# "The climate may be heating up less in response to greenhouse-gas emissions than was once thought." **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [June 28, 2013, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157 "2013-06-28T19:49:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2013, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/41 "2013-06-29T20:34:31Z")
> [@magellan01](#): > > You are incorrect, as usual. > > But, according to your line of thinking (and ignoring the fact that I _agree_ that man has/is playing a roll in climate change), back in the 70s we should have enacted global policies to prevent the word from cooling. After all, the scientists were concerned about the coming of a mini ice age. Is this the first time you’ve put forth this massive inaccuracy? Do you plan on repeating it , know that you know the facts? ---
**Author:** ![magellan01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2013, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/42 "2013-06-29T23:24:01Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > Am I? > > All stop. > > This is not a true thing. There was never scientific consensus about an imminent ice age. [Global cooling - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_cooling) I really don’t recall the degree to which the scientific community agreed on the cooling. But notice how I didn’t say there was consensus. And how you chose to include it. The main point is that it is an incredible act of hubris to think you “KNOW” the degree to which humans have affected the climate. I think the evidence argues strongly that we have indeed affected it, but that’s about it. It is another hubristic leap to claim to “KNOW” the degree to which any suggested changes in human behavior might help. Add to that the gross exaggerations by “He Who Invented The internet” and it is absurd to force these conjectures on anyone. But if you really think it’ll do some good, move to India and China and get them to take some small steps, which would have a larger impact that the most ginormous step we can take. Hey, maybe you can try to convince them to let you in through the first steps of a global “free movement of peoples around the globe” initiative. Just think the good you could do. You and Father Gigo, of course. Amen. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2013, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/43 "2013-06-29T23:29:44Z")
The fact remains that you were misled by the Republicans, as it is clear the myth was expanded recently by them; so, as expected, you are barking up the wrong tree, it is the ones that gave you that, and a mess of other misinformation the ones that you should have a beef with. One that is not a partisan would had recognized a long time ago that regarding the claim that we can’t know comes also from the same misleading sources. **We actually do know enough.** [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/a69_owv4jEE/maxresdefault.jpg ""We don't know enough..." How to talk to an OSTRICH") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a69_owv4jEE) And scientist Richard Alley is a Republican, at least one of the few moderates left… ---
**Author:** ![magellan01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2013, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/44 "2013-06-29T23:49:03Z")
Oh, brother. You think that proves anything that I don’t already agree with. The only safe conclusion made in the video is the one he utter toward the end: the earth is warming. I think we have different definitions of the word “know”. I use a much higher level of certainty than you apparently do. Bow you’re fine using whatever level you like. But if you want people to DO something based on what you claim to “KNOW”, you need to up that level. Can I get an Amen for “Certainty”? ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2013, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/45 "2013-06-29T23:58:32Z")
> [@magellan01](#): > > Oh, brother. > > You think that proves anything that I don’t already agree with. The only safe conclusion made in the video is the one he utter toward the end: the earth is warming. > > I think we have different definitions of the word “know”. I use a much higher level of certainty than you apparently do. Bow you’re fine using whatever level you like. But if you want people to DO something based on what you claim to “KNOW”, you need to up that level. > > Can I get an Amen for “Certainty”? And that is still a “do noting” argument, the levels of certainty are there already mentioned by Richard Alley and many other scientists, as you already demonstrated, you are not reliable at all in this subject and clearly you only follow misleading sources of information for your say so’s. Switching to sustainable energy sources is not impossible to do or to afford it, nor it is the end of civilization, nor it is an over reaction, once again your sources are lying to you and many others. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/V7bmg65SS20/maxresdefault.jpg "How to Talk to an Ostrich: "We can't Afford Clean Energy"") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7bmg65SS20) And you should drop your ad hominem, deal with the fact that there are groups that are misleading you and clean your sources of information. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/46 "2013-06-30T02:35:55Z")
> [@magellan01](#): > > To the evangelists, Preach it harder and longer brothers and sisters. You’re just one cite away of convincing everyone that the sky is falling. TYPE LOUDER! Feel free to wander over to The BBQ Pit and blast anyone you wish with your claims of “religion.” Since you have provided no actual information relative to this discussion, (through your next several post), I can only conclude that you are here for the purpose of threadshitting. Stop it. [/Moderating] ---
