One thing Lomborg’s experience illustrates is the clash between two very different cognitive styles. Lomborg approaches environmental questions in a truth-seeking mode: he starts with empirical global-trend data, updates when the evidence changes, and treats disagreement as part of inquiry. Much of the academic backlash, by contrast, came from an identity-protective mode where environmentalism functions as a moral identity and empirical disagreement is interpreted as disloyalty. The long-run vindication of many of Lomborg’s claims says less about politics and more about the difference between truth-seeking cognition and coalition-protective cognition.
Brilliant ! I have long shared and supported the views , aims , activities and opinions of Bjorn Lomborg ! In 2015, Bjorn Lomborg attempted to establish an Australian Consensus Centre at the University of Western Australia (UWA). The project, aimed at prioritizing development aid using cost-benefit analysis, was backed by $4 million in federal funding. Due to intense backlash from staff and students over his climate change views, UWA cancelled the contract !
The Proposal: The centre was intended to be a local branch of Lomborg's Copenhagen Consensus Centre, focusing on economic modeling for development, food security, and health.
Controversy & Cancellation: The proposal faced strong opposition from the university community, who viewed it as ideologically driven, prompting UWA to cancel the contract.
OH ! THE IRONY ! THE HYPOCRISY ! THE BLATANT LIES , DISTORTIONS OF FACT & NIMBY-ISM !!!
......................"the university community, who viewed it as ideologically driven " !!!!!!
Of course....THEIR actions were highly moral , altruistic and "as pure as the driven snow" !!!?????
Sorry , but , denied expletives , profanities and obscenities , severe sarcasm is as far as I can push it !!
WHAT A BUNCH OF REGRESSIVES , LOSERS and LIARS " W.A. ACADEMIA" HAS PROVED TO BE !
SADLY , when it comes to TRUTH , "ACADEMIA" continues to be twisted , demented , deluded ,
This ALL shows in their opposition to the adoption of NUCLEAR POWER for electricity generation
which is now vital , the inaccurate and inadequate teaching of SCIENCE [ especially Physics and empirical-science ! ] and their resentment of NAPLAN [ because it exposes the paucity of 'teaching skills' and the continuing decline of the "indoctrination system" that is FAILING to equip our children with sufficient and necessary knowledge and learning skills to achieve decent lives and careers of their own ] amongst their other failings , like producing "activists" instead of competent graduates !! The entire 'education system' is broken and corrupted and failing !
AND THAT IS PARTLY WHY AUSTRALIAN EDUCATION and SOCIETY NEED A NEW CURRICULUM !
It has to remedy and remove all the p.c. dross , propaganda , ideological indoctrination , DEI and other distractions and get back to FACTS and "common sense".....and NO ! It doesn't need more money spent on it !.......It has already had far too much money "thrown at it " to buy votes !
It has to produce "well-rounded , competent , optimistic graduates with good values and an eagerness to engage in life and progress "........not the current "dismal debtors" !
You say : "Curious, how is your diatribe not at least as political as UWA’s?"
There is NOTHING CURIOUS about it at all !
Of course it is POLITICAL and It is totally justified !
"Political" refers to matters relating to government, public policy, the exercise of power, and decision-making within a society. It encompasses activities, beliefs, or policies that influence how communities are organized, resources are distributed, and conflict is resolved. This includes actions related to political parties, states, or civic life.
.
I absolutely HATE what "Academia" , especially at UWA , has done to our STUDENTS ,
to our SOCIETY and the real DISSERVICE to the GENERAL AUSTRALIAN PUBLIC !
"We" pay their damned HIGH WAGES to nurture and educate "our" best and brightest
people and they corrupt , indoctrinate and destroy all that potential ! Such waste !!!
