Let’s put the whole idea of “man-made climate change” and “global warming” aside for a moment. Using hydrocarbons (fossil fuels) worked well to get the industrialized world to this stage but these are limited resources. Now we are aware of new technologies, and the technologies with most immediate potential are renewable energies. Renewable energies rely on power already existing inside the Earth’s ecosphere: the energy is there whether it is used or not.

For individual home owners, “switching” to renewable energy sources can make them energy independent. They will be generating all the electricity they need for their home and possibly be able to sell surplus to the grid.

For businesses, it is a smart investment. Once the business no longer pays for its energy needs, it can reallocate the funds towards other endeavors. The larger the business, the more sense it makes, since larger businesses tend to consume huge amounts of electricity. The investment is also good for public relations and company image.

An increase in the number of energy independent homes and businesses will take strain off the power grid. In summer the use of air conditioners will not be a burden. In winter the costs of heating will be less for both the consumer and the supplier.

It will be less likely that populations will face power “brownouts” or “blackouts” if electrical production is spread out. If there are enough energy independent homes and businesses, the chance of grid failure during a natural disaster is reduced. Because of this, there will be less pressure on emergency services, shelters, and energy industry personnel.

Perhaps you have heard of the massive blackout in Rio de Janeiro on November 10^th? The second-largest hydroelectric dam in the World failed, and millions were plunged into darkness. A situation like this makes it very difficult to maintain basic necessities: hospitals, cold food storage, businesses, computer information systems, etc. There is money lost in many areas.

Apparently there was another, albeit smaller, power loss in Rio de Janeiro on November 25^th as part of the system was taken “off line” for repairs. While you might think that hydroelectric power is a renewable energy - and it can be - there are many hydroelectric stations that use coal as part of the energy generation process.

On the other hand, I have mentioned that Spain recently broke the record for electricity generation through wind turbines. Wind gusts bolstered production to create 53% of the entire country’s electricity needs – as much as 11 nuclear power plants. The surplus energy was exported and used to create power reserves in the country’s hydroelectric dams. Oddly enough this event occurred on the weekend right before Rio’s blackout.

Under the current system of acquiring hydrocarbons from limited sources, there is a mentality of “lack” - that there is “not enough”. Huge profits then are made by energy companies who control power grids. All that money getting funneled to a small portion of the population and industrialized structure is incredibly inefficient. The reasons for hoarding resources are many, and are very old (indeed ancient), but we are starting to see that there is strain on global society and it is really to no one’s advantage.

Using renewable energy, if properly implemented, would create a surplus of energy. While this would cause a great deal of economic and industrial restructuring, the question then is: with a surplus of energy, where does industry turn its attention? Perhaps this would finally give us the time and energy required to put towards improving quality of life on the Earth and attention to efforts off of the Earth.

Rio de Janeiro power blackout November 10^th, 2009 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8353878.stm

Rio de Janeiro power loss November 25^th, 2009 http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/nov/25/rio-breakdown-electricity-supply-brazil

Spain’s wind farms exceed nation’s needs November 8^th, 2009 http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/nov/09/spain-national-record-power-windfarms

The grieving process, sometimes known as the 5 Stages of Loss, is a psychological term attributed to documented studies regarding coping mechanisms. The five stages are: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance.

You might notice something strange: when some people talk about environmental issues it sounds like they are in a stage of the grieving process.

Over what are these people grieving? A loss of a lifestyle that they are accustomed to, possibly. They may have the illusion that switching to renewable energy and being more environmentally responsible will necessarily be difficult. They may carry the illusion that people will no longer have an abundant lifestyle.

You can see that different people are in different stages of accepting this “loss”.

1-Denial- “This isn’t happening.”

“Global warming is a sham. The scientist who support the idea of global warming are doing it for attention, publicity, etc. Either that or they are very confused. Maybe they have good intentions but they are skewing the data. The people who want to enact environmental policies are trying to control our lives.”

