Let's Not Do Witch Hunts ...

with http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/02/french-weatherman-fired-for-promoting-book-sceptical-of-climate-change

... the last thing we need is to revert to witch hunts to quash debate on human kind affected climate change!

Hopefully the sacking of the weatherman has more to do with terms of employment than with the suppression of his climate change denial opinion.

That said, there seem to be hidden agendas on both sides of the climate change debate.

For example, activists who have political axes to grind that have more to do with where they are on the political spectrum rather than the truth re climate change.

We should not be naive and think that all scientists are impeccably questing for the truth - they also have mortgages, careers and ambitions to secure and, like any other community, theirs is also full of both saints and sinners.

The Right is typically represented by scientists who get well paid for obfuscating the issue: using Aristotle's treatise on discourse, Ethos based arguments, where the 'credibility' of the scientist (especially if from a premier world university) is used to deliver the 'truth' of the argument.

The Left of course uses the style that Aristotle describes as Pathos, seeking to acquire power by propagating 'useful' popular beliefs, regardless of whether or not these are truths.

Caught between Ethos and Pathos style arguments is Logos, the rational argument, often this does not fit in with the prevailing global politics or the vested global business interests.

For example, it is not politically correct to hold many of the oil rich nations liable for the damage done in proportion to the oil that they have historically supplied into the market to date as these are seen to be 'anti imperialist' - whatever that now means in today's world! 

Surely those who supplied the fossil fuels are as guilty as those who consumed it in proportion to the volumes delivered!?

On the other hand, the favorite put-down by the parties seeking to protect their vested business interests is to smear both scientists and activists that see climate change as significantly accelerated by human behavior as being proponents of 'mumbo jumbo'.

What is laughable is that many of the put-downs emanate from powerful persons who are not themselves scientists and probably would not be able to solve a simple y=mx +c equation!

Capitalists (as distinct from free marketeers ... like chalk is not cheese) are often their own worst enemy when it comes to their reputation: especially the ones who read a paper back copy of Ayn Rand when they were in high school and not understanding what she truly said went off into the world with some peculiar notions about free markets, property rights and freedom of the individual as if they were gurus of absolute morality.

Absurdly, on the other side of the political spectrum, some nations claim the right to keep on causing the climate change damage as 'compensation' for others who have caused the damage - as if they will be spared the consequences and only the 'guilty' will be stricken - there is only one Planet, and when we burn we will all burn together!