EVIDENCE : They turn out dismal , depressed , angry , disillusioned , distraught 'debtors' owing money for their ' pro-Marxist indoctrination' , and they depart basically inept and incompetent , without any true and worthwhile benefit , barely employable [ because they were encouraged into fields that lack any value in the 'real world' ] as resentful and ungrateful "activists" ....and they have FOREVER LOST all those precious years they spent STUDYING that MAY WELL have been better spent learning something useful ......like a trade or a 'care-giver' or a farm-hand or......almost anything else useful !!!.
And YOU wonder at my 'diatribe' and my expressions of contempt !?????
.
ps....I grant you that VERY OCCASIONALLY a brilliant , less easily deterred student emerges with success from the morass.......but as often as not , he goes straight back into "Academe" or into 'politics' ! And this is why Australia STILL IMPORTS so many
immigrants.......desperately hoping that at least SOME OF THEM are competent and skilful and will make-up for the current shortfall of expertise !
WE DESPERATELY NEED TO PRODUCE MORE AND BETTER PEOPLE OF OUR OWN !
..................And "our" universities are universally failing us all ! ......PERHAPS "WE" NEED
TO EXPUNGE THEM AND START AGAIN with a new CURRICULUM !
YOU SAY : "Through the course of time I have acquired four degrees.
To wit, a BS in English & History, an MA in English,
an MAT (education) & an MSW ............and I work as a therapist.
None of which helped to equip you for the "real world" though Radha ,
but it does indicate that you have spent a lot of time in "Academe"....
an elitist environment that you evidently enjoyed ....to acquire a
miscellaneous , if somewhat dubious range of 'certificates' .....and
perhaps....an abundance of HECS/HELP debt !?
.
YOU ALSO SAY : "You seem very angry & very verbally aggressive; rather
like the “activists” in whom you appear to have difficulties finding value."
How perceptive of you ! I am actually furious when it comes to this subject !
I thought that I had made my reasons abundantly clear.......but then again..... !
YOU THEN TRY TO "ASSERT YOUR INTELLECTUAL SUPERIORITY" FROM YOUR HIGHLY , BUT DUBIOUSLY "CERTIFICATED" IVORY-TOWER :
with "Did you ever attend college?" Yes.
"What do you work at?"......Whatever I choose , whenever I choose !
" Have you a circle of close friends?" Yes .
.
AND , AS THOUGH THIS MATTERS IN THE LEAST :
"...............and I work as a therapist. " [ Better "work than welfare " ! ]
.
Well , good for you ! Mental ILLNESS is rapidly on the rise in MOST
western societies , especially amongst young women [ who are being fed
the most confusing ideological-propaganda , usually at Universities !!!
: Like "a career is everything" Motherhood is a snare ...avoid the trap ! etc ]
and young men are being accused of "toxic masculinity" simply for existing !
.
Have YOU noticed that there seems to be a particularly close link between MENTAL ILLNESS and the RISE OF FEMINIST IDEOLOGY ? I have .
So perhaps your "therapeutic role cane help right the wrongs !??
.
..................And , AS "our" universities are universally failing us all ! ......PERHAPS "WE" NEED TO EXPUNGE THEM AND START AGAIN with a new CURRICULUM !
Through the course of time I have acquired four degrees. To wit, a BS in English & History, an MA in English, an MAT (education) & an MSW and I work as a therapist.
You seem very angry & very verbally aggressive; rather like the “activists” in whom you appear to have difficulties finding value.
Did you ever attend college? What do you work at? Have you a circle of close friends?
YOU SAY : "Through the course of time I have acquired four degrees.
To wit, a BS in English & History, an MA in English,
an MAT (education) & an MSW ............and I work as a therapist.
None of which helped to equip you for the "real world" though Radha ,
but it does indicate that you have spent a lot of time in "Academe"....
an elitist environment that you evidently enjoyed ....to acquire a
miscellaneous , if somewhat dubious range of 'certificates' .....and
perhaps....an abundance of HECS/HELP debt !?
.
YOU ALSO SAY : "You seem very angry & very verbally aggressive; rather
like the “activists” in whom you appear to have difficulties finding value."
