Conservatives - do you want to be the Anti-Science Party?

Question

There are real debates out there that are appropriate for this forum. How should we deal with terrorism? How to balance freedom and security? What is a necessary goverernment service? These are the questions we should be debating.

But when I see a few conservatives on Yahoo Answers claiming global warming is a vast left-wing conspiracy, or that evolution is a liberal plot, I'm disturbed.

If conservatives really want to be the anti-science party, I suppose that's their choice, but I have plenty of conservative friends who ARE scientists and are disgusted with this tendency in the party.

So, are my friends the exception, or are there more of you who believe in the ideals of conservatism but don't want to be associated with these folks who deny basic scientific principles?

There has not been a single peer-reviewed scientific paper published in the last five years that questions these two assumptions:
1. Global Warming is happening.
2. Humans are contributing to it.

Even Bush has admitted it:

http://whyfiles.org/updates/080global_warm/index.html

http://www.truthout.org/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi/34/12476

http://www.post-gazette.com/headlines/20010612climate0612netp2.asp

Answer 1

From June 1 to August 31, 1930, 21 days had high temperatures that were 100 degrees or above. Are we anywhere near that? I didn’t think so.

The highest temperature recorded anywhere on Earth was in Aziziyah, Libya, in September of 1922 -136 degrees. Are we anywhere near that? I didn’t think so.

The highest temperature recorded in the United States was in Death Valley, Californina, in July of 1913 – 134 degrees Fahrenheit. Are we anywhere near that? I didn’t think so.

What’s so odd is all these temperatures are that they all occurred before the notion of man made “global warming”. Also all these hot temperatures occurred during summer. Amazing. Also before heat indexes. You say glaciers are melting, yes they have been for years. Remember that thing called an ice age? We’re sitting on a melted glacier

Also I should say that I do believe in global warming. Natural cycle global warming of the earth NOT "man made" global warming.

Answer 2

Actually, I prefer to rely on the Constitution as the basis for what the Federal Government can do. Most of the social, global warming, and other issues should be handled at the local and state levels. I believe that we should go back to when the people at the State level made the decisions instead of the major parties have been doing since Lincoln. To deal with terrorism we should use the same principle that every war WWII and before accomplished which is you do not stop fighting until the enemy is totally destroyed. This means no retreat and no quarters. The problem with all of the conflicts that the UN has been involved in is that they do not know how to finish anything. Also, the UN has been going more to anti-American every year.

The only things that I want from our Federal government is to have them protect me from harm through a very strong military, pre-Clinton is the best. Also, I want them to deal with foreign countries and manage the currency used in the United States. All of the other items including education, social security and all of the other stuff should be at the state and local levels. They are also allowed to settle disputes between States. Give the people back their freedom and ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country.

Answer 3

Those who doubt evolution generally do so for religious reasons, not economic or social ones. There is a fairly strong correlation between doubting evolution and voting conservative, but to equate the two is not unlike saying that there is a strong correlation between being vegan and voting liberal, so all liberals are vegans. Both conclusions are, at best, highly suspect.

As far as doubting global warming, I think that actually comes from those of us who are sufficiently familiar with both science and the environment to doubt that we human beings really understand what's going on at all. If you look at historical trends in weather and climate, you will find the effects of human beings on it - but you will also find that those effects are considerably smaller than the effects of the normal variations of the Earth's climate. Simply put - yes, global warming may be occurring. It may be a result of human interaction with the environment. However, neither of those things is certain yet, any more than the global cooling scare of the 50's and 60's was certain. We should not ignore it. We should also not starting to build Arks in the soft limestone caverns of Missouri.

Human beings don't know quite as much as popular culture would have it.

Answer 4

Basic scientific principles??? You need to learn the difference between theory and fact. A BASIC scientific concept you should have learned in junior high school.
I don't claim that global warming is a vast left-wing conspiracy but there are distinguished scientists who will tell you that what we call global warming is really the natural normal patterns of our environment.

Answer 5

What a dumb question. As if political beliefs can be associated with science. Both sides use science as a crude club to trumpet the petty policies that each side holds dear. Rational thought is irrelevant. Science is just a whipping boy to be used to justify
irrational action.

Answer 6

i don't comprehend and that i do no longer care. He has no longer been a US Senator from now on for approximately 4 a million/2 years, and he hasn't any lifelike danger of having elected President. he isn't any concern to you or to me. meanwhile the two he and you have forgotten or disregarded congressman Roscoe Bartlett of Maryland who's a scientist and is quite staunchly conservative.

Answer 7

What human produced greenhouse gas has created this global warming? ... "astronomers today said Pluto is undergoing global warming in its thin atmosphere even as it moves farther from the Sun on its long, odd-shaped orbit." Note, Pluto is moving FARTHER from the sun. So, that should make it COLDER.

If it can happen there, it can happen anywhere.

Answer 8

Good point. Do take into account that a lot of liberals yell conspiracy back at republicans. THere are idiots on both sides.

Answer 9

but if we don't do something about these scientists, they will create a race of atomic supermen who will use their army of robot monkeys with laser eyes to come into our homes and burn our bibles and kill baby jesus and force us to put dreidels under our christmas trees...

if anyone knows how to properly spell dreidel, let me know... it's not in yahoo's little spell checker

Answer 10

Science is progressive. So keeping that in mind their title says it all. They are just playing their part.