2-Anger-”Why me?”

“I don’t see anyone else doing anything about global warming. Manufacturers, oil companies, big retail chains… they just worry about the bottom line. Recycling takes too much time - I have to sort things into too many containers! Recycling doesn’t pay for itself – it’s just taxes down the drain. Are people going to tell me I can’t drive my Humvee?”

3-Bargaining- “I can make up for it.”

“At our company we are concerned about the environment, so we contribute 1% of our profits to renewable energy research. Personally, I can off set my carbon footprint with carbon tax credits. As long as we pass laws that address the issue 15 or 20 years from now we should be okay. After all, we have only been recording weather for a few hundred years – how are we to know what the climate is supposed to be like?”

4-Depression- “I can’t see a way out.”

“We are going to have to be taxed heavily for renewable energy to work. We are going to lose jobs in so many industries. The big oil companies will never let renewable energy happen. Renewable energy would ruin our way of life. I’m just one person - I can’t make a difference. “

5-Acceptance- “I guess it really is happening.”

“Wow, I didn’t know the Dead Sea is in danger of disappearing from over-irrigating its source. Didn’t that happen to the Aral Sea by Russia, too? I can remember when I was a kid there wasn’t any smog over the city - I didn’t realize urban expansion created so much pollution. I’ve seen comparison pictures of places like the Greenland ice shelf and Mount Kilimanjaro. For that much ice to melt that fast, there must be something beyond natural climate affecting that.”

If you put these ideas in this perspective, the more you observe the more you will notice: when it comes to global warming many people are in denial. It might be different reasons for different people, but for some reason they can’t cope with the facts.

This is not the first time a society has faced a large change, nor has it been the first time American society has faced a large change. These are just a handful of examples…

• When the Soviet Empire fell (and this grieving may still be ongoing).

• After Civil Rights movement, when intolerant people were “forced” to integrate.

• When people started driving automobiles instead of riding horses.

• When people confronted the idea that the Earth revolved around the Sun.

We can’t get trapped in a mind set that we must sacrifice enormously to make renewable energy a viable replacement for hydrocarbons (fossil fuels). We can’t be pointing out every inconsistency of how things are said when the overall intention promotes positive direction. We need to have everyone “on the same page” for global sustainability of human civilization. We need to Accept that man-made climate change is very real.

Once we can more fully Accept the reality of man-made climate change, then we can begin the Five Stages of Change.

Right Thinking will lead to Right Action.

“PICARD: The economics of the future are slightly different. You see, money no longer exists in the 24th century.”

LILY: You mean, you don’t get paid?

PICARD: The acquisition of wealth is no longer the driving force in our lives.”

- Captain Jean-Luc Picard & Lily Sloane in “Star Trek: First Contact”

* * * * *

Implementing solutions to large-scale problems requires an approach of cooperation, not competition.

Currently, in many fields of thought America insists on competing. It is ingrained into the American ‘way of life’. Competition is good to bring out excellence, but being extremely competitive inside a society undermines its foundational strengths.

What everyone must realize is that when I speak of being extremely competitive inside of a society, I am not just talking about America. The society, everyone must come to realize, is the entirety of human civilization. We are a global society now.

The industrial system is, in part, based on acquiring resources from ‘the outside’ and bringing them in. Increasingly efficient methods of extracting natural resources used by an increasing population are going to have consequences. It becomes clear that the Earth does not have ‘unlimited’ resources to acquire.

This is where reclamation of old resources is required. We cannot Appeal to Tradition simply because it is easier. Complacency is not a substitute for the essential ingenuity required for survival of humanity. We can scheme new ways of inventing capital, digging up the same resources, and playing ‘King of the Hill’, but clearly the “old ways” of doing things aren’t working so well any more.

Many people are feeling restless these days, as if they are missing some puzzle piece in their lives. I would posit to say that what is missing in the lives of people is satisfaction. I have discussed ideas as to why there are problems, but as I said before, we need to stop debating the problems (or that there is a problem) and take action with the
solutions.

