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Wow, Hadrian, you can speak German!

Tickers | 03/30/08

I see only ONE minor problem with the orginal argument. The writer is lacking a brain. Gore is trying to help the environment, I don't understand how anyone could look at him as a monster. Global Warming is killing our earth. By making the world warmer, our bears wake up earlier from hibernation (therefore throwing off the food chain), certain flowers that only bloom once a year bloom before their time, and much much more. Gore's proposals and attempts to correct this problem will save the world for the next generations. History will look upon him as a hero, and people like you as idiots, for not understanding his motives. On your behalf I hope your original argument was a joke Hadrian.

Ecyoj21 | 03/31/08

How could anyone look at gora as a monster? Good question but here's an even better one. How could anyone look at Cliton as a monster?

yngster | 03/31/08

I think what Hardian is trying to convey is that famine and disease serve a purpose.

yngster | 03/31/08

Warmer weather is a good thing, especially since most of it is occuring in northern regions where agriculture used to be out of the question. Canada should thank us and algor should stop twisting the facts on global warming. The polar bears will have to cope.

twelve angry men | 03/31/08

Wait, maybe I missed something.... Who called Gore a monster? As far as I can tell, Ecyoj21 was the first to do so. PS - good to see you're getting into things, Joyce

RTBA2A | 04/01/08

Al Gore?!?! What a freaking joke. If he's so dead set that global warming equates to armageddon, then why does the guy live in an 11,000 square foot house that consumes 20x the elecricity of the average American? Then he leaves his energy devouring home and hops on private jets to speak around the world. I guess he found out there's more money in "global warming" than in politics.

ShawnF | 04/01/08

Over population it really a problem that we need to address along with changing our light bulbs. We don't necessarliy need people to die insomuch as we need them to stop being born

drea | 04/01/08

Shawn, would this be the same Gore whose home was praised by the US Green Building Council, who awarded the home it's second highest rating for sustainable design, the same Gore who buys electricity from green power renewable initiatives and the same Gore who held the first congressional hearings on global warming back in the 70s? Yeah I'm sure this guy who has ben warning about the potential consequences of global warming for thirty odd years has been doing so in order to get money.

Tickers | 04/01/08

Tickers, you just have an answer for everything. The point is we are supposed to turn down our thermostats while he isn't? He's the one with the vast knowledge and insight on "global warming" Check the link out. http://www.tennesseepolicy.org/main/article.php?article_id=367

ShawnF | 04/01/08

Kenneth!

Ecyoj21 | 04/01/08

Hi Shawn, well I get bored at work and have a lot of time to look for answers. You've given a link from February 2007, and when I last checked it was April 2008, so it would perhaps be beneficial to see if there's anything more recent and relevant. Happily there is! (Joy!) Gore appears to have invested a lot into his home to make it far more energy efficient. His summer 2007 electricity consumption fell by 11% compared to 2006, while other homes in the Nashville area rose by 20-30% during a record heat wave. To insinuate that the man is basically using global warming as a means of making money or isn't practising what he is preaching is simply a falsehood. By the way would it be correct to guess that you aren't a big believer in global warming?(http://edition.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/12/13/gore.home.ap/)

Tickers | 04/02/08

I am definately not a believe in global warming. Do I believe that global warming exists? Yes. Do I believe humans have an impact? Yes. Is that impact anything significant? No. Can Humans change the course of global warming? No. Therefore, do I believe people like Gore and the rest of the people who yeal up and down about global warming are wasting their time and mine by doing so? Most definately!

shrek | 04/02/08

And Tickers if Gore, who held the first congressional hearings on global warming back in the 70s, believed what he was preaching, why did it take him until 2007 to start leading by example? Why did he only recently trade in his 9 MPG Ford Expedition in for a hybrid? Very good questions I suppose. But here's another link for you to take a look at. I thought it was interesting. http://www.practicalenvironmentalist.com/energy-efficiency/perhaps-al-gore-should-ask-george-w-bush-for-help-in-making-his-house-more-energy-efficient.htm