**Author:** ![Independence](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e274bd/32.png) [@Independence](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Independence)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/47 "2013-06-30T02:48:34Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > What do you think is more likely, that virtually ever PhD level expert on Earth is wrong, or that you, a completely untrained novice sees something they didn’t think of? > > Seriously, accept for a moment that the vast majority of climate scientists think the world is heating as a result of man’s activities. Why would you think you know anywhere near enough to scoff? Do you honestly think no one brought up the lava, ice thing? > > Do you call up brain surgeons and advise them too? No. I don’t advise brain surgeons… but I do make my own decisions. So, when a snake oil salesmen comes to town I don’t buy from him 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Independence](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e274bd/32.png) [@Independence](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Independence)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/48 "2013-06-30T02:52:15Z")
> [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > This argument is _incredibly_ dumb. It’s like saying “I don’t believe in man-made mass death, because mass human die-outs happened before World War I”. Or “There’s no way this mass blackout was caused by an EMP detonation because there have been mass blackouts in the past without EMP detonation”. It doesn’t even begin to address the actual evidence involved in determining _why_ people think the current warming is anthropogenic, it _demands_ a complete lack of understanding as to why previous warming happens, and is basically based on ignorance of past, present, and future. Seriously, cut this bullshit out. Warming in the past was caused by various forms of forcing; the current dominant forcing is _human greenhouse gas emissions_. Your scathing review of my opinion (which I am entitled to) does not move me. What can I say? I disagree with you. Human beings have ZERO affect on the Earth’s temperature… none. Nil. Nada. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/49 "2013-06-30T03:05:25Z")
> [@Independence](#): > > No. I don’t advise brain surgeons… but I do make my own decisions. So, when a snake oil salesmen comes to town I don’t buy from him 🙂 Just remember, the sellers of the biggest snake oil of modern times have a large customer base. 🙂 > **[Sowing Seeds Of Doubt](https://cen.acs.org/articles/89/i3/Sowing-Seeds-Doubt.html)** > > How some scientists can twist the facts to suit ends other than scientific truth > [@](#): > > The tale told by Naomi Oreskes and Erik M. Conway in their book, “Merchants of Doubt: How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Global Warming,” should be read by all scientists because we need to be reminded that we too are susceptible to the comforts of pseudoscience. The authors illustrate not only that some researchers have used their talents to obfuscate and deny, but that they can be extremely good at it. Indeed, some of these “merchants of doubt” have been so successful that it now appears possible for me, as a physicist, to have a lucrative second career as a professional denier. How did this come to pass? And what are the fault lines in our thinking that have allowed some extremely smart people to profess to believe some very dumb things? > > If one surveys the reams of pseudoscience floating around on the Internet, it is obvious that some fields of science are more prone to having their results abused than others. In the case of a snake-oil salesman peddling quack medicine, it is clear that the distortion is driven by a narrow financial interest. But more often the propensity appears when some kinds of science threaten closely held ethical, cultural, or political beliefs. > > … > > The pattern of antiscientific tactics by the merchants of doubt is often constant across many different topics, the authors write. Frequently, personal attacks against individual scientists are used in lieu of addressing the substance of their conclusions. Cherry-picking of single outliers to counter well-supported general results is common. The elevation of caricatures of the real science as straw men to knock over is ubiquitous. > > But one of the strongest methods to deflect attention away from what the science has actually concluded is to find ways to exaggerate the amount of uncertainty. Since there is always uncertainty in science—scientists work at the boundary between known and unknown—any strongly supported result can be politically “countered” by reference to uncertainty in an assumption, a piece of data, or an experimental procedure regardless of how well characterized that uncertainty is or how robust the original result. This tactic implicitly constructs the logical fallacy of suggesting that because we do not know everything, we therefore know nothing. > > The manufacturing of doubt has been a deliberate tactic in many politically contentious circumstances, most famously in the tobacco industry’s multidecade attempt to hide the harmful effects of smoking from the public. Indeed, the famous memo from a Brown & Williamson executive declaring that “doubt is our product” finds its echo in almost every antiscience campaign. > > It is rare that one finds a serious researcher supporting the dubious claims of intelligent design or homeopathy (though it occasionally happens). These topics simply don’t resonate with many scientists. There is, however, one fault line amply demonstrated in the book that does factor strongly for a significant group of (mainly U.S.-based) physicists—and that is the idea that the technology and industry that have brought the developed world so much prosperity might in fact be harming the environment that civilization has adapted to. The response of this group of high-powered physicists, weaned on the postwar period of technological optimism, to create and professionalize a specific class of science distorters is amply described by Oreskes and Conway. ---