How perceptive of you ! I am actually furious when it comes to this subject !
I thought that I had made my reasons abundantly clear.......but then again..... !
YOU THEN TRY TO "ASSERT YOUR INTELLECTUAL SUPERIORITY" FROM YOUR HIGHLY , BUT DUBIOUSLY "CERTIFICATED" IVORY-TOWER :
with "Did you ever attend college?" Yes.
"What do you work at?"......Whatever I choose , whenever I choose !
" Have you a circle of close friends?" Yes .
.
AND , AS THOUGH THIS MATTERS IN THE LEAST :
"...............and I work as a therapist. " [ Better "work than welfare " ! ]
.
Well , good for you ! Mental ILLNESS is rapidly on the rise in MOST
western societies , especially amongst young women [ who are being fed
the most confusing ideological-propaganda , usually at Universities !!!
: Like "a career is everything" Motherhood is a snare ...avoid the trap ! etc ]
and young men are being accused of "toxic masculinity" simply for existing !
.
Have YOU noticed that there seems to be a particularly close link between MENTAL ILLNESS and the RISE OF FEMINIST IDEOLOGY ? I have .
So perhaps your "therapeutic role cane help right the wrongs !??
.
..................And , AS "our" universities are universally failing us all ! ......PERHAPS "WE" NEED TO EXPUNGE THEM AND START AGAIN with a new CURRICULUM !
The politicization of science started with hysterical climate change. That’s when the term denier started to be used as a weapon to discredit anyone who veered from the orthodoxy.
I started to follow Lomborg’s work along with Hans Rosling’s “Factfulness” around 2018 when the great demographer from Sweden’s penned his life lessons learned at the end of his struggle with cancer.
I consider their central premises to be very closely aligned, that “Humans naturally want to find causes and to assign responsibility for events. Once a cause is found and blame is placed, people stop looking for answers even if the blame has been misplaced. The same idea applies to positive outcomes.”
In this aspect, the central message is the same as Daniel Kahneman’s “Thinking fast and slow,” Which is that we have evolved to overreact to potential lethal threats like snakes in the grass so strongly that we avoid rational reactions to those threats without tremendous deliberative effort.
The citation about the health dangers of Nuclear fission is a good test of your ability to weigh data in the face of panic (5,000 estimated deaths since the 1950s as compared to 190,000 deaths due to fossil fuel processing per kWh). Similar with Ehrlich’s Population Bomb, and even Carlson’s Silent Spring. In each case a severe mortal threat is identified that emotionally must be stamped out to avoid cataclysm.
Leaders on both sides accuse the others of blatant reasoning errors occur when researchers are driven by confirmation bias due to their own moral certainty. But the numbers are such that among classically trained quants many more are “committed environmentalists” that are are driven by their commitment to what they consider a higher goal of staving off a small, but potentially deadly problem. But when more data comes in and population growth past 3, 4 and even 8 billion doesn’t lead to famine death and destruction, and nuclear fission turns out to have been orders of magnitude safer than the alternatives, we turn to a different, more lethal threat.
Hi Bob , I am pleased to read that you were interested in the ideas of Bjorn Lomborg and
Hans Rosling and "that the world is in a much better state than most people think, and that dramatic, inaccurate, and negative narratives distort our understanding of reality.".
I find your figures on deaths attributed to Nuclear Fission [ Atomic Reactors providing
electricity , fissionable material for weapons and radioactive isotopes for medical uses. ]
are rather larger than the actual numbers : 1957 Kyshtym : No immediate fatalities from the initial explosion, 66 cases of chronic radiation syndrome were diagnosed.
1957 Windscale : There were no immediate deaths caused by the physical fire or acute radiation sickness in 1957. It was 'estimated' about 100 people developed cancer and died.
1986 Chernobyl : Only 31 people died as an immediate result of Chernobyl while the UN estimates that only 50 deaths can be directly attributed to the disaster.