“Here we have a Scales that balances two different things… on one side we have gold bars! MMM…mmm! Don’t they look ‘good‘? I’d just like to have some of them gold bars…! …On the other side of the Scales, um, the ENTIRE PLANET! Hmm… hmm… Number one: if we don’t have a Planet… (laughter) …The other reason is, if we do the right thing, then we’re going to create a lot of wealth, and we’re going to create a lot of jobs…” - Al Gore, an Inconvenient Truth

The new game is about creative collaboration. The new way is about co-operation, about balance, about harmony.

We need a new approach as a society, as a civilization, and as a species.

“Once you choose hope, anything’s possible.” - Christopher Reeve

“Reflect upon your present blessings - of which every man has many - not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.” - Charles Dickens

The American Holiday of Thanksgiving is Thursday, November 26th. Regardless of its origins, or whether you agree with the observation of this day, it is a day set aside to be grateful for what you have.

Of course the shadow of consumerism has loomed over American holidays for quite a while. As I had said in a previous article, people tend to think in negative terms first - what they don’t have.

What amazing assumptions people make! For most of human history people have struggled for basic needs. In America many people have these things and they are still not happy. So what do people value? If they are unhappy, apparently they are valuing things that they perceive are hard to achieve.

Rather than live in illusions of what success is in society, of what happiness is in society, of what you must do to “keep up appearances”, look at all the things you already have and be grateful for them. First, however, we must rethink what we value.

If you have a question about the value of things that really matter…

What is the value of happiness? Ask a child at play.

What is the value of success? Ask someone who needs a job.

What is the value of a person’s health? Ask a person who is a long-term health problem.

What is the value of a person’s life? Ask a person who just lost someone.

What is the value of duty? Ask a soldier or veteran.

What is the value of family? Ask a couple that just had a baby.

What are the value of positive emotions? Ask someone who was mentally abused.

What is the value of our five senses? Ask a person who has a sensory handicap.

What is the value of having a home? Ask a person living in a shelter.

What is the value of having the internet? Ask the faculty of a school or university.

What is the value of having enough food? Ask a person who needs to go to the local food shelf for aid.

What is the value of one’s self? … ” Look within!… The secret is inside you.” - Hui Neng

We should see that the true wealth of living is in the abundance and beauty of Nature, the wealth of relationships provided by friends and family, and the wealth of experiencing all the good things life can offer. This can be a new approach to living.

“Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.” - Cicero

One of my favorite information websites, ScienceDaily.com, has a plethora of articles on new energy technology. Here are some of the headlines:

• Engineers Use Aerospace Approach to Design Wave Energy System - The ocean is a potentially vast source of electric power… Now, a team of aerospace engineers is applying the principles that keep airplanes aloft to create a new wave-energy system that is durable, extremely efficient, and can be placed anywhere in the ocean, regardless of depth. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091119111329.htm

• Mechanical Engineers Create High-tech Solar Panels - Photovoltaic panels have a new design: concentric circles that focus the sun’s rays on miniaturized modules. Having the panels automatically sense sunlight and turn towards it also makes these high-tech solar cells more efficient. http://www.sciencedaily.com/videos/2007/0507-bringing_sunlight_inside.htm

• Green Heating and Cooling Technology Turns Carbon from Eco-Villain to Hero - Carbon is usually typecast as a villain in terms of the environment but researchers at the University of Warwick have devised a novel way to miniaturize a technology that will make carbon a key material in some extremely green heating products for our homes and in air conditioning equipment for our cars. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091111111257.htm

This article was also rather impressive:

Spain’s windfarms set new national record for electricity generation -

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/nov/09/spain-national-record-power-windfarms

… and yes, it is true: For the amount of energy the Sun gives to the Earth in one hour, this is the amount of energy ALL humans require for EVERYTHING in ONE YEAR.