**Author:** ![Independence](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e274bd/32.png) [@Independence](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Independence)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/50 "2013-06-30T03:07:29Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > You clearly don’t understand the least little bit about the subject, then. Thanks. I appreciate your input, I really do. What was your point again? By the way, if you have not heard: The temperature on Earth has more to do with the ginormous “ball of fire” planet a few hundred light years away (the Sun) that has been radiating it for a few million years, it’s core, gravity, chemical makeup (chemicals that have sustained since the big bang) than it has to do with the humans (and their technology) that have only existed for an infinitesimal amount of time (comparatively speaking)… Yes, I mean millions of years of other, larger factors have and will continue to have a greater impact on Earth than you or I… or DOW. My guess is that bit of logic will be lost on you so by all means, please continue to believe everything you see on TV and read from the Google’s “popular news” feed… ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/51 "2013-06-30T03:07:59Z")
> [@Independence](#): > > Your scathing review of my opinion (which I am entitled to) does not move me. What can I say? I disagree with you. > > Human beings have ZERO affect on the Earth’s temperature… none. Nil. Nada. That is not the way it works, you have the right of your opinion, but not the facts. > **[10 Indicators of a Human Fingerprint on Climate Change](https://skepticalscience.com/10-Indicators-of-a-Human-Fingerprint-on-Climate-Change.html)** > > The NOAA State of the Climate 2009 report is an excellent summary of the many lines of evidence that global warming is happening. Acknowledging the fact that the planet is warming leads to the all important question - what's causing global warming?... > [@](#): > > The NOAA State of the Climate 2009 report is an excellent summary of the many lines of evidence that global warming is happening. Acknowledging the fact that the planet is warming leads to the all important question - what’s causing global warming? To answer this, here is a summary of the empirical evidence that answer this question. Many different observations find a distinct human fingerprint on climate change: > > To get a closer look, click on the pic above to get a high-rez 1024x768 version (you’re all welcome to use this graphic in your Powerpoint presentations). Or to dig even deeper, here’s more info on each indicator (including links to the original data or peer-reviewed research): ---
**Author:** ![FXMastermind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fxmastermind/32/7289_2.png) [@FXMastermind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FXMastermind)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/52 "2013-06-30T03:12:46Z")
> [@Independence](#): > > Human beings have ZERO affect on the Earth’s temperature… none. Nil. Nada. :smack: That’s simply not true. Not only do our activities change the very world we live on, but weather and temperature are modified by all kinds of things humans do. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/53 "2013-06-30T03:13:41Z")
> [@Independence](#): > > Thanks. I appreciate your input, I really do. What was your point again? > > By the way, if you have not heard: > > The temperature on Earth has more to do with the ginormous “ball of fire” planet a few hundred light years away (the Sun) that has been radiating it for a few million years, it’s core, gravity, chemical makeup (chemicals that have sustained since the big bang) than it has to do with the humans (and their technology) that have only existed for an infinitesimal amount of time (comparatively speaking)… > > Yes, I mean millions of years of other, larger factors have and will continue to have a greater impact on Earth than you or I… or DOW. > > My guess is that bit of logic will be lost on you so by all means, please continue to believe everything you see on TV and read from the Google’s “popular news” feed… Ah yes, the number 2 myth, I was missing him after all these years. > **[Sun & climate: moving in opposite directions](https://skepticalscience.com/solar-activity-sunspots-global-warming-advanced.htm)** > > \In the last 35 years of global warming, the sun has shown a slight cooling trend. Sun and climate have been going in opposite directions.\ > [@](#): > > \*The skeptic argument… > > **It’s the sun** \* > > What the science says… > > In the last 35 years of global warming, the sun has shown a slight cooling trend. Sun and climate have been going in opposite directions. In the past century, the Sun can explain some of the increase in global temperatures, but a relatively small amount. > > It’s often considered “common sense” that global warming is caused by the Sun. After all, the Sun is the source of almost all of the energy on Earth. The Sun has both direct and indirect influences over the Earth’s temperature, and we can evaluate whether these effects could be responsible for a significant amount of the recent global warming. As shown in the Intermediate level rebuttal of this argument, dozens of studies have concluded that the Sun simply cannot account for the recent global warming, but here we’ll go through the calculations for ourselves. And please check the linked scientific papers before continuing with your “input”; remember, not being also aware of the levels of information that are available to answer a lot of the myths that the popular press and right wing media have spewed is also a demonstration of ignorance. > **[Arguments from Global Warming Skeptics and what the science really says](https://skepticalscience.com/argument.php)** > > Examines the science and arguments of global warming skepticism. Common objections like 'global warming is caused by the sun', 'temperature has changed naturally in the past' or 'other planets are warming too' are examined to see what the science... ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/54 "2013-06-30T03:22:01Z")
