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Vince's "Why Believe?" Website |
NOTE: Ex-Christians who are considering a return to the Faith and who wish to make a good Confession should click here.
Lesson One in Prayer by Professor Peter Kreeft.
Lesson one is very simple: just do it!Discernment by Professor Peter Kreeft.
Does God have one right choice for me in each decision I make?Awaken to Prayer. by the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Archdiocese of Seattle.
A Web page that has all the resources that you could possibly want on prayer. A must-read.More Orthodox Prayers.
Prayers from the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
The Online Book of Common Prayer.
The 1662 Book of Common Prayer Website.
Sunday Worship
The Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom.
Mass of the Roman Rite (Tridentine), 1962. In Latin and English.
The Mass of Paul VI, also called the Novus Ordo Eucharistic Rite. In English.
The Holy Eucharist. From the Book of Common Prayer. Click on the hyperlink on the left.
Ten Commandments. Article in Wikipedia.
The Ten Commandments - a Catholic Perspective
The Ten Commandments. Article in The Catholic Encyclopedia (1908).
The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Part Three, Section Two: The Ten Commandments.
The Ten Commandments - some Protestant Perspectives
Westminster Larger Catechism. A Presbyterian catechism. Scroll down to Question 99 to read the section on the Ten Commandments.
Declaration of Faith penned by Christopher Pope, a Southern Baptist.
In the section on Ethics, the author comprehensively treats of each of the Ten Commandments.
NOTE: Any readers who wish to make a proper Confession should scroll down to section 9.3.3, for some excellent advice.
Baptism. From the Catechism of the Catholic Church.Baptism. From Orthodox Central.
The Eucharist. From the Catechism of the Catholic Church.Eucharist And Mass by Frank Sheed.
Transubstantiation by Fr. Paul Duffner, O.P.
Communion and Unction. From Orthodox Central.
Confirmation. From the Catechism of the Catholic Church.Penance and Reconciliation. From the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
How to make a good confession: a talk by Fr. Zlatko Sudac
Fr. Sudac's video makes for compelling viewing. Here are the key points: Be honest. Do not blame your sins on other people; do not be like Adam, if you did it, you did it. Just say what you did, period. You go to confess your sins, not some one else's sins. And very vital, be repentant.
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6
Chrismation and Penance. From Orthodox Central. "Chrismation" is the Orthodox term for confirmation.
The Anointing of the Sick. From the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
Communion and Unction. From Orthodox Central. "Unction" is the Orthodox term for the anointing of the sick.
Holy Orders. From the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
Fishers of Men (Part 1). An awesome video about the Catholic priesthood.
Fishers of Men (Part 2). Even better than Part 1!
Matrimony. From the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
Holy Orders and Matrimony. From Orthodox Central.
Enchiridion on Faith, Hope and Love by St. Augustine.
A handbook on how to serve God, which also treats of the problem of evil.On Loving God by St. Bernard of Clairvaux.
An excerpt: "You want me to tell you why God is to be loved and how much. I answer, the reason for loving God is God Himself; and the measure of love due to Him is immeasurable love..."Cleaving to God by St. Albert the Great, teacher of St. Thomas Aquinas.
The Imitation of Christ by St. Thomas A Kempis.
After the Bible, The Imitation of Christ is the most widely read book in the world. For five hundred years, this gentle book, filled with the spirit of the love of God, has brought understanding and comfort to millions of readers.Treatise on Purgatory by St. Catherine of Genoa.
A mystical work. The divine fire which St. Catherine experienced in herself, made her comprehend the state of souls in purgatory, and that they are contented there, although in torment.The Sinner's Guide by Venerable Louis of Granada.
St. Teresa of Avila stated that this work of Venerable Louis converted over 1,000,000 souls in her day. She, along with St. John of the Cross, St. Francis de Sales, St. Charles Borromeo, St. Vincent de Paul, and St. Rose of Lima, all counted it among their favorite spiritual books.The Ascent of Mount Carmel by St. John of the Cross, a sixteenth-century Spanish mystic.
"It is not going too far to liken the place taken by St. John of the Cross in mystical theology to that of St. Thomas in dogmatic" - E. Allison Peers.Dark Night of the Soul by St. John of the Cross, a sixteenth-century Spanish mystic.