With all the information and technology at our fingertips, aren’t there better ways of harnessing energy for our needs? Why haven’t we adopted better, cleaner, more efficient means of energy production? I think people who are honest with themselves know the answer to this. However, expecting change from “above” is pure fantasy because it is the exception rather than the rule.

Large corporations or large structures of government are the last place we should look for fast and efficient change. These big institutions did not get that way from focusing on efficiency, but from spending energy on enforcing policies that took months and years to enact. We cannot expect them to make decisions that are effective with any great speed. Quite realistically speaking, that is not how they are designed.

(However, there are some government and corporate organizations out there that are trying to provide aid to the fight against pollution and climate change. It is the deep-seeded cynicism of many people that prevents them from noticing these resources.)

The model for Change, historically speaking, comes from individuals, small groups, or small communities. These parties make a choice and implement it. Once everyone sees the advantage of these decisions, many people follow. You can look at any subject in modern living and see this is true.

So it comes down to what you as individual can do for yourself. You can also start talking to people about “Going Green” and see what they have to say. Obviously you want to speak to people you think will be receptive to the idea, as with anything. There are some people who will have a change of heart only when they notice over half the neighborhood is doing something.

We are at the cusp of the conversion to renewable energy . We perceive the possibilities. Now we need to actually utilize some of that potential.

How We Think & What It Means for the Future, Part 6

In previous articles the topics have briefly focused on the disparity between our desire for positive results and the negative thinking that has hindered achievement of those results.

When it comes to the subject of man-made climate change, we could bring up an endless number of finer points regarding this and debate them endlessly. This does not serve us very well, since time and energy are limited resources (we could debate that, too, but the given conditions of how we perceive and utilize the Quantum Field, this is off the subject).

We could also discuss more climate change data and what it means or might mean. We should not be “starting to decide” what needs to be done or debating on “what needs to be done”. We need to decide what needs to be done and take action.

Our current ways of doing things are very wasteful. Internal combustion engine technology is over 100 years old and even modern engines have an efficiency of 20% at best. Feeding our power plants and vehicles with hydrocarbons (“fossil” fuels) requires a tremendous amount of energy. It does not make sense to search form of energy that you need just run the machines that extract the source in the first place.

Under current production methods. over half of the clean water in America is used to generate electricity!

Using one of those “green recycle bags” at the grocery store or department store will save one tank of gas in a year. Recycling one aluminum can is the same amount of energy it takes to power your television for three hours. The energy saved from recycling one glass bottle can run a 100-watt light bulb for four hours. If you recycle one plastic bottle you create an energy savings of 50% because another bottle does not need to be created and the old one does not need to be thrown away.

Now multiply this by the population of the United States. This is for just one item.

Now think about the number of aluminum cans, plastic bottles, and paper bags that are used by each individual in the United States in one year. What happens if these items are thrown away? How can these resources possibly be replenished in time for the next generation?

Learn more about energy used in transportation:

http://www.fueleconomy.gov/FEG/atv.shtml

Learn more about conservation through recycling (figures from the University of Utah):

http://www.usu.edu/recycle/factsFigures.htm

An article on the energy needed to grow beef cattle:

http://www.whiteoakpastures.com/article-mideastoil.html

The First Step To Change  -

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” - Miyamoto Musashi

The imbalance that humans have created in the Earth’s ecosphere is the most serious problem we face.  However, we cannot solve our problems if we are arguing about the solutions.  Even worse is denial that a problem exists.

• “To ignore the evidence, and hope that it cannot be true, is more an evidence of mental illness” - William Blase

• “The worst lies are the lies we tell ourselves. We live in denial of what we do, even what we think. We do this because we’re afraid.” - Richard Bach

• “Denial is a common tactic that substitutes deliberate ignorance for thoughtful planning.” - Charles Tremper

• “What is a cynic? A man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.” - Oscar Wilde

• “Not everything that is faced can be changed. But nothing can be changed until it is faced.” - James Arthur Baldwin

There has been a climate of negative thinking in our society, but we have seen where that thinking has taken us.