> [@Independence](#): > > The temperature on Earth has more to do with the ginormous “ball of fire” planet a few hundred light years away (the Sun). . . I would suggest that anyone who thinks that the sun is a planet may be safely ignored on any topic involving science. > [@Independence](#): > > My guess is that bit of logic will be lost on you. . . . Throwing out random factoids, (many of them wrong), with no actual construction of a thesis is not a “bit of logic.” It is just throwing text out in the hope that someone will be misled by their quantity. ---
**Author:** ![FXMastermind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fxmastermind/32/7289_2.png) [@FXMastermind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FXMastermind)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/55 "2013-06-30T03:29:07Z")
> [@tomndebb](#): > > I would suggest that anyone who thinks that the sun is a planet may be safely ignored on any topic involving science. I think the “light years away” comment should have been a bigger clue. ---
**Author:** ![FXMastermind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fxmastermind/32/7289_2.png) [@FXMastermind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FXMastermind)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/56 "2013-06-30T03:30:19Z")
> [@Independence](#): > > the ginormous “ball of fire” planet a few hundred light years away (the Sun) I’m calling Poe on this one. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/57 "2013-06-30T03:39:24Z")
> [@FXMastermind](#): > > I think the “light years away” comment should have been a bigger clue. Hey. It is roughly 0\*\*.\*\*00001521028215073390 light years away. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/58 "2013-06-30T06:57:31Z")
> [@Independence](#): > > The temperature on Earth has more to do with the ginormous “ball of fire” planet a few hundred light years away (the Sun) that has been radiating it for a few million years, it’s core, gravity, chemical makeup (chemicals that have sustained since the big bang) than it has to do with the humans (and their technology) that have only existed for an infinitesimal amount of time (comparatively speaking)… > > Yes, I mean millions of years of other, larger factors have and will continue to have a greater impact on Earth than you or I… or DOW. Yeah, but we’re talking about _what’s happening now_, during our own lifetimes. And it’s been demonstrated that human activity is causing climate to change with unprecedented rapidity compared to the past hundreds of thousands of years. And it should be obvious that what’s currently happening is most important to us, not what happened millions of years ago or what might happen millions of year in the future. > [@](#): > > My guess is that bit of logic will be lost on you so by all means, please continue to believe everything you see on TV and read from the Google’s “popular news” feed… Actually, my conclusion is not based on what I see on TV or on Google. I’m a professional scientist and served on an intergovernmental panel on climate change during the G.H.W. Bush administration, when the issue was already of concern even to a Republican administration. Many of my scientific colleagues are very much involved in current research on rising CO2 and its effects, and I get updates in seminars by them on probably a monthly basis. My reading runs towards _Science, Nature,_ and the _Proceedings of the National Academy of Science_. So I think I’m fairly well informed about the scientific basis for climate change. 😉 May I ask where exactly you get your information from? ---
**Author:** ![magellan01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/59 "2013-06-30T07:36:14Z")
> [@tomndebb](#): > > Feel free to wander over to The BBQ Pit and blast anyone you wish with your claims of “religion.” Since you have provided no actual information relative to this discussion, (through your next several post), I can only conclude that you are here for the purpose of threadshitting. > > Stop it. > > [/Moderating] Oh, please. I’m challenging the degree of certainty of the “consensus” he points to. I’m challenging the degree of certainty that should be expected when one wants others to act on beliefs that one has. Pointing that out is valid, lest people think that _any_ counter information will have _any_ effect. But I’ll leave this discussion alone so the usual suspects can debate the oh-so-important issue of whether climate change is super, super bad or super-duper bad. I’ll restrain myself to viewer-only mode as to not interrupt such an important parsing. My apologies for thinking that this forum existed to challenge the views of others, your grace. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Critical1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Critical1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical1)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2013, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157/60 "2013-06-30T07:55:51Z")
> [@Independence](#): > > The temperature on Earth has more to do with the ginormous “ball of fire” planet a few hundred light years away (the Sun) that has been radiating it for a few million years, it’s core, gravity, chemical makeup (chemicals that have sustained since the big bang) than it has to do with the humans (and their technology) that have only existed for an infinitesimal amount of time (comparatively speaking)… > > Yes, I mean millions of years of other, larger factors have and will continue to have a greater impact on Earth than you or I… or DOW. > > My guess is that bit of logic will be lost on you so by all means, please continue to believe everything you see on TV and read from the Google’s “popular news” feed… In the past 100 years we have literally set fire to a significant portion of the planet. We have burned more in that time frame than the rest of human history combined. Where is it you think all that burned up stuff is going? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-climate-may-be-heating-up-less-in-response-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions-than-was-once-thought/662157.md?page=4)