Describes the soul's conduct along the spiritual road which leads to the perfect union of the soul with God through love as far as is attainable in this life.The Interior Castle by St. Thereas of Avila, a sixteenth-century Spanish mystic.
A vivid, readable description of the stages in mystical prayer from a Doctor of the Church.Spiritual Combat. A classic, written by a sixteenth-century Italian priest, Lorenzo Scupoli.
The Practice of the Presence of God. by Brother Lawrence (1666).
Abandonment to Divine Providence by Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade, S.J.
An Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales.
The "Introduction" is recognized as a masterpiece of mystical and devotional literature. Written by a Doctor of the Church for laity interested in living a better life, it urges upon all men and women a hatred of sin, detachment for the things of the world, love of God and constancy in prayer.A Plain Account of Christian Perfection by John Wesley.
The Christian Pilgrim by Jonathan Edwards.
The Story of a Soul by St. Therese of Lisieux.
The Necessity of Prayer by E. M. Bounds.
The Necessity of Prayer and other books by E.M. Bounds are unfailing wells for a lifetime of spiritual water-drawing. His wise counsel on prayer are words that originated on the anvil of experience.Power Through Prayer by E. M. Bounds.
Power through Prayer has been called "one of the truly great masterpieces on the theme of prayer." The term classic can appropriately be applied to this outstanding book.
A Guide to Orthodox Life by Father David and Presbytera Julianna Cownie.
This book is an invaluable spiritual guide. It provides detailed information on how ordinary people should go aboutr living a Christian life within the Orthodox Church, and answers the most basic questions that converts have about practical Orthodox piety. Scroll down the page to read the book.Young Children in the Orthodox Church by Presbytera Julianna Cownie.
This book provides a wealth of useful information on how parents should raise their children to be Christians.Christian Manners for Men by G. C. Davy.
This is a series of articles on Christian manners for men taken from a book entitled, "The Christian Gentleman". We hope it will serve you well. Click on the hyperlink at the bottom to access the other chapters from 2003, when the series appeared in a liturgical magazine. Click here for a continuation of the same series from January to April 2004, and here for a continuation of the same series from May to August 2004, and here for a continuation of the same series from January to April 2005.
Lives of the SaintsSaints' Lives - A Collection of Original Sources on the Internet Paul Halsall.
This collection is part of the Internet Medieval Sourcebook, which is now part of ORB, the Online Reference Book for Medieval Studies. The Internet History Sourcebooks Project [IHSP] is a world wide web project designed to provide easy access to primary sources and other teaching materials in a non-commercial environment. The Internet History Sourcebooks Project is located at the History Department of Fordham University, New York. The Internet Medieval Sourcebook, and other medieval components of the project, are located at the Fordham University Center for Medieval Studies.
Orthodox Saints
Some Saints and Feasts of the Orthodox Christian Church by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia.
Catholic Saints
Lives of the Saints. From the Eternal Word Television Network Web site.
Saints for Sinners, by Fr. Alban Goodier, S.J. Inspiring and totally factual biographies of nine Catholic saints. From the Eternal Word Television Network Web site.
Protestant Lives of Famous Christians
Missionary Biographies by Worldwide Missions.
Preacher Biographies by Sword of the Lord.
9.7.1 Ethical Theories Which Are Compatible With Christian Teaching
Natural Law Theories by Professor John Finnis. In The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2007.
Personalism
A Short History of Personalism by Kevin Schmiesing.
Writings of Pope John Paul II.
Neo-Thomism: the Natural Law Tradition
Aquinas' Moral, Political, and Legal Philosophy by Professor John Finnis. Article in The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
Natural Law: the Classical Tradition by Professor John Finnis. Article in The Oxford Handbook of Jurisprudence and Philosophy of Law, edited by Jules Coleman and Scott Shapiro, Oxford University Press.
A Contemporary Natural-Law Ethics by Professor Germain Grisez.