• “There is a lie that acts like a virus within the mind of humanity. And that lie is, There’s not enough good to go around. There’s lack and there’s limitation and there’s just not enough. And that lie has people living in fear, greed, stinginess. And those thoughts of fear, greed, stinginess and lack become their experience. So the world has taken a nightmare pill. The truth is that there’s more than enough good to go around…” - Michael Bernard Beckwith

• “I am determined to be cheerful and happy in whatever situation I may find myself. For I have learned that the greater part of our misery or unhappiness is determined not by our circumstance but by our disposition.” - Martha Washington

What exists before us - who we are as individuals, communities, nations, as a World - are the result of choices.  If we choose a new direction, we can achieve whatever we set out to accomplish.

• “Some of you may be thinking, ‘Well, that’s very nice but I can’t do that.’ Or, ‘She wont let me do that!’ Or, ‘He’ll never let me do that.’ Or, ‘I haven’t got enough money to do that!’ Or, ‘I’m not strong enough to do that.’ Or, ‘I’m not rich enough to do that.’ ‘I’m not, I’m not, I’m not, I’m not, I’m not, I’m not!’. Every single ‘I’m not’ is a creation.” - Dr. Fred Alan Wolf

• “All that we are is the result of what we have thought. If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, pain follows him. If a man speaks or acts with a pure thought, happiness follows him, like a shadow that never leaves him” - Buddha

• “If you realized how powerful your thoughts are, you would never think a negative thought.” - Peace Pilgrim

So where do we go from here?  Even if you are unsure of how to proceed…

• “Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” - Martin Luther King, Jr.

• “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” - Mahatma Ghandi

• “With your entire ‘focus’ on your goal, you will reach levels of achievement that you never thought possible.” - Catherine Pulsifer

• “The future depends entirely on what each of us does every day.” - Gloria Steinem

• “The future is not some place we are going, but one we are creating. The paths to it are not found but made, and the activity of making them changes both the maker and the destination.” - John Schaar

• “For in the final analysis, our most basic common link, is that we all inhabit this small planet, we all breathe the same air, we all cherish our children’s futures, and we are all mortal.” - John F. Kennedy

“Climate change is a global problem and needs a global response. Involvement by the public - you and me and everybody - is crucial if we are to meet the reductions in greenhouse gasses we are facing. The message is clear: (1) it is urgent, and (2) everyone can make a difference.”

–A message to CoolPlanet readers from Connie Hedegaard, Danish Minister of Climate and Energy and President of the 2009 Copenhagen Climate Summit

Get involved!

http://www.coolplanet2009.org/

http://www.wecansolveit.org/

http://www.theclimateproject.org/

Official site of 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference:

http://en.cop15.dk/

Negative Thinking versus Positive Thinking -

We have a difficult task ahead of us in the problem of man-made climate change. This problem is a direct result of humanity’s negative behavior. Negative action comes from negative thinking.

Negative thinking is at the root of the current trouble with the Earth’s environment, yet it is also responsible for the skepticism and denial that there is any problem with the Earth’s environment at all.

Negative thinking is all around us.

Not exactly a positive idea, I know, and forgive the pun but it’s true.

When people say “think positive”, why is it even necessary? Shouldn’t we be thinking “positive” already?

“..It’s like positive thinking. It’s a wonderful idea, positive thinking. What it means is that I have a little smear of positive thinking, covering a whole mass of negative thinking. So thinking positive is not really thinking positive. It’s disguising the negative thinking that we have.”

- Micheal Ledwith, Ph.D.

Western culture and society have been built on many things. Several of the most pervasive ideas in this society do not encourage positive behavior or thought: the quest for resources, dominion over Nature, and especially - taking resources from your neighbor (your neighbor could be the person living next door, another country, or another society, etc.).

Modern civilization understands so much more than we did even 100 or 200 years ago. Why do we cling to “old” ways of thought?

