Shooting Global Warming Fish in a barrel

Twitter debates can sometimes be a bit amusing.

Flagged onto someone on twitter by @Moronwatch I sort of half heartedly got into a debate with someone quoting this piece from "News Room America" as support for his argument that we are cooling, not warming.

I have no real idea what "News Room America" is, and I don't think I've come across it before, but the piece is so hilariously inept it cracked me up, and I felt moved to de-construct it line by line convincing I felt the need to spread it's revelations further afield..
So - on we go -

New data released by a noted climate research institute last week indicated that the earth has not warmed in more than a decade, findings that are sure to challenge the global warming mentality for years held by a number of scientists.

Rather a bold claim to start with, I'm intrigued - lets look deeper onto the next bit.

The data, released with little fanfare by the University of East Anglia Climatic Research Unit in London, shows that the earth has not warmed in at least 15 years. The university's conclusion was based on readings from more than 30,000 measuring stations.

Umm right. lets take a look at this paragraph. Can you spot the basic errors?
University of East Anglia Climatic Research Unit in London. East Anglia in London. East Anglia in London.
Nope can't spot anything there. No problem with that. No sirree


Onto the next, ohh the CRU has released new data? Sounds fascinating - lets find it!


Search anywhere for a new release. I can't find it. The most recently released information sheet is  from January last year, and that doesn't mention 30,000 stations or no increase for the past 15 years. I assume this means the reporter has super deep sources, and the "little fanfare" amounts to data hiding of some sort. The journalistic skill in this article makes me smile.

In fact, the university said, it was possible the earth was moving into a cooling cycle, suggesting "that we could even be heading for a mini ice age to rival the 70-year temperature drop that saw frost fairs held on the Thames in the 17th Century," London's Daily Mail newspaper reported.

Leading climate scientists told the paper that the sun, after emitting high energy levels throughout the 20th century, may be entering a period of "grand minimum" output, which could produce colder summers, extreme winters and shorter seasons for growing food.

Other climate scientists made similar predictions.

"World temperatures may end up a lot cooler than now for 50 years or more," Henrik Svensmark, director of the Center for Sun-Climate Research at Denmark’s National Space Institute, told the paper.

"It will take a long battle to convince some climate scientists that the sun is important. It may well be that the sun is going to demonstrate this on its own, without the need for their help," he said.

Some scientists said models set forth by in 2000 by the British government have not yet run their course and could still wind up producing warmer temperatures.

Professor Judith Curry of the Georgia Institute of Technology, a noted U.S. climatologist, said many scientists "are not surprised" by the warming pause.

She said it's becoming more evident that factors other than CO2 affect global warming and cooling, such as the 60-year water temperature cycles in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, the Mail reported.

Ah, a lot of quote from that bastion of fairness and accuracy the "London Daily Mail". I can think of no better source to use for scientific literacy. Lets find an article with this quote to see who said it - maybe I can track down the hidden UEA info.

Here we go according to the Daily Mail it was research done by UEA and the Met. office. Lets see if the met office shows what UEA has cleverly hidden.


The closest recent Met. office press release mentioning Solar output or global warming is here. Interestingly (or perhaps dastardly) it hides the UEA link. It does however reveal the research was done with "Mike Lockwood, an expert in solar studies at the University of Reading", and you can look up his research on the matter here. which seems to produce the majority of the Met. office information, although as the Daily Mail would never get something wrong - the UEA must have played a key, but hidden role.


I would comment on the high journalistic standards of the Mail, and wax lyrical on the accuracy of the piece here, but, I feel it's unnecessary, as the Met. office itself commented on this specific article. Obviously and clearly the Met. office confirmed absolutely everything the mail says, as it's a bastion of truth.


Anyway back to Newsroom America, lets read some more of the article that doesn't come from referencing the Daily Mail.

© 2012 Newsroom America.

Oh good they've copyrighted their completely and utterly original article about climate change. That's nice.

Do 275,000 Swiss people engage in Zoophilia?

275,000 Swiss people have sexual relationships with animals, a survey revealed

Up to 275,000 Swiss people — out of a population of 8million — have sex with animals, a survey claimed last year.

I read these stories today and was startled by this fact that was thrown out in the Daily Mail and The Sun. Extraordinary stories which I thought may have received more coverage when the Survey happened.

So I did a little research and found this article in a Swiss paper - which appears to be the on the same story from a few days earlier. Not sure if it's the source of the UK articles, but it does state -

Despite it being against the law, last June Tages Anzeiger reported that an estimated 275,000 people practised zoophilia in Switzerland. The Zurich paper said that 5 percent of Swiss males and 2 percent of Swiss women had sexual relationships with animals.

Theres a link to the relevant article for sourcing this claim - which is here.
Now I never did German at school - but the Google Translate version of the article seems to lay out pretty clearly the basis for this "Survey" number

When Albert Kinsey wrote in the fifties, his report, for which he examined 20,000 interviews with the sexual behavior of Americans, gave at 8 percent of men and 3.5 percent of the women, at least once to have had sexual contact with animals . Because at that time such acts were punished, it was assumed, reasonably certain that the information provided. Mid-seventies, the figures were then due to recent - albeit less - Investigations corrected downwards: It is now estimated that 5 percent of men and 2 percent of the female population at some time sexual intercourse with an animal, usually in the form of orally- genital contact or masturbation of the animal. 

Extrapolated to Switzerland means: There are approximately 275,000 zoophiles. Where it is not at all a rural phenomenon - in the face of hundreds of thousands of pets in the cities, the availability is also ensured since. And zoophiles are by no means marginalized or retarded, but how to become white, formed on the large part.

 So an authoritative "Survey" which the British press quotes as happening last year as a source, is nothing of the sort!
It's a vague extrapolation of a number based on Kinsey's old research, and stated for discussion in a conference speech. Nothing more, nothing less.

 Gotta love the British press


Edit: I think the Original 'Research' comes from here  I believe (also in German) which states the same assumptions, as the article. I can find no other mentions of this 275,000 number so unless disproved - I'd assume this was it.