2011 Fukushima : 1 death 'attributed' to radiation [ No immediate deaths occurred from acute radiation exposure due to the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster ! ].
NB: 2313 "evacuees" died PLUS about 19,500 were killed by the tsunami and earthquakes !
and then ..........about another 126 died of radiation poisoning in 'accidents' , medical and industrial and military , combined ! That TOTALS : 374 all told !!!....since 1957 !!!
Worldwide: Globally, it is estimated that approximately 24,000 people die from lightning strikes each year ! In the USA between 1959–1994: Approximately 3,239 deaths were recorded in the US (an average of about 90 per year during that period).Now that figure has dropped to about 20 per year [ many reasons : Less agricultural work , more awareness].
Even Wind-Turbines have recorded 180 deaths since 1970 , mainly from work accidents !
So.......everything is improving , all the time , unless you BELIEVE the Main Stream Media
'doom and gloom' merchants !
"GLOBAL WARMING fizzled out and became "CATASTROPHIC CLIMATE CHANGE" and that is proving beneficial by all the statistics , so that's another exposed LIE by the misanthropes in the "greens" !
NUCLEAR POWER is the safest form of continuous , reliable energy devised by mankind !
." ..............and nuclear fission turns out to have been orders of magnitude safer than the alternatives, we turn to a different, more lethal threat."........so.........WHAT PRAY TELL
HAVE THEY DREAMED UP FOR US NOW ???
DON'T TELL ME THAT THEY HAVE RUN OUT OF "SCARY STORIES" AT LAST !!!??? YES !!!
Loved the book and have a copy in my library. It had multiple topics, but two, broadly: (1) no, we are not running out of resources and are not about to die like the flies overpopulating the jar of honey, and (2) claims of climate and environmental damage are wildly exaggerated.
Oddly, while I agreed with the first, had since Julian Simon days, I started off agreeing on the second … but it was Lomborg’s own book that set me to reading climate books and convinced me he was wrong.
Because his climate arguments hit me as weak right off that bat. Surprised me; I’d expected to find support for my priors.
So my next book was “The Ice Chronicles” by the guy who drilled Greenland for very old ice with bubbles. Mostly the story of the field work. Last few chapters analysed the old air and drew some conclusions - but just about that exact work.
Only in the last chapter did he go on about how any one scientist could only verify their own data, their own reductions of it. That he did accept the theories of other climatologists that added up to “global warming belief” but only because he knew them, professionally, as honest and competent and not prone to bias.
The contrast between that humility and Lomborg’s confident conclusions, from a very brief survey of a large field outside his own, was dramatic.
Didn’t make me stop believing in his good work on human development indices; just the climatology.
1. I still don't but that most climate change (er, what climate change?) is caused by humanity. It's mostly the sun.
2. Bill Gates is not a philanthropist - he's a philanthro-capitalist! Every donation makes him more money. (mRNA vaccinations, fake butter, fake meat, donates computers with MS products in them, etc., etc.) 'Philanthropism' is marketing, PR, and good business.
3. I don't listen to people who visited Epstein's island 37 times.
WHY ?....... YOU MAY WELL ASK ! ......He is a prime example that illustrates HYPOCRISY
that YOU can point out to your children IN CASE THEY THINK THAT MONEY SOLVES ALL !
When he , like some of his confreres , looks into a mirror he doesn't see what WE SEE !
He sees himself as the benevolent philanthropical magnanimous money-mogul "saving the world from itself and it's stupidity " ; however , WE SEE a clever manipulative deceitful
self-aggrandising blowbag desperately seeking public approval !
AND IT TAKES THE FOCUS OFF US !!!! PHEW !!! WHAT A RELIEF !!!
One thing Lomborg’s experience illustrates is the clash between two very different cognitive styles. Lomborg approaches environmental questions in a truth-seeking mode: he starts with empirical global-trend data, updates when the evidence changes, and treats disagreement as part of inquiry. Much of the academic backlash, by contrast, came from an identity-protective mode where environmentalism functions as a moral identity and empirical disagreement is interpreted as disloyalty. The long-run vindication of many of Lomborg’s claims says less about politics and more about the difference between truth-seeking cognition and coalition-protective cognition.
