Boehner: It’s ‘Almost Comical’ To Say Carbon Dioxide And Climate Change Are Dangerous Since Cows Fart A Lot
Boehner: It’s ‘Almost Comical’ To Say Carbon Dioxide And Climate Change Are Dangerous Since Cows Fart A Lot
Last week, the EPA “formally declared carbon dioxide and five other heat-trapping gases to be pollutants that endanger public health and welfare, setting in motion a process that will lead to the regulation of the gases for the first time in the United States.” Following the announcement, House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) immediately issued a statement claiming that it was “nothing more than a back-door attempt to enact a national energy tax.”
On ABC’s This Week yesterday, host George Stephanopoulos pressed Boehner to explain what the Republican plan was to deal with climate change. First, Boehner said they believed in an “all of the above energy strategy.” But when Stephanopoulos noted that their drilling plan “doesn’t do anything when it comes to emissions,” Boehner called the idea that carbon dioxide is dangerous “comical“:
STEPHANOPOULOS: So what is the responsible way? That’s my question. What is the Republican plan to deal with carbon emissions, which every major scientific organization has said is contributing to climate change?
BOEHNER: George, the idea that carbon dioxide is a carcinogen that is harmful to our environment is almost comical. Every time we exhale, we exhale carbon dioxide. Every cow in the world, you know, when they do what they do, you’ve got more carbon dioxide.
Asked by Stephanopoulos if he believes “greenhouse gases are a problem in creating climate change,” Boehner said that “we’ve had climate change over the last 100 years” before questioning “how much does man have to do with it.” Watch it:
As ClimateProgress’ Joe Romm points out, Boehner apparently has no idea what he is talking about:
One of the GOP’s senior leaders thinks this debate is about whether carbon dioxide is a carcinogen? And thinks carcinogens harm the environment, rather than people? And thinks that cows are of concern because they produce carbon dioxide, rather than methane?
Needless to say, there is ample scientific evidence that disputes Boehner’s denial of man-made climate change. As Huffington Post’s Sam Stein notes, “Boehner’s argument that the amount of CO2 in the air is natural, meanwhile, is disproved by data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency“:
Natural sources of CO2 occur within the carbon cycle where billions of tons of atmospheric CO2 are removed from the atmosphere by oceans and growing plants, also known as ‘sinks,’ and are emitted back into the atmosphere annually through natural processes also known as ‘sources.’ When in balance, the total carbon dioxide emissions and removals from the entire carbon cycle are roughly equal.
Since the Industrial Revolution in the 1700’s, human activities, such as the burning of oil, coal and gas, and deforestation, have increased CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere. In 2005, global atmospheric concentrations of CO2 were 35% higher than they were before the Industrial Revolution.
This isn’t the first time that a conservative member of Congress has mocked the reality of climate change by referring to animal flatulence. In February 2007, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) declared, “We don’t know what those other cycles were caused by in the past. Could be dinosaur flatulence, you know, or who knows?“
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And here I thought we’d gotten rid of the clowns with their fart jokes. Geez, Boner, grow the f uck up!
April 20th, 2009 at 10:32 amBoehner: It’s ‘Almost Comical’ To Say Carbon Dioxide And Climate Change Are Dangerous Since Cows Fart A Lot
– - Speaking of flatulence, Johnny, how about closing your claptrap?
April 20th, 2009 at 10:33 amOMG! Beanhead Boehner is at it again with ‘de stupit’ comments.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:35 amCan we petition the EPA to declare Republicans “to be pollutants that endanger public health and welfare?”
April 20th, 2009 at 10:35 amBoehner might not want to insult cows while wearing a tie that looks like fresh cut alfalfa.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:37 amDamn, how many absolutely clueless statements can one use in a single paragraph – it’s like Sarah Palin without all the “you know’s”
April 20th, 2009 at 10:38 amMore brilliance from the Flat Earth Society.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:40 amPsssh. Boner only got three in. He’s got to step up his game if he wants to beat Bachmann in the GOP anti-Science Crazlympics.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:42 amDangerous idiot with power.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:45 am“Could be dinosaur flatulence, you know, or who knows?“
Indeed, this is still a problem today except that it is now known as “a republican speaking”.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:52 amOy. All that bronzer has finally eaten away his brain cell.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:54 amI guess its safe to say we don’t have to worry about any reasonable opposition from the GOP when we debate climate change later this year. If this is the best they have to offer in opposing Obama’s energy plan they’ll be a joke.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:55 amp.s. Johnny? Leave the fart jokes to Stephanie Miller. She does ‘em MUCH better than you.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:55 amAnd Boehner’s brain farts strike again.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:56 am“It’s almost comical” that he can say that with a straight face.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:56 amThese guys even fail at being lame…
April 20th, 2009 at 10:57 amBoehners climate change lies are more toxic to our environment and stinks worse than any fart from a cow
April 20th, 2009 at 10:57 amI wonder how Boehner knows so much about farting cows?
