There is a saying that ‘a week is a long time in politics’. That phrase captures the essence of how volatile the modern political environment is and reminds us that an apparently all-pervading ‘truth’ can become debunked within only a few days.
Sometimes the process of exposing lies and fabrications takes a little longer. In recent times, the most egregious example has been the quasi-religion of global warming; although of course, it is no longer called global warming because that would more readily expose the falsehoods pedalled by the catastrophic warming camp. Now, the new-age apocalypse inspired by the vital atmospheric gas carbon dioxide is known as ‘climate change’.
According to the self-appointed experts, climate change is a result of mankind’s emissions of an invisible and odourless gas. Curiously, none of these so-called experts seem to want to call it by its correct name. They insist upon referring to this atmospheric trace gas as ‘carbon’, pretending it is actually a bit of soot or piece of charcoal.
The alarmists figure that people can see charcoal and they know it makes a mess – or at least they did know before burning wood became a green sin and open fires were declared politically incorrect by the climate change enthusiasts.
But fear not, you will not freeze in the absence of an open fire because the government has other ways for you to stay warm. One recent propaganda piece encouraged shivering Australians to ‘cuddle your pet’ to stave off the winter chills. Pity the poor pensioner who can’t afford to feed themselves let alone feed a dog in the hope of staying warm. Still, I suppose it is a nifty way to get the tens of thousands of animals into homes and out of the RSPCA!
If crazy policies like this weren’t taken so seriously by people in positions of authority, it would be laughable.
But those whose thoughts reside in lofty ideals seldom practise what they preach. We all know that documentary myth maker Al Gore amassed a billion dollar fortune by peddling his alarmist nonsense across the globe. Gore defends his seemingly perpetual private jet travel by offsetting his emissions through purchasing ‘carbon credits’ from his own company. Perhaps he arranges the auditing of these offsets too so it is all accountable and above board.
It is a pity Gore didn’t audit his alarmist mockumentary An Inconvenient Truth before its release. If he had, the numerous judicially declared errors wouldn’t have made it to the final cut. But then again the resultant film would have then been about nothing rather than scaring children (and a few adults) into ‘greenthink’.
Most recently, Gore’s claim that the polar bears are drowning due to climate change has been exposed as complete nonsense, based on dodgy guesswork that has just resulted in the professional investigation of the alarmist scientist behind it. Who would have thought that the Arctic’s apex predator would have become a career destroying political pin cushion?
But closer to home we have the ABC’s favourite alarmist Tim Flannery doing the hypocrisy hokey pokey. Only a few years ago, palaeontologist Tim warned about sea level rises that could engulf an eight story building. He now resides in a waterfront home in NSW; a clear demonstration of how seriously he takes his own scaremongering. I am sure Flannery’s hefty government stipend received for keeping the public alarmed will help him to build a nice big sea wall to stave off the advancing tides.
One could also ask about the genuineness of the anthropogenic global warming advocates who rest on the government benches and who also choose to reside near the water’s edge. Surely they would be better off selling their stately manors to some foolish sceptic before the seas rise to claim the 250,000 homes they tell us are at risk.
And while we are at it, perhaps the Greens party should move out of their waterfront offices in Tasmania before all is lost! Memo to self: I must remind Bob Brown about the imminent danger to his volunteers.
The rank hypocrisy of people peddling the green monster demonstrates that we need to be very careful before accepting the words of those who seek to profit from carbon alarmism.
Of course, it wasn’t always like this. Only a few years ago, every utterance of these green oracles was taken as gospel. The few dissenters were the new heretics, to be burnt at the stake of political correctness – as long as the resultant emissions were offset of course.
But if a week is a long time in politics, three years is an eternity. And while a huge change has occurred in public sentiment in that time, there are still global warming catastrophists who ignore the increasing body of evidence that discredits their theories.
The alarmists still deride those who dare question their agenda by hollow appeals to authority and false claims of consensus. Both of these are straw men put up in the absence of an ability to mount a credible defence of their demonstrably false claims.
While the march of climate change common sense has commenced, it is progressing too slowly in the face of an obstinate and out-of-touch government that insists upon introducing a new tax to combat so-called ‘carbon pollution’.
Labor’s carbon tax or emissions trading scheme will not only be useless in mitigating any climate change, its apparent necessity is built on a series of lies; namely that carbon dioxide is pollution, is almost solely responsible for climate change and is the same thing as ‘carbon’.
Those who say otherwise are pushing their own political or financial agenda. Next time you hear these claims, you would be wise to question the motives of those who make them.
We should all start with the Australian Government, their paid mouthpieces and their coalition partners, the Greens.
Cory Bernardi is the author of seven books and has been a member of the Australian rowing team, a publican, an investment portfolio manager and spent nearly 14 years as an Australian Senator.