Brilliant ! I have long shared and supported the views , aims , activities and opinions of Bjorn Lomborg ! In 2015, Bjorn Lomborg attempted to establish an Australian Consensus Centre at the University of Western Australia (UWA). The project, aimed at prioritizing development aid using cost-benefit analysis, was backed by $4 million in federal funding. Due to intense backlash from staff and students over his climate change views, UWA cancelled the contract !
The Proposal: The centre was intended to be a local branch of Lomborg's Copenhagen Consensus Centre, focusing on economic modeling for development, food security, and health.
Controversy & Cancellation: The proposal faced strong opposition from the university community, who viewed it as ideologically driven, prompting UWA to cancel the contract.
OH ! THE IRONY ! THE HYPOCRISY ! THE BLATANT LIES , DISTORTIONS OF FACT & NIMBY-ISM !!!
......................"the university community, who viewed it as ideologically driven " !!!!!!
Of course....THEIR actions were highly moral , altruistic and "as pure as the driven snow" !!!?????
Sorry , but , denied expletives , profanities and obscenities , severe sarcasm is as far as I can push it !!
WHAT A BUNCH OF REGRESSIVES , LOSERS and LIARS " W.A. ACADEMIA" HAS PROVED TO BE !
SADLY , when it comes to TRUTH , "ACADEMIA" continues to be twisted , demented , deluded ,
bitter , resentful , unenlightened , conceited , yet envious and vengeful !
This ALL shows in their opposition to the adoption of NUCLEAR POWER for electricity generation
which is now vital , the inaccurate and inadequate teaching of SCIENCE [ especially Physics and empirical-science ! ] and their resentment of NAPLAN [ because it exposes the paucity of 'teaching skills' and the continuing decline of the "indoctrination system" that is FAILING to equip our children with sufficient and necessary knowledge and learning skills to achieve decent lives and careers of their own ] amongst their other failings , like producing "activists" instead of competent graduates !! The entire 'education system' is broken and corrupted and failing !
AND THAT IS PARTLY WHY AUSTRALIAN EDUCATION and SOCIETY NEED A NEW CURRICULUM !
It has to remedy and remove all the p.c. dross , propaganda , ideological indoctrination , DEI and other distractions and get back to FACTS and "common sense".....and NO ! It doesn't need more money spent on it !.......It has already had far too much money "thrown at it " to buy votes !
It has to produce "well-rounded , competent , optimistic graduates with good values and an eagerness to engage in life and progress "........not the current "dismal debtors" !
Curious, how is your diatribe not at least as political as UWA’s?
Hi Radha !
You say : "Curious, how is your diatribe not at least as political as UWA’s?"
There is NOTHING CURIOUS about it at all !
Of course it is POLITICAL and It is totally justified !
"Political" refers to matters relating to government, public policy, the exercise of power, and decision-making within a society. It encompasses activities, beliefs, or policies that influence how communities are organized, resources are distributed, and conflict is resolved. This includes actions related to political parties, states, or civic life.
.
I absolutely HATE what "Academia" , especially at UWA , has done to our STUDENTS ,
to our SOCIETY and the real DISSERVICE to the GENERAL AUSTRALIAN PUBLIC !
"We" pay their damned HIGH WAGES to nurture and educate "our" best and brightest
people and they corrupt , indoctrinate and destroy all that potential ! Such waste !!!
EVIDENCE : They turn out dismal , depressed , angry , disillusioned , distraught 'debtors' owing money for their ' pro-Marxist indoctrination' , and they depart basically inept and incompetent , without any true and worthwhile benefit , barely employable [ because they were encouraged into fields that lack any value in the 'real world' ] as resentful and ungrateful "activists" ....and they have FOREVER LOST all those precious years they spent STUDYING that MAY WELL have been better spent learning something useful ......like a trade or a 'care-giver' or a farm-hand or......almost anything else useful !!!.
