Climate change deniers, Flat-Earthers, and conspiracy theorists

The overwhelming evidence from scientists around the world is that the earth is warming owing to human activity, mostly but not exclusively because of the emitting of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

For those who deny the science, or who fulminate against it, there is very little that rational argument can do by way of convincing them.

There are creationists, Flat-Earthers, conspiracy theorists and all kinds of people who hold views that are not rationally tenable but they hold them with the unshakeable faith of true believers.

Happily in the field of climate change, they are dwindling in number — the evidence politically for which is that there is no political market for them or else a political party would be trying to capture it.

None do any more because the market is so small.

Globe and Mail columnist Jeffrey Simpson hints at his low opinion of climate change deniers. C’mon, Jeffrey, tell us how you really feel!

[N.B. Today is Blog Action Day. This is the event’s inaugural year. Bloggers have been asked to post on an issue of their choice pertaining to the environment.]

Simpson is the co-author, along with Mark Jaccard and Nic Rivers, of Hot Air: Meeting Canada’s Climate Change Challenge. He summarizes the book’s policy prescription as follows:

The North American car manufacturers have compiled a very sorry record on emissions — the worst part of which was successfully lobbying the U.S. government to classify SUVS as trucks, rather than cars, thereby loosening vehicle emission standards for them. …

What we argue in the book is that a carbon management regime has to be imposed on vehicles. Companies will be given fleet emissions standards they must meet. If they don’t, they pay a whopping big tax.

Each year, or every three-to-five years, the standard is lowered. It will be up to the companies to decide how to meet the standard, by which mix of vehicles and fuels.

Over time, this will transform the cars on the road into high-efficiency fossil fuel fleets with hybrids, electric cars and perhaps hydrogen-fuelled ones.

We are going to continue to live in a society in which vehicles will be the principal means of personal transit, but we can’t accept the emission problems that these kind of vehicles cause.