Germain Grisez is professor of philosophy at Mount Saint Mary's College, Maryland. He has ben writing on natural law ethics since 1959. Here, he puts forward a contemporary version of Aquinas' natural-law ethics, which can perhaps be understood more easily by contrasting it with other ethical theories. Consequentialist ethical theories (e.g. utilitarianism)are teleological; they try to ground moral judgments in human well-being. Kantian theories are deontological; they try to ground moral judgments in the rational nature of the moral subject, whose inherent dignity they emphasize. Teleology appeals to many because it does not absolutize morality but subordinates it to a wider human flourishing. But deontology also has its appeal, for it tries to defend the absolute dignity of human persons, especially against any attempt to justify using some as mere means to the goals of others. Grisez' theory, which is based on Aquinas, tries to combine the strengths and avoid the weaknesses of teleology and deontology. According to Grisez, morality is grounded in human goods - the goods of real people living in the world of experience. Still, each person's dignity is protected by moral absolutes, and it never is right to treat anyone as a mere means.The Priority of Persons by Professor John Finnis.
Economy or Explication? Telling the Truth about God and Man in a Pluralist Society by Professor John Finnis. From a talk given in 2004.
9.7.2 Ethical Theories Which Are Incompatible With Christian Teaching
Utilitarianism: The Greatest Good for the Greatest Number by Kerby Anderson.
A critique of utilitarianism, and especially situation ethics. Kerby Anderson is National Director of Probe Ministries International. He received his B.S. from Oregon State University, M.F.S. from Yale University, and M.A. from Georgetown University. He is the author of several books, including Genetic Engineering, Origin Science, Living Ethically in the 90s, Signs of Warning, Signs of Hope, Moral Dilemmas, and Christian Ethics in Plain Language.Why I am not a Consequentialist by Professor David Oderberg.
A systematic critique of consequentialism - an ethical doctrine which includes all of the various forms of utilitarianism, and which states that the fundamental aim of morality is to maximize value.Modern Moral Philosophy by Elizabeth Anscombe.
A probing, thought-provoking critique of utilitarianism.Cultural Relativism by Kerby Anderson.
A critique of cultural relativism. The central weakness of cultural relativism is its unwillingness to evaluate another culture. The Holocaust, for example, cannot be merely explained away as an appropriate cultural response for Nazi Germany. Also, if there are no absolute values that exist trans-culturally or externally to the group, how are different cultures to get along when values collide? How are we to handle these conflicts? Finally, is there ever a place for courageous individuals to challenge the cultural norm and fight against social evil, within their culture? Cultural relativism seems to leave no place for social reformers.Self-Ownership, Libertarianism, and Impartiality by Professor Edward Feser.
Professor Feser does a skillful job of exposing the ethical inadequacies of libertarianism.
9.8.1 Early Christian Teachings
9.8.2 Life Issues
9.8.3 Global Warming
9.8.4 Sexual Morality
9.8.5 Social Teachings
9.8.6 Law and Order
9.8.7 Culture
The Didache: The Lord's Teaching Through the Twelve Apostles to the Nations.
This is one of the earliest Christian documents we have outside the New Testament. The Didache dates from 50 to 120 AD. It describes the Christian way of life in simple, direct language.
Good WebsitesLife Issues.net - Clear thinking about Crucial Issues. A site run by Fr. Jerry Novotny, OMI.
General Statements of Principles
That They May Have Life - A Statement By Evangelicals and Catholics Together.
A statement on Christian teachings regarding the value of human life, by a group of Evangelical and Catholic leaders. From its beginnings in 1992, Evangelicals and Catholics Together (ECT) has been very deliberately an unofficial project composed of a continuing working group of participants, who speak from and to their several ecclesial communities.Interview with Dr. David Oderberg by Victor Tsilonis, then a trainee lawyer in Greece and LL.M. candidate in Criminal Justice/Human Rights. David Oderberg is a Professor of Philosophy at the University of Reading. Most people nowadays would regard Dr. Oderberg's views as controversial, since he endorses capital punishment, but is against abortion and euthanasia at the same time.
A World is Not Made to Last Forever: The Bioethics of C. S. Lewis by Professor Martin LeBar.
From the Journal of the American Scientific Affiliation 35 (June 1983): 104-107.Bioethics and Theology: How Are They Related? by William E. May, Michael J. McGivney Professor of Moral Theology, John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family at The Catholic University of America.