And YOU wonder at my 'diatribe' and my expressions of contempt !?????
.
ps....I grant you that VERY OCCASIONALLY a brilliant , less easily deterred student emerges with success from the morass.......but as often as not , he goes straight back into "Academe" or into 'politics' ! And this is why Australia STILL IMPORTS so many
immigrants.......desperately hoping that at least SOME OF THEM are competent and skilful and will make-up for the current shortfall of expertise !
WE DESPERATELY NEED TO PRODUCE MORE AND BETTER PEOPLE OF OUR OWN !
..................And "our" universities are universally failing us all ! ......PERHAPS "WE" NEED
TO EXPUNGE THEM AND START AGAIN with a new CURRICULUM !
YOU SAY : "Through the course of time I have acquired four degrees.
To wit, a BS in English & History, an MA in English,
an MAT (education) & an MSW ............and I work as a therapist.
None of which helped to equip you for the "real world" though Radha ,
but it does indicate that you have spent a lot of time in "Academe"....
an elitist environment that you evidently enjoyed ....to acquire a
miscellaneous , if somewhat dubious range of 'certificates' .....and
perhaps....an abundance of HECS/HELP debt !?
.
YOU ALSO SAY : "You seem very angry & very verbally aggressive; rather
like the “activists” in whom you appear to have difficulties finding value."
How perceptive of you ! I am actually furious when it comes to this subject !
I thought that I had made my reasons abundantly clear.......but then again..... !
YOU THEN TRY TO "ASSERT YOUR INTELLECTUAL SUPERIORITY" FROM YOUR HIGHLY , BUT DUBIOUSLY "CERTIFICATED" IVORY-TOWER :
with "Did you ever attend college?" Yes.
"What do you work at?"......Whatever I choose , whenever I choose !
" Have you a circle of close friends?" Yes .
.
AND , AS THOUGH THIS MATTERS IN THE LEAST :
"...............and I work as a therapist. " [ Better "work than welfare " ! ]
.
Well , good for you ! Mental ILLNESS is rapidly on the rise in MOST
western societies , especially amongst young women [ who are being fed
the most confusing ideological-propaganda , usually at Universities !!!
: Like "a career is everything" Motherhood is a snare ...avoid the trap ! etc ]
and young men are being accused of "toxic masculinity" simply for existing !
.
Have YOU noticed that there seems to be a particularly close link between MENTAL ILLNESS and the RISE OF FEMINIST IDEOLOGY ? I have .
So perhaps your "therapeutic role cane help right the wrongs !??
.
..................And , AS "our" universities are universally failing us all ! ......PERHAPS "WE" NEED TO EXPUNGE THEM AND START AGAIN with a new CURRICULUM !
Through the course of time I have acquired four degrees. To wit, a BS in English & History, an MA in English, an MAT (education) & an MSW and I work as a therapist.
You seem very angry & very verbally aggressive; rather like the “activists” in whom you appear to have difficulties finding value.
Did you ever attend college? What do you work at? Have you a circle of close friends?
Trevor
Trevor
6m
YOU SAY : "Through the course of time I have acquired four degrees.
To wit, a BS in English & History, an MA in English,
an MAT (education) & an MSW ............and I work as a therapist.
None of which helped to equip you for the "real world" though Radha ,
but it does indicate that you have spent a lot of time in "Academe"....
an elitist environment that you evidently enjoyed ....to acquire a
miscellaneous , if somewhat dubious range of 'certificates' .....and
perhaps....an abundance of HECS/HELP debt !?
.
YOU ALSO SAY : "You seem very angry & very verbally aggressive; rather
like the “activists” in whom you appear to have difficulties finding value."
How perceptive of you ! I am actually furious when it comes to this subject !
I thought that I had made my reasons abundantly clear.......but then again..... !