April 20th, 2009 at 10:59 amFarts are not CO2. They are methane. Republicans were the kids who slept in the back row through 8th grade science class.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:03 amAre references to gaseous emissions of animals (now or extinct) really that funny?
And are they really that pertinent to discussing the seriousness of global warming or climate change?
Now, don’t get me wrong. A good fart joke, properly placed, is always welcomed in my household.
But, this, to me, is just not warranted. And don’t be fooled, it is a “talking point” of the right. My golfing buddies used this over beers one evening this past summer, and they thought they were hilarious regarding dinosaur flatulence. I thought they were stupid.
And what’s next. Human fart jokes regarding being waterboarded 183 times?
April 20th, 2009 at 11:07 amWow, this thread about climate change has been open for over 1/2 hour without being trolled by drones from the CEI. Maybe they are still busy cleaning up the teabags.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:07 amIf they have (R) connected to the name were born braindead.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:09 amI think that anybody with any reasonable amount of education can spot Boehner as an idiot pretty quickly — CO2 is not a carcinogen, cows fart methane, etc.
But I think Republicans now realize they have nothing to fear by sounding stupid, freeing them up to say any idiotic thing that pops into their brains. After all, their base won’t recognize the difference. They are only programmed to respond with outrage to the words “taxes”, “spending”, “wasteful”, “pork” (unless talking about barbecue), “liberal”, “conspiracy”, “socialism”, and perhaps a few others. It doesn’t matter how the words are arranged.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:12 amGeorge, the idea that carbon dioxide is a carcinogen that is harmful to our environment is almost comical……
So has Boehner read that CO2 is a carcinogen also ? At least he seems to be getting that rumor started.
Oh no. Head for the hills.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:14 amThey wouldn’t be farting if we stopped feeding them corn and put them back on the ranges to eat grass and stop brush fires.
But Boehner’s corn will never stop, nor will his brain farts.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:14 am.
House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) is a gas bag!
.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:14 amshoeless Chilopoda Says:
Farts are not CO2. They are methane. Republicans were the kids who slept in the back row through 8th grade science class.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:03 am
____________
Not true. Methane is only a small proportion of fart gas – less than 10%, if it’s present at all. There’s usually more carbon dioxide in a fart than methane – 10-30%.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flatulence#Composition_of_flatus_gases
April 20th, 2009 at 11:15 amExcuse me a second…I have to go take a “liberal”…ka-splash…ahhh…that’s better.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:15 amshoeless Chilopoda Says:
Farts are not CO2. They are methane. Republicans were the kids who slept in the back row through 8th grade science class.
Thanks, shoeless, I was also going to point out that methane is a greenhouse gas which, in addition to CO2, contributes to climate change.
But the beef industry is rich and powerful, which is why they get free grazing rights from the BLM. Cattle contribute approx. 15% of greenhouse gases. Boner, think about that the next time you find yourself in a burger drive-thru.
PEACE
April 20th, 2009 at 11:16 amUh oh! “Boner” has been hitt’n the OxyContin with Rush again ….. He’s seeing farting cows and Dinosaurs!
April 20th, 2009 at 11:18 amBoehner’s combined ignorance and stupidity put on display in this comment is incredible. It is shameful that a political party could elect someone this stupid to Congress.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:19 amwatchdog Says:
A liberal calling someone out for being brain-dead is like TP calling fox news out for misrepresenting the truth.
Exactly right, watchdoggie. I’m surprised you recognized that both statements are true.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:21 amwatchdog Says:
A liberal calling someone out for being brain-dead is like TP calling fox news out for misrepresenting the truth.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:19 am
_______________
Was this supposed to be some sort of insult? If so, you really suck at analogies.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:23 amA liberal calling someone out for being brain-dead is like TP calling fox news out for misrepresenting the truth.