Since bioethics is concerned first and foremost with the life, health, and well-being of the human person, and since theology has a particular interest in the human person made in God's image and called, in Christ, to a destiny far surpassing what eye has seen or ear heard or the heart of man conceived, these two disciplines are first of all related in and through the human person. The first part of this paper will take up the issue of human anthropology: what a human person is. The second part of this paper will focus on the morality of human acts, in particular, human acts bearing upon the human person.
Abortion and Embryo Destruction
www.prolife.com.
An excellent pro-life Web site, with lots of factual information, testimonials, articles and videos.Human Life International.
Human Life International is the largest international, pro-life, pro-family, pro-woman organization in the world.How I Became Pro-Life by Jennifer Fulwiler, a former atheist who gradually changed her mind on the subject of abortion.
When Less Is More: Finding Inspiration In Severe Disability.
This is the story of Jason and Angie Berger, whose daughter Sunni (pronounced "Sunny") was born with a disorder causing her to be severely disabled. She has stalled at less than one year of development, cognitively and physically. This means she is unable to sit up on her own or bring food or drink to her mouth. She is blind, diabetic, and suffers from seizures that are kept under control with medication. She has no real means of communication, although her parents have learned to decipher her different cries or vocalizations. Sunni's parents used to be staunchly pro-choice, but that after they had Sunni they became pro-life. Read their fascinating story here.What about abortion in cases of rape and incest? Women and sexual assault by Amy Sobie, in Lifenews.com.
Amy Sobie is the editor of The Post-Abortion Review, a quarterly publication of the Elliot Institute. The organization is a widely respected leader in research and analysis of medical, mental health and other complications resulting from abortions. She writes: "our research shows that most women who become pregnant through sexual assault don't want abortion, and say abortion only compounds their trauma."Afterabortion.org. Website run by the Elliot Institute.
This is the Web's most complete source of information on the after-effects of abortion and post-abortion healing.Unstringing the Violinist by Christian apologist Gregory Koukl.
Judith Jarvis Thompson's "Violinist" argument is one of the most compelling ever offered in favor of abortion on demand, but it's deeply flawed. Here's where it goes wrong. Excerpt:I remember exactly where I was the first time I heard Judith Jarvis Thompson's "Violinist" argument. I was driving south on the 405 freeway in Los Angeles listening to a radio talk-show. It shook me up so much I almost had to pull over.Not only was the argument compelling, but Thompson made a stunning concession when she acknowledged the full personhood of the unborn. Having conceded what pro-lifers were trying to prove, she short-circuited their argument from the outset.
My first impulse was to throw in the towel. The argument couldn't be answered, I thought. This is often the case with carefully worded philosophical treatments. At first glance they appear compelling. On closer inspection, though, the flaws begin to show. In this instance, the problems with Thompson's argument are fatal.
Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research: What's Wrong With It? by Professor David Oderberg.
The Metaphysical Status of the Embryo: Some Arguments Revisited by Professor David Oderberg. In Journal of Applied Philosophy 25 (2008): 263-76.
Abstract: This paper re-examines some well-known and commonly accepted arguments for the non-individuality of the embryo, due mainly to the work of John Harris. The first concerns the alleged non-differentiation of the embryoblast from the trophoblast. The second concerns monozygotic twinning and the relevance of the primitive streak. The third concerns the totipotency of the cells of the early embryo. I argue that on a proper analysis of both the empirical facts of embryological development, and the metaphysical importance or otherwise of those facts, all three arguments are found wanting. None of them establishes that the embryo is not an individual human being from the moment of conception.What We Know About Embryonic Stem Cells by Professor Maureen Condic.
Maureen L. Condic is an associate professor of neurobiology and anatomy at the University of Utah School of Medicine and conducts research on the development and regeneration of the nervous system.Life: Defining the Beginning by the End by Professor Maureen Condic.
In this article, Professor Condic argues that the definition of human death can be applied to the question of when life commences with compelling symmetry. Death occurs when the body ceases to act in a coordinated manner to support the continued healthy function of all bodily organs. From the very beginning, "[e]mbryos are in full possession of the very characteristic that distinguishes a living human being from a dead one: the ability of all cells in the body to function together as an organism, with all parts acting in an integrated manner for the continued life and health of the body as a whole."College Right-to-Life Handbook by Andrew Siicree.
Articles by Libertarians for Life.
