THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Volume XI, Issue # 203, November 19, 2009
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Government Committed to & Acting in Accord with Conservative Principles
Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity
GALILEO SILENCED AGAIN: THE AGU IS
SENDING SCIENCE BACK 400 YEARS
By Dr. Willie Soon & Dr.David Legates
GLOBAL WARMING ALARMISM & THE GROWING OUTRAGE: THE SAD STATE OF AFFAIRS WITHIN EVEN OUR MOST
VENERABLE SCIENTIFIC ORGANIZATIONS, WHEN IT COMES TO CLAIMS REGARDING MAN-MADE CATASTROPHIC CLIMATE
CHANGE -- THE SCIENTIFIC ORGANIZATIONS' VERY STRONG TENDENCY TO CENSOR, INTIMIDATE, & SILENCE ANY VOICES
THAT RISE TO QUESTION THE ASSERTIONS OF GLOBAL WARMING ALARMISTS
FULL STORY:
Four centuries ago, “heretics” who disagreed with religious orthodoxy risked being burned at the stake. Many were the
dissenting views that could send offenders to a fiery end.
In 1633, the astronomer Galileo Galilei may have come within a singed whisker of the same fate, for insisting that the sun
(and not the Earth) was at the center of the solar system. In the end, he agreed to recant his “heresy” (at least publicly) and
submit to living under house arrest until the end of his days.
Growing evidence ultimately proved Galileo was right, and the controversy dissipated. Theology gave way to nature in
determining the truth about nature.
We wish that were the case today. Unfortunately, lessons learned 400 years ago have yet to be adopted where the Church
of Anthro-Climatism is involved. Burning dissenters at the stake may no longer be an option – perhaps because it would
send prodigious quantities of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. However, many other ingenious punishments are often
meted out, to ensure that dissent is kept within “acceptable” limits, or dissenters no longer dissent.
Just recently, as scientists who specialize in environmental science, climatology and solar variability, we welcomed the
acceptance of our scientific session, Diverse Views from Galileo’s Window: Researching Factors and Processes of
Climate Change in the Age of Anthropogenic CO2. The session was to be hosted at the upcoming Fall, 2009, Meeting
of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) in San Francisco.
Our session was to focus on “knowledge that spans an extremely diverse range of expertise” and provides “an integrated
assessment of the vast array of disciplines that affect and, in turn, are affected by the Earth’s climate.” Our ultimate goal
was to stimulate discussion at this professional meeting, prior to the upcoming UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC) fifth assessment report.
We developed this session to honor the great tradition of science and scientific inquiry, as exemplified by Galileo when,
400 years ago this year, he first pointed his telescope at the Earth’s moon and at the moons of Jupiter, analyzed his
findings, and subsequently challenged the orthodoxy of a geocentric universe. Our proposed session was accepted by
the AGU.
In response to its acceptance, we were joined by a highly distinguished group of scientists – including members of the
National Academy of Sciences of the USA, France and China, as well as recipients of the AGU’s own William Bowie,
Charles Whitten and James MacElwane medals. Our participants faithfully submitted abstracts for the session.
But, by late September, several puzzling events left us wondering whether the AGU truly serves science and
environmental scientists – or simply reflects, protects. and advances the political agendas of those who espouse belief in
man-made CO2-induced catastrophic global warming.
On September 14, Dr. Nicola Scafetta of Duke University contacted us, to say the AGU had cancelled his previously
approved 12-paper session on Solar Variability and Its Effect on Climate Change, since it did not have enough
papers. He asked if the papers from his session could be merged into our session; since they fit our theme well, we
accepted his papers.
The merger was approved by the AGU Planning Committee. Thus our Galileo session now had grown to a total of 27
papers and was approved as a poster session at the Fall Meeting.
However, a few days later, after first approving our session and after we had assigned time slots for these new papers at
AGU’s request, the Planning Committee revoked its approval and summarily dissolved our session. Now the committee
claimed our session was “thematically divergent,” and divided the papers in our original session among six different
sessions.