Perhaps it is because technology has moved much faster than the changes in human biology. That still does not explain why we cannot change our ways of thinking. If we simply choose a new direction, why can’t it just happen?

Much of our thought is concerned with “right now” instead of what might happen a week, a month, or a year from now. The Future is intangible. If you really ponder this idea, it becomes easier to see why many people assume that tomorrow will be much like today: we don’t have to worry.

Unfortunately, while we don’t want to worry, we DO worry… and often. We worry about every conceivable thing that can go wrong. We worry about what
might go wrong. Look at the undercurrent of obsession with the “End of the World”. It is the “perfect scenario” for generating anxiety.

Of course “worry” and “anxiety” are other words for fear.

This is not surprising, considering that for much of human history we have been engaged in warfare or conflict of some kind. Western culture is also full of accounts where people of every economic and social group lie, deceive, manipulate, and bully others to gain some sort of money or power. Honor and integrity only exist for some people when it serves a purpose, so we are used to looking over our shoulder for the “Boogie Man”.

The social climate where this began is largely out of date, however, but it is troublesome to get rid of old paradigms.

As I said in Part 3 of “How We Think & What I Means for the Future”, many people are obsessed with their own self-interest. If people do not pull themselves out of negative ways of thought, then it is easy to stake a claim as a “victim”. As a “victim” it is easier to say that someone “owes reparations” rather than look at one’s own actions or thinking as a possible cause of problems. “Society” is the perpetrator, but people are involved in an endless cycle of finger-pointing.

All of this negativity is counter-productive to enjoyable living. Negative ways of thinking are disempowering. Negative ways of thinking have a strong effect on a person and their health. Prolonged negative thinking is, in essence, a poison to the body. It is the “placebo effect”: a sugar pill has little to do with self-healing - it is in the Mind. Negative thinking is the opposite of self-healing - it is self-created disease.

“You may be giving yourself negative messages about yourself. Many people do. These are messages that you learned when you were young. You learned from many different sources including other children, your teachers, family members, caregivers, even from the media, and from prejudice and stigma in our society.

“Once you have learned them, you may have repeated these negative messages over and over to yourself, especially when you were not feeling well or when you were having a hard time. You may have come to believe them. You may have even worsened the problem by making up some negative messages or thoughts of your own. These negative thoughts or messages make you feel bad about yourself and lower your self-esteem.”

- Article titled “Building Self-esteem, A Self-Help Guide: Changing Negative Thoughts About Yourself to Positive Ones” from the US Dept. of Health and Human Services.

http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/SMA-3715/changing.asp

“For the average person in the World who lives life and considers their life boring, or uninspiring, is because they’ve made no attempt to gain knowledge and information that WILL inspire them. They’re so hypnotized by their environment through the Media, through television, through people living and creating ideals that everybody struggles to become - that:

• no one can actually ‘become’ in terms of physical appearance and definitions of beauty, and valor - [they] are all illusions -

• most people surrender and live their life in mediocrity - and they may live that life and ...their desire may never really rise to the surface - so they may want to be something else -

“…but if it DOES rise to the surface and they ask themselves ‘is there something more’, or ‘why am I here? What is the purpose of Life? Where am I going? What happens when I die?’ - they start to ask those questions - they start to flirt and interact with the perception that they may be having a nervous breakdown - and in reality what they’re doing is that they’re old concepts of how they view their life and the World start to fall apart…”

- Joe Dispenza, D.C.

If we change our pattern of thought, we can change our pattern of behavior.

Negative thinking says “it can’t be done”, and effort to make a difference is a “waste of time”. Negative thinking does not see the possibilities - it only sees the limitations. Negative thinking is self-pity and lack of motivation.

Under this kind of thinking, critics of the man-made climate change concept are essentially saying “go away. We’re too apathetic and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

Positive thinking is the idea that “I CAN do it”, and “I CAN make a difference”. Positive thinking never ceases to keep trying new approaches to a challenge. Positive thinking is valuing one’s self and being inspired.