Libertarians for Life was founded by an atheist, Doris Gordon, in 1976. The arguments against abortion on this Website are secular, philosophical arguments which do not in any way appeal to religion.
World Hunger
World Hunger by Kerby Anderson.
An examination of the causes of world hunger, the culture of poverty, and the Christian ethic in dealing with compassion to try to solve this problem. Kerby Anderson is the president of Probe Ministries International. He received his B.S. from Oregon State University, M.F.S. from Yale University, and M.A. from Georgetown University.Poverty.com. A practical approach to world poverty and saving human lives.
About 25,000 people die every day of hunger or hunger-related causes, according to the United Nations. This is one person every three and a half seconds. Unfortunately, it is children who die most often. Find out here what can be done to address this problem on a practical level.
World Population
Population Research Institute.
Founded in 1989, the Population Research Institute is a non-profit research and educational organization dedicated to objectively presenting the truth about population-related issues, and to reversing the trends brought about by the myth of overpopulation. Its growing, global network of pro-life groups spans over 30 countries.Demographic Winter. View the trailer here.
The implications of population growth and urbanization for climate change by David Satterthwaite. In Environment and Urbanization 2009; 21; 545. DOI: 10.1177/0956247809344361 On behalf of: International Institute for Environment and Development.
Consumption Dwarfs Overpopulation As Main Environmental Threat by Fred Pearce. Article in Yale e360, 13 April 2009.
Pro-Animal, Pro-Life by Dr. Mary Eberstadt. Article in First Things, June-July 2009.
Where are the corpses? by Willis Eschenbach. Debunks claims that thousands of species are dying out.
Ocean Absorption Of CO2 Not Shrinking. Blog entry by Dr. Douglas L. Hoffman, co-creator of The Resilient Earth.
A new study re-examines the available atmospheric CO2 and emissions data and concludes that the portion of CO2 absorbed by the oceans has remained constant since 1850. This refutes claims made that the oceans have reached their fill and their capacity to remove atmospheric CO2, so greenhouse warming will accelerate in the future.Dreaming the Simonian Dream by Bryan Caplan. Bryan Caplan is an Associate Professor of Economics at George Mason University, and an adjunct scholar of the Cato Institute. He believes that the Earth can probably support more than a trillion people.
No, we don't need five planets by Bjorn Lomborg. In The Australian, April 15, 2009.
Refutes the myth that for everyone in the world to live an American lifestyle would require five planets.Prescription for the Planet by Tom Rees. The official Web site.
Rees provides a workable solution to humanity's energy's problems - and at very little cost. Well worth reading.Space exploration - Basics by Dr. Ruth Globus of NASA.
The human population in orbit could one day exceed ten trillion, living in millions of space colonies with a combined living space hundreds of times the surface of the Earth. No, the idea isn't science fiction. It's technically feasible.
AIDS
AIDS in Africa: science vindicates Catholic Church by Babette Francis.
Babette Francis, BSc Hons (Microbiology & Chemistry), is the National and Overseas Co-ordinator of Endeavour Forum Inc. LifeSiteNews is the source for much of the information in this article.The Pope Says Condoms Don't Fight AIDS. Could He Be Right?
This article from a gay Web site reviews the research and suggests that Pope Benedict XVI may have a point - not because condoms don't work, but because condom users, thinking they are safe, often engage in riskier sex than they otherwise would. An excerpt:
Notes Edward C. Green, director of the AIDS Prevention Research Project at Harvard University: "There is a consistent association shown by our best studies, including the US-funded 'Demographic Health Surveys', between greater availability and use of condoms and higher (not lower) HIV-infection rates. This may be due in part to a phenomenon known as risk compensation, meaning that when one uses a risk-reduction 'technology' such as condoms, one often loses the benefit (reduction in risk) by 'compensating' or taking greater chances than one would take without the risk-reduction technology."
War
Conditions of a Just War by Bishop Fulton J. Sheen.
Principles Of The Just War by Vincent Ferraro.
This is a list of the conditions for a "just war", in contemporary Christian moral theory. The list of conditions has expanded over the last few centuries. Not all Christians accept the concept of a "just war"; a few (e.g. Quakers, Mennonites) are pacifists. Historically, however, the great majority of Christian thinkers have taught that war was morally licit when waged for the purpose of self-defence, provided that certain conditions were satisfied.Of War. St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part II, Question 40.
