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Editorial
Hot Science
Issue date: 1/23/07 Section: Forum
When a group of CEOs from major companies are urging the president to do something about global warming, you would think Mr. Bush would listen up.
But nay, the president will not budge, his spokesman said Monday. After all, why let pesky science play a roll in policy decisions?
The Associated Press reported Monday that CEOs from 10 major corporations have written a letter to the president urging support for "mandatory reductions in climate-changing pollution" as well as new rules establishing reduction targets.
The president believes that voluntary reductions are the best approach, which is a perfect way to dodge the issue and appeal to a party that tends to oppose government interference in business.
But those 10 CEOs see the light. In their letter, they said "we can and must take prompt action to establish a coordinated, economy-wide market-driven approach to climate protection," the AP reported.
Meanwhile, The New York Times reported Saturday that the primary scientific body charged with assessing the causes of climate change is "closing in on its strongest statement yet linking emissions from burning fossil fuels to rising global temperatures." The article sources scientists involved in the process of writing the new report, which has not yet been released.
The group, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, says in the current draft of its report that it is "more than 90 percent likely that global warming since 1950 has been driven mainly by the buildup of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping greenhouse gasses, and that more warming and rising sea levels are on the way," The New York Times reported.
A 2001 report from the same panel placed the certainty within a much larger range.
Some in Congress and indeed the president appear unwilling to take this issue head on, while others go so far as to lie, stating the global warming is a liberal myth. It is refreshing to see more people acknowledging the truth and urging action.
The 10 executives, many of whom represent companies which have voluntarily taken action on emissions, say that mandatory rules are the only way to ensure that sufficient steps will be taken, the AP reported.
"It must be mandatory, so there is no doubt about our actions," Jim Rogers, chairman of Duke Energy, told a news conference reported on by the AP. "The science of global warming is clear. We know enough to act now. We must act now."
Sadly, when President Bush takes the stage tonight for his State of the Union address, he will almost certainly dodge the facts.
Maybe the next administration, Republican or Democrat, will have a backbone on a global issue of life and death.
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Editorials serve as a means for Barometer editors to offer commentary and opinions on issues both global and local, grand in scale and diminutive. The views expressed here are a reflection of the editorial board's majority.
But nay, the president will not budge, his spokesman said Monday. After all, why let pesky science play a roll in policy decisions?
The Associated Press reported Monday that CEOs from 10 major corporations have written a letter to the president urging support for "mandatory reductions in climate-changing pollution" as well as new rules establishing reduction targets.
The president believes that voluntary reductions are the best approach, which is a perfect way to dodge the issue and appeal to a party that tends to oppose government interference in business.
But those 10 CEOs see the light. In their letter, they said "we can and must take prompt action to establish a coordinated, economy-wide market-driven approach to climate protection," the AP reported.
Meanwhile, The New York Times reported Saturday that the primary scientific body charged with assessing the causes of climate change is "closing in on its strongest statement yet linking emissions from burning fossil fuels to rising global temperatures." The article sources scientists involved in the process of writing the new report, which has not yet been released.
The group, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, says in the current draft of its report that it is "more than 90 percent likely that global warming since 1950 has been driven mainly by the buildup of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping greenhouse gasses, and that more warming and rising sea levels are on the way," The New York Times reported.
A 2001 report from the same panel placed the certainty within a much larger range.
Some in Congress and indeed the president appear unwilling to take this issue head on, while others go so far as to lie, stating the global warming is a liberal myth. It is refreshing to see more people acknowledging the truth and urging action.
The 10 executives, many of whom represent companies which have voluntarily taken action on emissions, say that mandatory rules are the only way to ensure that sufficient steps will be taken, the AP reported.
"It must be mandatory, so there is no doubt about our actions," Jim Rogers, chairman of Duke Energy, told a news conference reported on by the AP. "The science of global warming is clear. We know enough to act now. We must act now."
Sadly, when President Bush takes the stage tonight for his State of the Union address, he will almost certainly dodge the facts.
Maybe the next administration, Republican or Democrat, will have a backbone on a global issue of life and death.
Editorials serve as a means for Barometer editors to offer commentary and opinions on issues both global and local, grand in scale and diminutive. The views expressed here are a reflection of the editorial board's majority.
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