Under positive thinking, the advocates to stop man-made climate change say “if we work together, there is no challenge that can stop us.”

It really comes down to a choice. I hope to see you in the company of those who want to make the Future a brighter place.

Right Thinking will lead to Right Action.

If you are on Twitter.com, you will find that Al Gore, the former Vice President of the United States, has an account.

On November 12^th his Twitter post reads “Let’s have a constructive debate.” The debate he was referring to took place on Saturday November 14^th at the Minzer Park Ampitheater in Boca Raton, Florida.

According to the Sun Sentinel of Fort Lauderdale, FL, he was greeted by protesters. Unfortunately, the protesters felt they needed to be disruptive in order to get their point across. They “booed” Mr. Gore as he took the stage. Others were outside the ampitheatre with “drums, bullhorns, and posters”.

One [poster] read “Practice what you preach,” accusing Gore of not living a green lifestyle. This accusation is the fallacy Ad Hominem – attacking the person instead of the issue. It also called Poisoning the Well – if unsavory information about a person is brought up, then whatever that person says must not be true. Whether Al Gore is the “perfect model” of “Green and Sustainable” living or not, this should not make the issue of climate change irrelevant.

“Another poster read ‘The masses follow the asses’…”. This is a play on the phrase “The masses are asses” - an odd choice for people who are behaving rudely. This argument is simply a Red Herring – diverting attention from the topic - saying that the “real” issue is about the general population’s common sense.

Some of the protesters believed Mr. Gore’s view would “eventually lead to increased taxes and flawed business legislation.” This is an Appeal to Fear – the protesters are trying to generate opposition by claiming any action taken in favor of Mr. Gore’s concepts will be undesirable.

To assume that people would rather have lower taxes than be more responsible on the social level - Appeal to Popularity (Ad Populum). It is also assuming that any legislation passed would be ineffective because the legislation is designed with counter-measures to climate change. This is a Straw Man argument: exaggerating the situation and then attacking the exaggeration.

Overall, the whole approach of these protesters was an Appeal to Ridicule – mockery is not a substitution for a solid line of reasoning.

The situation was not what Mr. Gore had in mind when he said he hoped the debate would be “constructive”.

Opponents of Al Gore and other Sustainable Living advocates want to argue that their “facts” are “more relevant” than the proponents of “Going Green”. This is a Genetic Fallacy – supposedly, facts supporting global warming are flawed because they are not “in line with standard patterns of traditional thinking”. To say everything must conform with previous patters is another fallacy – Appeal to Tradition.

Another strong stance taken is that man-made climate change might be true to some degree, but not as bad as “alarmists” claim. There may be a concession that human impact on the global environment exists, but significant consequences will not happen in our lifetime. This is called Middle Ground, or The Truth is in the Middle – if there are two sides with different viewpoints, the truth must be in the middle.

The global ecosphere is not going to wait for humans to moderate amongst themselves.

Some want to claim that man-made climate change is a “belief”. Therefore you can “believe” it is true or not true. Even if this False Premise is approached, how can you associate “belief” with something that is “TRUE or FALSE”?

It is extremely frustrating when an issue cannot be discussed in a reasonable manner. Falling into heavy displays of emotion clouds the communication.

Those who do not want to accept man-made climate change need to do better in pleading their case. If one side becomes belligerent, it is no longer a debate, it is a grudge match. So I say to those who are opponents of “Going Green”: you’re doing it wrong.

To read the Sun Sentinel article by Sofia Santana, click the link below:

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/palm-beach/fl-al-gore-boca-20091114,0,5503886.story

“Where’s the proof humans are having a negative impact on the Earth’s environment?”

Jellyfish swarm northward in warming world

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/climate_09_jellyfish_menace

Also, read any of the articles posted at the global warming site for The Union of Concerned Scientists:

http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science_and_impacts/science/