To cover its tracks, the committee created a new session called Diverse Views from Galileo’s Window: Solar Forcing
of Climate Change with 15 papers – including the 12 from Dr. Scafetta’s original session that it had cancelled. That
reduced the focus of this session to just solar forcing of climate, and eliminated discussions of the impact of
anthropogenic CO2 that we had planned for our original session. The remaining papers from our cancelled session were
moved to five other sessions, thereby undermining our original intent: comparing solar variability and man-made carbon
dioxide as factors in planetary climate change.
In responding to us, the Planning Committee defended its actions by asserting: “none of [the papers in our session] have
to do with the Galilean moons of Saturn [sic], which have to do with climate change or solar activity.” That claim reflects
either a poor grasp of our purpose or a failure to read our proposal – and leads the question, Why wasn’t this issue raised
when they originally decided to accept our session?
Our session proposal had clearly intended to honor Galileo’s observations of Jupiter’s (not Saturn’s) moons, which had
led him to challenge the orthodoxy of the geocentric universe. We wanted to highlight how current research into the
climatic effects of anthropogenic CO2 is challenging the supposed “scientific consensus” that humans are causing
catastrophic climate change.
This arbitrary dissolution of our original session has serious implications for proper scientific enquiry. Our request that the
session be reinstated has gone unheeded, despite the fact that the AGU has reinstated at least one cancelled session in
the past. We have repeatedly been told that the decisions of the Planning Committee are final, though it has made clearly
contradictory decisions regarding our session.
Reduced sunspot activity and solar energy output, stable or even cooling planetary temperatures, concerns over the high
cost of proposed cap-and-trade legislation, political developments in Washington and Copenhagen, and other factors
have caused more people to question man-made global warming disaster claims. This has led to consternation among
scientists and organizations that have supported those claims.
However, as scientists, we are profoundly concerned by this behavior from a professional society that is supposed to
serve science and its members. The AGU certainly had the right to reject our proposed session at the outset or before the
solar variability session was merged with it. But, given the topic of our session and the good faith approach we have taken
in accepting papers from the cancelled solar variability session, it seems odd (at the very least) that our session was
summarily dissolved, and that the AGU refuses to discuss the matter.
The AGU action is hardly reasonable. Indeed, it is counter-productive to the scientific method and to promoting open
scientific discussions. It smacks of censorship. Something is rotten in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Scientific inquiry has once again been silenced, just as it was 400 years ago.
The AGU should be ashamed. Its members should be outraged.
LINKS TO RELATED TOPICS:
The Earth's Natural History, Global Climate Changes,
& the Future of Human Life & Civilization on the Planet:
Science, Ideology, & Public Policy
Political Environmentalism Versus Human Progress & Prosperity:
Policy Issues Relating to Energy, Environment,
& Natural Resources
Political Economy -- Philosophies, Systems, & Public Policies:
Government, the Economy, & Economic Prosperity
Dr. Willie Soon is a scientist who studies solar and climate co-variability. Dr. David Legates is a scientist who studies
climatology and hydrology. Both are members of the American Geophysical Union.
Return to Top of Page
Go to the WEBSITE INDEX
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Public Issues & Political Controversies
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
Most Recent Articles
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Volume XI, 2009
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Subject Matter Highlights
Return to POLITICAL EDUCATION Homepage
CONTACT & ACCESS INFORMATION
This is not a commercial website. The sole purpose of the website is to share with interested persons information regarding civics,
civic and social education, political science, government, politics, law, constitutional law and history, public policy, and political
philosophy and history, as well as current and recent political developments, public issues, and political controversies.
POLITICAL EDUCATION, CONSERVATIVE ANALYSIS
POLITICS, SOCIETY, & THE SOVEREIGN STATE
Website of Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr.
Government, Politics, Public Policy, Legal Issues, Constitutional Law, Government & the Economy, Cultural Values, Foreign Affairs,
International Relations, Military Defense & National Security, Geopolitics, Terrorism & Homeland Security, American National Interests,
Political Systems & Processes, Political Institutions, Political Ideologies, & Political Philosophy
INDEX FOR THE ENTIRE WEBSITE
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Conservative & Free-Market Analysis of Government, Politics & Public Policy, Covering Political, Legal, Constitutional, Economic,
Cultural, Military, International, Strategic, & Geopolitical Issues
Conservative Government Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity