Global warming
From Wikidebates
claim: Global warming is a serious problem.
summary statements
| pro | con |
| Human-caused global warming will devastate planet earth unless we pass laws that limit carbon dioxide emissions. | Global warming is natural and harmless. Laws limiting carbon dioxide emissions will do more harm than good. |
background information (terminology, etc.) at page bottom
supporting claims
| Global warming is happening. | rebuttal |
| Scientists concur that the earth's average temperature is increasing. | The earth's average temperature has not increased since 1998. In fact, it it has reached a plateau and there are signs that it is decreasing (source) |
| counter-rebuttal | rebuttal #2 |
| The scientific temperature records tells a completely different story. (source) |
| Global warming is primarily human-caused (anthropogenic). | rebuttal |
| The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has published a summary document (PDF) supporting this claim. The U.S. National Academy of Sciences has published a summary document (PDF) supporting this claim. | The IPCC is biased.
The greatest climate-changing forces are, in order [This is just a guess for demo purposes. Needs expert help.]:
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| counter-rebuttal | rebuttal #2 |
| The claim that the IPCC is biased is almost untestable and is therefore inadmissible into this debate. Such a claim can be used to refute any scientific research conducted by any group. Moreover, none of your points show it to be true in the first place. |
| Global warming is devastating. | rebuttal | |
| Ocean levels will rise, storms will worsen, diseases will spread, delicate ecological balances will be destroyed, and species will go extinct. | Sea level has been rising at a rate of 1.8 mm per year for the past 8,000 years. The IPCC notes that “No significant acceleration in the rate of sea level rise during the 20th century has been detected.” Unless there is another Little Ice Age, they will continue rising at roughly this rate for centuries to come.
The storm and disease arguments are unfounded. Ecological destruction and species extinction could be devastating, but they have far worse causes than global warming (e.g. deforestation and pollution). Redirecting resources from more-cost-effective to less-cost-effective preservation measures actually increases ecological destruction and species extinction. Slowing global warming is a cost-ineffective means of preserving nature. One major pillar of the global warming alarmists was that birds will go extinct due to global warming. A recent study shows clearly the contrary. Link | |
| counter-rebuttal | rebuttal #2 | |
| Storm arguments are supported by scientific research. | Bill Gray’s Tropical Forecast group at Colorado State University said, “Various groups and individuals have suggested that the recent large upswing in Atlantic hurricane activity (since 1995) may be in some way related to the effects of increased man-made greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2). There is no reasonable scientific way that such an interpretation of this recent upward shift in Atlantic hurricane activity can be made.”
Zhang, et al (2000) examined storm activity along the US East Coast over the twentieth century. After stating, “it has been speculated that future global warming will change the frequency and severity of tropical and extratropical storms,” the authors used historical data, a variety of indices including storm surge water levels, the authors found “no significant trend in storm activity during this century along the East Coast.” The real problem along the coastline, they say, is not changing climate but changing land use, as more and more development occurs along the shorelines, creating greater susceptibility to storm damage. Gulev, et al (2000) employed NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data since 1958 to study the occurrence of winter storms over the northern hemisphere. They found a statistically significant (at the 95% confidence level) decline of 1.2 cyclones per year for the period, during which global temperatures reportedly rose. The hurricane expert, Kerry Emanuel of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, one of the most influential scientists behind the theory that global warming has intensified recent hurricane activity says he will reconsider his stand. Reference |
| We must pass laws to reduce anthropogenic global warming. | rebuttal | Laws aren't necessary when the debate over whether carbon dioxide emissions truly contribute to global warming. |
| Without regulation the environment will fall prey to the |
dissenting claims
| rebuttal | Global warming is beneficial. |
| The harms exceed the benefits.
Warming can increase the uncertainties in climate which is not good for agriculture. |
|
| rebuttal | An Inconvenient Truth is deceptive. |
| The goal of the film is to raise awareness. The film is not intended to be a substitute for published scientific research reports. Thus, your criticism against the film, even if legitimate, does not translate into criticism against the phenomenon and its causes. | The dried lake is unrelated to global warming and is used purely for emotional effect.
The correlation between temperature and CO2 implies that CO2 rises preceded temperature rises when in fact the opposite is true. |
background
The global warming debate began in earnest in the 1990s...
(Until this section has more useful content, read the Wikipedia article about global warming.)
terminology
- anthropogenic
- human-caused
- CO2
- carbon dioxide
- degree Celsius (°C)
- 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit (°F)
- CH4
- methane
external links
neutral
pro
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