YOU THEN TRY TO "ASSERT YOUR INTELLECTUAL SUPERIORITY" FROM YOUR HIGHLY , BUT DUBIOUSLY "CERTIFICATED" IVORY-TOWER :
with "Did you ever attend college?" Yes.
"What do you work at?"......Whatever I choose , whenever I choose !
" Have you a circle of close friends?" Yes .
.
AND , AS THOUGH THIS MATTERS IN THE LEAST :
"...............and I work as a therapist. " [ Better "work than welfare " ! ]
.
Well , good for you ! Mental ILLNESS is rapidly on the rise in MOST
western societies , especially amongst young women [ who are being fed
the most confusing ideological-propaganda , usually at Universities !!!
: Like "a career is everything" Motherhood is a snare ...avoid the trap ! etc ]
and young men are being accused of "toxic masculinity" simply for existing !
.
Have YOU noticed that there seems to be a particularly close link between MENTAL ILLNESS and the RISE OF FEMINIST IDEOLOGY ? I have .
So perhaps your "therapeutic role cane help right the wrongs !??
.
..................And , AS "our" universities are universally failing us all ! ......PERHAPS "WE" NEED TO EXPUNGE THEM AND START AGAIN with a new CURRICULUM !
Thanks Marian!
The politicization of science started with hysterical climate change. That’s when the term denier started to be used as a weapon to discredit anyone who veered from the orthodoxy.
I started to follow Lomborg’s work along with Hans Rosling’s “Factfulness” around 2018 when the great demographer from Sweden’s penned his life lessons learned at the end of his struggle with cancer.
I consider their central premises to be very closely aligned, that “Humans naturally want to find causes and to assign responsibility for events. Once a cause is found and blame is placed, people stop looking for answers even if the blame has been misplaced. The same idea applies to positive outcomes.”
In this aspect, the central message is the same as Daniel Kahneman’s “Thinking fast and slow,” Which is that we have evolved to overreact to potential lethal threats like snakes in the grass so strongly that we avoid rational reactions to those threats without tremendous deliberative effort.
The citation about the health dangers of Nuclear fission is a good test of your ability to weigh data in the face of panic (5,000 estimated deaths since the 1950s as compared to 190,000 deaths due to fossil fuel processing per kWh). Similar with Ehrlich’s Population Bomb, and even Carlson’s Silent Spring. In each case a severe mortal threat is identified that emotionally must be stamped out to avoid cataclysm.
Leaders on both sides accuse the others of blatant reasoning errors occur when researchers are driven by confirmation bias due to their own moral certainty. But the numbers are such that among classically trained quants many more are “committed environmentalists” that are are driven by their commitment to what they consider a higher goal of staving off a small, but potentially deadly problem. But when more data comes in and population growth past 3, 4 and even 8 billion doesn’t lead to famine death and destruction, and nuclear fission turns out to have been orders of magnitude safer than the alternatives, we turn to a different, more lethal threat.
Rinse, repeat?
Hi Bob , I am pleased to read that you were interested in the ideas of Bjorn Lomborg and
Hans Rosling and "that the world is in a much better state than most people think, and that dramatic, inaccurate, and negative narratives distort our understanding of reality.".
I find your figures on deaths attributed to Nuclear Fission [ Atomic Reactors providing
electricity , fissionable material for weapons and radioactive isotopes for medical uses. ]
are rather larger than the actual numbers : 1957 Kyshtym : No immediate fatalities from the initial explosion, 66 cases of chronic radiation syndrome were diagnosed.
1957 Windscale : There were no immediate deaths caused by the physical fire or acute radiation sickness in 1957. It was 'estimated' about 100 people developed cancer and died.
1986 Chernobyl : Only 31 people died as an immediate result of Chernobyl while the UN estimates that only 50 deaths can be directly attributed to the disaster.
2011 Fukushima : 1 death 'attributed' to radiation [ No immediate deaths occurred from acute radiation exposure due to the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster ! ].
