologically lately, since when it goes down the planet becomes an ice sheet down to the 45th parallel.  (Portland is under hundreds of feet of snow ice.  Salem enjoys a climate similar to present-day Siberia.)  So, climate change isn't a new condition.

Rhonda says all the human-caused heat is going to melt the ice caps and flood our coastlines  Why we're minutes away from it!  Since Portland is about 65 feet above sea level, I was shocked that she wasn't wearing hip waders. (Certainly, all of us should when watching KATU News.)

The BBC isn't as sure about the melting as she is.

Ice 'thickens' in West Antarctica  Parts of the ice sheet that covers West Antarctica may be getting thicker, not thinner, as scientists have feared. (BBC report circa January 2002)  Note: 3/23/02  A big patch of Antarctic ice just collapsed into the sea.  All mainstream media outlets are trumpeting this as further proof of global warming, but these oceanic ice shelfs build up and collapse on a periodic basis.  In fact the over-water ice sheets on the western side grow and shrink every year.  And, they fall into the sea every year!  You can see it in photos taken from space. That, folks, is where icebergs come from.  So, this latest attempt to frighten you is just another in a long series of inept interpretations of natural events that serve a political agenda. (The "expert" shown in the KGW report on this had a mini-mohican haircut. All serious 21st Century "scientists" have one of those.  The best ones are transvestites and eat nothing but tofu.  Hollywood insists on it.) 

The point is not that Rhonda Shelby, or Rhonda Fleming for that matter, believes the Earth is about to melt as a result of SUV emissions, and has two flaming liberal physicians on tape backing her up.   The forces of evil (my side) have a document signed by 15,000 scientists who say such claims are a bunch of crap.

The point is that Rhonda Shelby should take a course in journalism, and then come back to KATU and explain what it's all about to the news department.  When there is major dispute concerning an issue -- and the link above proves there is a body of world scientists who think the Man-generated global warming theory is hogwash -- a professional reporter doing a straight news piece mentions that fact.

How odd that KATU always mentions those who dispute an issue when those who disagree are liberals.  How odd that when it's the other way around, KATU quite often forgets to point out that there even is another side.

All this took place, by the way, on a morning when Oregon has a record mountain snowpack, and according to the ABC New York staff, record low temperatures were chilling the South.  (KATU is ABC's local affiliate station.) 

LL

© 2002 Oregon Magazine