Disinformers puzzled by reality, try to game prediction contest

In May, I wrote “Arctic poised to see record low sea ice volume this year.”  The latest analysis from the Polar Science Center suggests that in fact we are going to break the record of “5,800 km^3 or 67% below its 1979 maximum.”

The anti-science disinformers have been insisting that the ice is getting thicker and, as recently as mid-August, asserted that we would see a ‘recovery’ in Arctic ice to 2006 levels (see “WattsUpWithThat breaks own record for fastest overturning of a prediction by reality“).  Not.

That plot is sea ice area from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

UPDATE:  You can read an attempt by the discredited Steven Goddard to rewrite history and spread more disinformation in the comments section here.

The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) tells me that “at this time of year area would be a better indicator of the health of the ice pack than the extent.”  NSIDC explains the difference between extent and area here:

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Tea party extremists backed by Big Oil and corporate polluters want to stop and then reverse all efforts to advance clean energy or avoid catastrophic global warming (see “New Yorker exposes Koch brothers“).

It is crucial that their self-destructive ideas and plans be made as widely known as possible, if we are to have any chance of preserving the health and well-being of our children and grandchildren and countless future generations (see, for instance, Ohio Tea Party survey to candidates: “The regulation of Carbon Dioxide in our atmosphere should be left to God and not government and I oppose all measures of Cap and Trade as well as the teaching of global warming theory in our schools”).

While the right wing supports monitoring the activities of pretty much everybody all the time, even the most private activities, they can’t stand it when progressives merely hold up their own wacky ideas for everybody to see.  Think Progress has the amazing story:

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John Doerr: If we don’t embrace a low carbon economy this decade, it won’t just harm the planet, but also the U.S. economy.

Philippe Cousteau is becoming a true champion of the ocean and the climate (see “Stunning video makes clear prevention is the only cure: What dispersants have really done to Gulf“).  He is following in the footsteps of his famous father and even more famous grandfather with his work at Earth Echo.

He spoke earlier today at the third annual National Clean Energy Summit (webcast here), and was pretty blunt about the dire nature of our current situation:

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If you think Getler missed the boat on this, you can email him here.

They don’t make ombudsmen like they used to. Once upon a time, when numerous viewers launched a credible complaint against even the appearance of loss of objectivity and conflict of interest, the ombudsman would seriously investigate the matter, talking to parties on both sides, and then rendering some considered independent judgment.

But not PBS ombudsman Michael Getler.  He seems to have no trouble whatsoever with David Koch, a leading funder of the anti-scientific climate disinformation campaign (and the anti-science Tea Party), funding an episode of the great science show Nova, which:

• is an effort to greenwash Koch’s activities
• just happens to whitewash the threat human-caused global warming

Getler ignores the first concern entirely, and his entire defense of Nova’s dubious entanglement with Koch is “As a viewer of what strikes me and a lot of others as a consistently first-rate program, I trust NOVA.”  The beauty of that defense is that it could apply equally well to essentially every PBS show.  Hey, they are all first rate programs, so what the heck are you listeners complaining about?

Getler apparently sees himself the “Maytag repairman” of ombudsman.  PBS ain’t broke, so don’t try to fix it.  Here’s the background on why he’s wrong — and why Nova’s own defense is also wrong:

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A climate warning from the deep

Bryozoans make unlikely prophets of doom. Nevertheless, scientists believe these tiny marine creatures, which live glued to the side of boulders, rocks and other surfaces, reveal a disturbing aspect about Antarctica that has critical implications for understanding the impact of climate change.

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Guest blogger Jorge Madrid is a CAP Research Associate.

“Go home Texas oil companies!” exclaimed Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa at a No on 23 rally this week.  He joins numerous prominent California elected leaders in denouncing the dirty air initiative, including Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, US Senator Dianne Feinstein, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, Los Angeles City Council President Eric Garcetti, and current and former speakers of the California State Assembly: John Perez and Karen Bass.

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