That’s why we’re in charge now.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:24 amThank you for stating the obvious for once, instead of cutting and pasting the same articles over and over.
well, 2 things quickly come to mind aside from the usual – What did Boner say today…
1 – He’s not human so what does it matter to him if Humans caused this
2 – let’s put him in a room and slowly increase the amount of CO2 in the room and see if and when he changes his mind on whether or not CO2 is harmful…
April 20th, 2009 at 11:25 amtigger Says:
They wouldn’t be farting if we stopped feeding them corn and put them back on the ranges to eat grass and stop brush fires.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:14 am
___________
Actually, cow farts aren’t the problem. It’s cow burps that produce around 20% of global methane emissions. Cow farts are responsible for only a tiny percentage of their methane emissions.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:27 amblotchdog Spews:
A liberal calling someone out for being brain-dead is like TP calling fox news out for misrepresenting the truth.
…and your point is???
Seems to be a pretty fair parallel your trying to make.
What? You’re bored with disrespecting fallen soldier’s families?
April 20th, 2009 at 11:28 amHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
April 20th, 2009 at 11:32 amReality Chick made funny.
Although, technically, you’re not “taking” a dump if you’re in the process of a B.M.
You’re “leaving” a dump.
But, I wouldn’t put it past Reality Chick to actually reach in and “take” said waste.
It’s almost comical that Boner is a friggin’ representative of the people.
Actually…it’s not comical, it’s criminal…he should be removed.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:32 amExcuse me a second…I have to go take a “liberal”…ka-splash…ahhh…that’s better.
–
April 20th, 2009 at 11:33 amHi RealityCheck
You f ucking loser. Will you be showing us how I am anti-American today or will I be owning you?
What a sad clown.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:35 amDRxJapanese Beetle Says: “But, I wouldn’t put it past Reality Chick to actually reach in and “take” said waste.”
That’s why he’s full of it.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:38 am;)
Whereas it is always fully comical when R’s try to talk about science.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:39 amToo much of something that’s not great is worse than a normal level. Isn’t that common sense? lol
April 20th, 2009 at 11:40 amI see RealityCheck has recognized his inability to stand toe-to-toe with progressives here in terms of real debate, so he’s turned to what he’s good at.
Bathroom allusions.
Congrats, RC! You’ve found your level. And you’re livin’ it.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:40 amhp – would you prefer earl grey or darjeeling?
April 20th, 2009 at 11:46 amhp
April 20th, 2009 at 11:47 amRealityCheck is licking my sack as we speak…
No, hp, I think the queen of the tea bag jokes was Glenn Beck.
Oh, you meant “jokes about teabagging”, not another way of saying “tea bag idiots“?
I see.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:47 amLets see what great leaders the rethug party is offering America. Boss Rush, Steele, Bachmann, Jindal, Boehner, Graham, Joe the Plumber, Rick Perry, Tom Delay, Dick Army, Cantor, Sanford and the queen of the north, Palin. I rest my case.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:48 amtombaker Says:
hp – would you prefer earl grey or darjeeling?
April 20th, 2009 at 11:46 am
___________
Pah! Gunpowder owns both of those…
April 20th, 2009 at 11:49 amThis is what is so annoying. It is impossible to have a reasonable debate over solving the problem if one party won’t even accept what is happening. It’s like they live on a different planet than everyone else. I guess scientists from all over the world are wrong except the ones that work for big oil and coal producers.
But then again, clearly he doesn’t believe that tanning can cause skin cancer either… Step away from the tanning booth John!
April 20th, 2009 at 11:52 amhp,
April 20th, 2009 at 11:57 amYou’re not here to debate, are you?
If you are…
What’s you take on flatulent jokes being used to argue climate change?
Are childish statements worthy of being taken seriously as the Arctic melts?
Are references to animal “toots” warranted as the ozone layer slowly becomes depleted, leading to an increase in skin cancer for you and your children?
Or shall you continue to hide in your corner jerking off, oblivious to the changes around you?
Actually, most of the damage comes from when cows burp, not fart.
April 20th, 2009 at 12:01 pmBoehner poisons the environment more with just one speech than all the cow farts in history combined.
April 20th, 2009 at 12:06 pmI suspect Boehner doesn’t know what the word ‘carcinogen’ means.
It would explain his usage.
April 20th, 2009 at 12:13 pmAm I the only one, but Boehner seems to be getting stupider by the hour? He must have cows on his farm in Ohio and over his holiday his help must have asked him to come outside to take a look at something…Hard to get out of that tanning bed…
April 20th, 2009 at 12:14 pmThe idiotic and the insane need representation too.
April 20th, 2009 at 12:21 pmBoehner represents the idiotic.
Ah, it’s the less-often used Rovian trick of quietly inserting a straw-man claim into the discussion so you can attack it later. Nobody else has ever claimed that CO2 is carcinogenic. But it’s a fancy word that can be slipped into discussions of it, and ignored… for now. Later on they’re going to be protesting Dem claims that CO2 causes cancer and laughing like we said it.
April 20th, 2009 at 12:22 pmElBruce Says:
Later on they’re going to be protesting Dem claims that CO2 causes cancer and laughing like we said it.
April 20th, 2009 at 12:22 pm
__________
And it’s already spreading. I just did a Google search on the carcinogenicity of carbon dioxide, and am finding dozens of articles on conserva-blogs lambasting the EPA for calling CO2 a carcinogen, thanks to Boehner’s statement.
So far I haven’t one article or study stating that CO2 has any carcinogenic properties.
April 20th, 2009 at 12:38 pmHi,I guess scientists from all over the world are wrong except the ones that work for big oil and coal producers.
April 20th, 2009 at 12:46 pmBoehner a bonehead, he doesn’t know the difference between methane and CO2 which seems to be a big problem with the republicans and their understanding of any science.
April 20th, 2009 at 12:59 pmIs Boehner saying his wife farts too much?
April 20th, 2009 at 1:19 pmIt makes me sad that morons like John Boehner and all the rest of the wingnuts are constantly given national media coverage to spew their lies and general idiocy. Of course we all know why the media give them coverage – if they don’t it’s proof that the “liberal media” is trying to silence them. They win either way. I want to hear THE FACTS and THE TRUTH, not some idiot republican talking about cow farts. Even with the republicans no longer in power, it seems like we’re constantly playing defense, having to answer the unending torrent of nonsense and insanity coming from the right, and it makes intelligent and respectful debate about, you know, actual issues and stuff very difficult.
April 20th, 2009 at 1:19 pmMark Bittman: What’s wrong with what we eat?
http://www.ted.com/talks/mark_bittman_on_what_s_wrong_with_what_we_eat.html
April 20th, 2009 at 1:23 pmOh goodie — another plan — just like their stimulus plan (more corporate tax breaks) and their budget plan (with no numbers or facts and figures) — their environmental/energy plan should be just knee-slapping hysterical!
April 20th, 2009 at 1:47 pmI just love it when the Boner talks about farts.
April 20th, 2009 at 1:57 pm*
I’m betting that Three-Pack-a-Day Boner will find out what DOES cause cancer very soon.
April 20th, 2009 at 1:58 pmKill the cows. They must be socialists, sharing grass. What are they hiding? WATERBOARD NOW!
April 20th, 2009 at 1:59 pmFart.
That’s one of the funniest words ever invented. :-D
April 20th, 2009 at 2:05 pmIt’s not cow farts causing climate change, it’s spray-on tan.
April 20th, 2009 at 2:05 pmBoehner showed good knowledge in ‘farting’ field, specially when he links ‘farting’ to science…!!
April 20th, 2009 at 2:15 pmSo what’s the story with Republicans, teabagging, and farting?
April 20th, 2009 at 2:24 pmLike I said in another post – these folks really do make me believe that the medical profession is to blame. Back in the day, there must have been a lot of mistakes made about what was the baby and what wasn’t and the poor child was tossed. What’s left is certainly brain dead.
April 20th, 2009 at 2:34 pmDoes the Boner even know what the abbreviation “ppm”
April 20th, 2009 at 2:35 pmstands for? I’ll bet that he doesn’t.
BONER NEEDS A BONE MAYBE CHENEYS!!!!! He is so damn stupid I bet some now watch another dumb ass republacant repeat the same damn thing he said.
April 20th, 2009 at 3:07 pmoops that should be “I bet another….” I’m so pissed with these right-wings and their dumb ass politics.
April 20th, 2009 at 3:10 pmDid “bone head” answer the question??
April 20th, 2009 at 3:13 pmGeroge should have asked Boner how many billion tons of CO2 have been emitted since 2000 and how many ppm of atmospheric concentration of CO2 has increased since 2000 up until now?
April 20th, 2009 at 3:19 pmOne must consider that John Boehner attended that bastion of scientific study, Xavier University, where the predominant curriculum is “The Physiological Effects Of Alcohol On Sexual Behavior”.
April 20th, 2009 at 5:40 pmThe only thing comical here is the fact that Boehner holds a position of power in this countries government..well he used to anyway. Boehner himself is the joke.
April 20th, 2009 at 5:58 pmDid anyone watch the ED Show? Look at this segment of Psycho Talk.
http://video.msn.com/video.aspx/?mkt=en-us&wa=wsignin1.0
April 20th, 2009 at 9:03 pmdbadass Says:
Hi RealityCheck
You f ucking loser. Will you be showing us how I am anti-American today or will I be owning you?
boy dstankass…you are sure a real Fart Smeller…or was that smart feller?
April 20th, 2009 at 10:10 pmNo…your a Fart Smeller …I had it right the first time.
Cattle exhale CO2 and burp methane. I believe the offending ingredient of their flatulence is methane (not carbon dioxide).
FROM THE GUARDIAN (U.K.): “Burping cows and sheep are being targeted by UK scientists to help bring down Britain’s soaring levels of greenhouse gas pollution. Experts at the Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research in Aberystwyth say the diet of farmed animals can be changed to make them produce less methane, a more potent global warming gas than carbon dioxide. Farmed ruminant animals are thought to be responsible for up to a quarter of “man-made” methane emissions worldwide though, contrary to common belief, most gas emerges from their front, not rear, ends…”
SOURCE – http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2007/jul/10/ruralaffairs.climatechange
April 20th, 2009 at 10:22 pmThe biggest source of global warming: speeches by American politicians.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:25 pmSo, let’s have a little test here:
Is the ice in the Antartic:
April 20th, 2009 at 11:10 pma)disappearing at an alarming rate?
b)at about the same level it has been in the last 100 years?
c)becoming thicker?
Second question:
What have a number of recent, peer-reviewed scientific studies determined about the role of the Sun with respect to changes in the earth’s average temperature?
Third question:
What have the ice cores taken in the Antartic shown?
April 20th, 2009 at 11:14 pma)Rises in CO2 levels PRECEDE rises in global temperature.
b)Rises in CO2 levels FOLLOW rises in global temperature.
Tim Vaculik Says:
So, let’s have a little test here:
Is the ice in the Antartic:
Ask me again in a few days or so.
Also, explain this. Your “sun is getting hotter” theory doesn’t match up to the dates.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:46 pmElBruce,
So, what’s your answer: a, b, or c?
April 20th, 2009 at 11:55 pmElbruse,
Here:
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25349683-30417,00.html
and here:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,517035,00.html
April 21st, 2009 at 12:04 amI bet Boehner farts a lot too. But the cow is worth more. It gives milk. Boehner gives nothing. The sum of his knowledge you could fit in a thimble with two caraway seeds and have room left over. But politicians don’t need smarts. They need constituents too stupid to catch on to them. And the politician must have an aversion to getting an honest job. Look how long they remain in office.
April 21st, 2009 at 1:05 amDoesn’t Stephanopoulos have an obligation to to give Boehner
April 21st, 2009 at 2:15 ama sobriety test before letting him operate a vehicle on his show?
BOEHNER = BONEHEAD 1000%
http://alice.bigbig.com/
April 21st, 2009 at 10:12 amWhy does the alleged “news” divisions of the networks give credence to anything these Repuglithugs have to say? Answer: they’re a subset of the entertainment arm of the corporate propaganda echo chamber, and that’s why these laughable clowns are constantly being paraded to shill for there masters. Give a dog a Boehner.
April 22nd, 2009 at 6:16 amI’d just like to say a few things…
First, a lot of you are right.. cows do emit methane into the atmosphere via defacation… Actually, according to my microbiology professor, 10-20% of methane emitted to the atmosphere (e.g. 1 cow emits 200-400 liters/pay).
Second, although methane is (of course) not carbon dioxide, it is actually, as many of you may or may not know, a greenhouse gas. As you can see below,
“By far the most important non-CO2 greenhouse gas is methane, and the number one source of methane worldwide is animal agriculture.
Methane is responsible for nearly as much global warming as all other non-CO2 greenhouse gases put together. Methane is 21 times more powerful a greenhouse gas than CO2. While atmospheric concentrations of CO2 have risen by about 31% since pre-industrial times, methane concentrations have more than doubled. Whereas human sources of CO2 amount to just 3% of natural emissions…” (http://www.earthsave.org/globalwarming.htm)
Thus, I am by all means a conservative, but I will not doubt the planet is ‘warming’. I will, however, argue to no end that the result of the planet warming is NOT due exclusively to our presence here on Earth. And if so, shall who shall we blame for the ice ages and other catastrophic events that have transpired here on Earth long before our time?
April 26th, 2009 at 11:15 pm