Perfectly phrased by John Kerry's nonsensical plaint that the Russian invasion of Ukraine will increase the combustion rate of fossil fuels is the abject silliness of the whole concept of anthropogenic global warming (AGW).  Particularly recent U.S. policies against fracking, pipelines, coal, and internal combustion engines have placed us at a severe strategic disadvantage.

It has taken only a couple of days for it to become common knowledge that such policies have seriously enriched Vladimir Putin.  The grotesque human price of such a debacle will continue to mount, as will resentment for the foolish notion that weather can be subject to political influence.

This is not a turning point.  There has long been a lot of skepticism of the AGW fear campaign.  It is now my opinion that the die has finally been cast, and the dogmatic adherents of the obvious fraud are rapidly becoming politically irrelevant.  And John Kerry is their poster boy, Al Gore having bungled away his credibility some years ago.

Image via Public Domain Pictures.

A common thread among the AGW lobby is their profound ignorance of earth science, and of the scientific method itself.  Something as speculative as a long-range weather prediction can never be considered "settled science."  Yes, I studied climatology in college (though it was not my major).  And before that, I was in a special high school science program, where I studied paleontology. 

What is not mentioned often enough is that weather is chaotic.  It is the constant interaction of multiple planetary forces that include ocean currents, jet streams, seasonal changes, and variable air pressure.  Add to this the external influences of the solar intensity cycle and the gravitational pull of the moon.

Also, one cannot study paleontology without realizing the immense variability of weather and climate over the eons of earth's existence, from ice ages to giant reptiles thriving in tropical environments at temperate latitudes.  There are even fossilized dinosaur footprints in Antarctica.  Climate has always been changing, and we have fairly reasonable evidence of the extremes to which it has already gone. 

The overwhelming importance of petroleum and natural gas in today's economy was previously downplayed until a few days ago.  This bell cannot be un-rung.  And the unfairly ridiculed "climate deniers" are starting to crawl out from under their rocks in droves.    

Thanks again to John Kerry for causing the seminal moment when a politically opportunistic hoax crashed upon the rocks of long understood reality.  And thanks also to those stubborn resistors to what was always a silly fad that is now exhibiting drastic consequences.

Image via Public Domain Pictures.