ShawnF | 04/02/08

I would concur, they are good questions, untill you stop and think about them. The key of climate change is the 'carbon footprint' of a person, family or alien from mars. The home lifestyle is obviously a part of that, and perhaps a significant part, but to analyse that solely is effectively meaningless. For example you have to consider how the electricity is generated - at the time of both your articles Gore was paying $432/month to source as much as possible from renewable sources. If your energy is generated by solar power then it's pretty irrelevant how much you use (at least from a carbon perspective). The comparative ages of Gore's and Bush's homes make it somewhat unfair to directly contrast them. Gore's home was built in the 1920s, Bush's ranch in 1999 - it's far more costly and complicated to modify an existing build. Builds in the future should be more like Bush's ranch than Gore's mansion, but it is economically unfeasable to actually modify every house in America, much in the same way that a lot of people don't bother to upgrade their windows to double glazing. As for your car comment - the most recent thing I can find is him trading a lexus (hybrid) to a mercury mariner hybrid in March 2007, and from his own comments in 2006 where he says he 'bought a hybrid about a year ago', though in the same comment he also says that he doesn't drive much. So as far as I can work out he has had hybrid cars for a while. (Another comment to follow to prevent wall of text)

Tickers | 04/03/08

The issue I have with what you've been asserting, Shawn, is that you've been attacking Gore based on an idea that he is in some way hypocritical or in it for the money. That assertion simply doesn't stand up, since the limited evidence that can be provided for it is very selective. You may believe Al Gore is wrong, and I'll be honest personally I find carbon offset credits a somewhat bizarre concept, but that's a different debate. Gore talks about Global warming, and he lives according to what he's been saying.

Tickers | 04/03/08

Some interesting points: A) "Snow cover over North America and much of Siberia, Mongolia and China is greater than at any time since 1966." (1); B) "The U.S. National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) reported that many American cities and towns suffered record cold temperatures in January and early February. According to the NCDC, the average temperature in January 'was -0.3 F cooler than the 1901-2000 (20th century) average.'" (1); C) Saudi Arabia has been getting snow over the past few years, with "near-record low temperatures" and "National media sa[ying] the winter is the coldest in the country for 20 years." (2); D) The temperature of the Atlantic Ocean is actually far below its temperature just after the turn of the first millennium AD, even farther below its ancient temperatures, and remains below the 3000 year average temperature. (3); Sources: 1 - http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/columnists/story.html?id=332289 2 - http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2008/01/13/rare-snows-cold-saudi-arabia-ignored-us-media 3 - http://www.oism.org/pproject/Slides/img0.html

RTBA2A | 04/03/08

Hello RTBA2A. While they are interesting points it should be stated that they are simply points, that on their own do not actually prove anything - in the same way that a 'record heat wave' is not the conclusive evidence for global warming. When trying to measure the issue of climate change, one has to examine the climate as a whole, across the entire globe, in order to try to measure trends. On the snow issue, it's an intersting one, but I would like you to follow me on a train of thought for a moment in the following comment (to avoid wall of text syndrome)

Tickers | 04/03/08

Snow: How does it form? From moisture in the air freezing and falling to the ground. How does it get there? Water molecules evaporate from resevoirs of water, mostly the sea. What happens if you increase the temperature? You get an increase in evaporation and so more moisture in the air. What happens if there is more moisture in the air? You get more snow when it cools. It may be more valid to ask how long the snow hangs around for, but that would be viable only as a general trend. I'd like to say though that I do believe in human ingenuity - we as a species will move beyond fossil fuels either because of the attitude toward global warming or because those fuels simply run out.

Tickers | 04/03/08

Gore owns a telivison station, Current TV. He is going to profit 50 million off of the IPO. Half of the money raised by the IPO is going to him. Traditionally, the money raised by the IPO goes towards the comapny, not the founder.

yngster | 04/03/08