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Facts and FICTION about the "impending death of the planet - Commentary by Jean O'Sullivan 9/30/03 "How about a SMuG Deck (cards) No, Monopoly! You know my opinion; Q: What do you call local variations in temperature Calling "weather" "global climate change" doesn't
give the phenomena a Or Politics of Pollution - Trivia Game That would be the Kalifornia Global Warming Law. The "science" driving this ill conceived foray into areas where the State has no business intruding is so poor that if it weren't such a blatant assault on our Republics' civil liberties it would be laughable. Bad science makes for bad law so let's start there. CO2 is not the most important greenhouse gas. CO2 is not in any way implicated in ozone depletion or any other similar negative environmental impact. CO2 is acknowledged as a vital component of an atmosphere that sustains and protects all life on this planet. The US Energy Information Administration reports that 95.3% of all CO2 is from natural sources. These are probably the only things the world's scientists agree upon concerning the unresolved debate over supposed Global Climate Change. Understand; Global Climate Change (as opposed to the discredited theory of Global Warming cited by the new law) is merely the latest fallback theory for the same people that failed to convince us all of their failed Global Warming theory and that fantasy was proposed only after their embarrassing 1970's "Mini Ice Age" theory. Like all true zealots the people behind this latest assault are desperate for any excuse to advance their true agenda. As an example of the idiocy and danger inherent in Pavley's Folly we should look at some of the technical ways we -could- meet the stated goals of the law. For instance, one way to reduce CO2 auto/SUV emissions is to change the combustion process slightly in a manner that will increase the amount of ozone depleting and other noxious byproducts. Another bright idea, and not coincidentally the "solution" the anti-auto crowd had in mind is to produce smaller, lighter, less capable vehicles. Unfortunately smaller, lighter, less capable also means more expensive, requires more total trips and most importantly, means less safe. Just what California needs; more vehicle trips being done in less safe autos. That drop in safety is on top of the current roughly 2,000 deaths per year caused by existing CAFÉ standards. Jerry Ralph Curry, former NHTSA Administrator, said in 1998 that CAFE had already claimed more lives than Vietnam, and that the NHTSA people knew in advance it would happen. Let's not even get into California's diversion of highway maintenance funds to wasteful and polluting transit that is forcing people to purchase more rugged vehicles in the first place. Back to carbon dioxide. By a large margin CO2 is ranked only the second most important of the greenhouse gases but in the scientific mind of California Law it has being promoted to the most significant *problem.* Excuse me, I spoke too soon, CO2 is not even -that- significant. The only status accorded CO2 amongst real scientists is that of the second most significant human generated greenhouse "gas." There is still debate about how significant human generated airborne particulates are and whether they would bump CO2 down to third place amongst the human generated contributors to greenhouse effects. But that's science not politics. This is all about politics. Advocates promulgating an insidious anti-auto agenda have convinced Assemblywoman Pavely (D-Agoura) and her gullible fellow members of the Legislature that California is in a position to legislate science. One of the factoids used to justify the restrictions is that a disproportionate 57% of California's greenhouse gases, which contribute to global warming, come from cars, trucks and buses. No, not even close. The "57%" quote is a carefully constructed
half-truth that is then used to leap to a conclusion. That suprious
conclusion is then extrapolated to justify a solution. Our use of
autos and light trucks MAY contribute to global warming IF IT EXISTS
but then again climate records also indicate that some 7500 of the
last 10,000 years were warmer than the supposedly hot decade of the
1990's. But 57% doesn't tell the whole story. First off, human generated
contribution to the planets' greenhouse gases are only 4.7% of all
greenhouse gases. Of that 4.7% from humans, some 70% is H2O. 30% of
4.7% brings the scope of "Palvey's Ploy" down to the remaining
1.4% from "transportation." But even that isn't the whole
story since "trucks and buses and commercial vehicles" are
exempted from the Bill. Even that grudging admission is a misdirection
on the part of the legislation. You see the 57% figure is for the
entire California transportation sector, planes, ships, trains, etc.
Taken into account it turns out that CARB is being tasked at looking
to less than 0.6% of the supposed "problem." Got that? Even
an extremely optimistic achievement of a 10% reduction would make
a difference of zero point zero six percent. That 0.06% is only applicable
to California's contributions. What is our global contribution? Less
than 3.5% and I'm sorry but 0.06% of 3.5% is far too small a number
to have any meaning. That immeasurable improvement wouldn't even take
effect until after all the cars on the road are replaced by conforming
vehicles somewhere around 2021. It might be interesting to go into
why such a large portion of California's energy budget is devoted
to transportation. Remember, much of California's fossil fuel electric
generating capacity is in other States. We profit from and enjoy the
benefits of making our pollution in Nevada and Arizona. Heaven forfend
those States adopt our supposedly high minded principles and clamp
down on California's ethically questionable practice of exporting
our pollution. For that matter -if- California were really interested
in global warming and not SUV illegalization, then we could drain
the Hetch Hetchy reservoir which contributes mightily to global warming;
surface evaporation, a significant rise in surface temperatures and
heat dumping into the ocean are global warming effects too. If the
Legislature hadn't so very conveniently dropped water vapor from the
list of greenhouse gases they'd have many other "easy targets"
for saving the planet without busting the State and Federal Constitutions
in the process. They could end water subsidies to the Central Valley
farmers for instance. Obviously this stuff is far more complex than
reducing CO2 emissions from autos. Autos and light trucks no less.
Not buses, not trucks not aircraft nor ships. Subtract out those from
the "transportation" finding of "57%" and you
see the legislation for exactly what it is; Anti-auto/anti-SUV social
behavior modification. |