Monday 25 January 2010

Nobel lie?

From the Daily Mail:
The scientist behind the bogus claim in a Nobel Prize-winning UN report that Himalayan glaciers will have melted by 2035 last night admitted it was included purely to put political pressure on world leaders.

Dr Murari Lal also said he was well aware the statement, in the 2007 report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), did not rest on peer-reviewed scientific research.
Option One: They lied about this, so they've likely lied about other stuff in a lengthy opaque technical document that cannot be independently replicated because much of the data is not in the public domain.

Option Two: They're truth seekers, they're convinced that warming is going to be awful, and they know that only outrageous claims will work in mobilizing political support for change.

If you lean towards option two... Did I remember to tell you that that free markets cure cancer and cause ponies to miraculously appear in your back yard, just waiting to be patted and fed apples? Just look at Singapore and Hong Kong - top two in the economic freedom indices. Free ponies and no cancer - all the time. In fact, ponies are now the biggest export of both countries since ponies on the balconies of small apartments tend to be inconvenient.

Now, do you think I'm just a liar, or does my lying strengthen your confidence in other claims I might make about the merits of markets given that I've demonstrated the strength of my beliefs by my willingness to lie?

Nobels oughtn't be awarded for noble lies.

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