NB: 2313 "evacuees" died PLUS about 19,500 were killed by the tsunami and earthquakes !
and then ..........about another 126 died of radiation poisoning in 'accidents' , medical and industrial and military , combined ! That TOTALS : 374 all told !!!....since 1957 !!!
.
.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_nuclear_and_radiation_accidents_by_death_toll
.
Worldwide: Globally, it is estimated that approximately 24,000 people die from lightning strikes each year ! In the USA between 1959–1994: Approximately 3,239 deaths were recorded in the US (an average of about 90 per year during that period).Now that figure has dropped to about 20 per year [ many reasons : Less agricultural work , more awareness].
Even Wind-Turbines have recorded 180 deaths since 1970 , mainly from work accidents !
So.......everything is improving , all the time , unless you BELIEVE the Main Stream Media
'doom and gloom' merchants !
"GLOBAL WARMING fizzled out and became "CATASTROPHIC CLIMATE CHANGE" and that is proving beneficial by all the statistics , so that's another exposed LIE by the misanthropes in the "greens" !
NUCLEAR POWER is the safest form of continuous , reliable energy devised by mankind !
." ..............and nuclear fission turns out to have been orders of magnitude safer than the alternatives, we turn to a different, more lethal threat."........so.........WHAT PRAY TELL
HAVE THEY DREAMED UP FOR US NOW ???
DON'T TELL ME THAT THEY HAVE RUN OUT OF "SCARY STORIES" AT LAST !!!??? YES !!!
Regards , Trevor.
Fair point. I wish they'd all lose their tax breaks for their foundations that aren't actually charities. And I hope his STD is really debilitating.
Loved the book and have a copy in my library. It had multiple topics, but two, broadly: (1) no, we are not running out of resources and are not about to die like the flies overpopulating the jar of honey, and (2) claims of climate and environmental damage are wildly exaggerated.
Oddly, while I agreed with the first, had since Julian Simon days, I started off agreeing on the second … but it was Lomborg’s own book that set me to reading climate books and convinced me he was wrong.
Because his climate arguments hit me as weak right off that bat. Surprised me; I’d expected to find support for my priors.
So my next book was “The Ice Chronicles” by the guy who drilled Greenland for very old ice with bubbles. Mostly the story of the field work. Last few chapters analysed the old air and drew some conclusions - but just about that exact work.
Only in the last chapter did he go on about how any one scientist could only verify their own data, their own reductions of it. That he did accept the theories of other climatologists that added up to “global warming belief” but only because he knew them, professionally, as honest and competent and not prone to bias.
The contrast between that humility and Lomborg’s confident conclusions, from a very brief survey of a large field outside his own, was dramatic.
Didn’t make me stop believing in his good work on human development indices; just the climatology.
All great. A couple of points.
1. I still don't but that most climate change (er, what climate change?) is caused by humanity. It's mostly the sun.
2. Bill Gates is not a philanthropist - he's a philanthro-capitalist! Every donation makes him more money. (mRNA vaccinations, fake butter, fake meat, donates computers with MS products in them, etc., etc.) 'Philanthropism' is marketing, PR, and good business.
3. I don't listen to people who visited Epstein's island 37 times.
Please stop quoting Bill Gates.
Dave ! I LIKE BILL GATES !
WHY ?....... YOU MAY WELL ASK ! ......He is a prime example that illustrates HYPOCRISY
that YOU can point out to your children IN CASE THEY THINK THAT MONEY SOLVES ALL !
When he , like some of his confreres , looks into a mirror he doesn't see what WE SEE !
He sees himself as the benevolent philanthropical magnanimous money-mogul "saving the world from itself and it's stupidity " ; however , WE SEE a clever manipulative deceitful
self-aggrandising blowbag desperately seeking public approval !
AND IT TAKES THE FOCUS OFF US !!!! PHEW !!! WHAT A RELIEF !!!