In this classic text, Aquinas lays down the conditions for a just war. Aqinas' "Just War" theory proved to be a major milestone in the history of Christian ethical thought. Here, Aquinas lists three conditions for a just war; extra conditions were addded later.On the Laws of War and Peace (De Jure Belli ac Pacis) by Hugo Grotius, a Christian apologist, whose work, On the Laws of War and Peace (De Jure Belli ac Pacis), laid the foundations for international law and helped to civilise warfare.
Click here for a more elegant PDF version (note: this may take a while to load on computers with a slow connection).Is it just to attack Iraq? by Bishop Richard Williamson.
Written in January 2003, this letter sets forth traditional Christian teaching on the just war, and shows that the attack on Iraq does not satisfy the criteria for a just war.
Suicide and Euthanasia
Personhood, Dignity, Suicide, and Euthanasia by Professor Patrick Lee.
Explains why suicide and euthanasia are morally wrong.Euthanasia by Brian Pollard.
This article shows that legalised euthanasia would be a denial of justice and would be highly dangerous to many others in the community who did not want their lives taken.'Handiphobia' is a Leading Cause of Euthanasia. Interview with neonatologist Carlo Bellieni.
From Zenit International News Agency.
Capital Punishment
Capital Punishment: Where the Catholic Church Stands by Zenit International News Agency.
Capital Punishment by Kerby Anderson.
Kerby Anderson is the president of Probe Ministries International, a non-profit corporation whose mission is to reclaim the primacy of Christian thought and values in Western culture through media, education, and literature. Kerby Anderson received his B.S. from Oregon State University, M.F.S. from Yale University, and M.A. from Georgetown University. His article on capital punishment is written from an Evangelical Protestant perspective.
Terrorism
Renowned Moral Theologian Weighs in on Anti-Terrorism: Germain Grisez Offers Six Principles to Guide Response to Attacks.
From Zenit International News Agency.
How We Should Treat Animals
Causing Animals Needless Suffering Is Contrary To Human Dignity by Marie Hendrickx.
Taken from: L'Osservatore Romano Weekly Edition in English, 24 January 2001, page 6.
The creation of life: artificial insemination, IVF and cloning
Reproductive Technology: From Artificial Insemination to Cloning by Rebecca Taylor.
Many believe that advances in cloning and stem cell research, as well as their ethical implications, are recent developments. Actually, we have been careening down a slippery slope toward a biotechnical "brave new world" for quite some time.What We Know About Embryonic Stem Cells by Professor Maureen Condic.
Maureen L. Condic is an associate professor of neurobiology and anatomy at the University of Utah School of Medicine and conducts research on the development and regeneration of the nervous system. Here, she argues that human embryonic stem cell research has been a scientific blind alley.
Why should a Christian Web site discuss global warming?
Good question. I have chosen to focus on the issue of global warming here, because I see it as a test case for the Christian world-view, which affirms that: (i) among other reasons, God made the world for humans to live in, so we have a legitimate right to be here; (ii) God did not intend the human race to die out, so IF the problem of man-made global warming is real, God must have foreseen that this crisis would arise, and He must have designed a solution that human scientists are capable of discovering, in time to save the planet. However, since some prominent scientists now tell us that we have to reduce CO2 emissions to ZERO by 2050, and since history shows that takes 40 years to implement any new technology worldwide, it follows that if these scientists are right, the technological solution to man-made global warming must be very close at hand. As it happens, there appears to be a very promising technology available: nuclear power. Integral fast reactors offer humanity a virtually limitless source of energy for the foreseeable future, as the articles below on Prescription for the Planet demonstrate. Also encouraging is the promise of a new breakthrough in energy storage technology: the ultracapacitor. Finally, deploying a global fleet of cloud-producing ships would be a cheap, practical way of combating global warming, according to a study commissioned by the Copenhagen Consensus Centre, a think-tank that advises governments on how to spend aid money.
By contrast, the mind-set of those who do not have faith in God is truly twisted. If you doubt me, have a look at this game on the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Commission) Web site: Planet Slayer - Professor Schpinkee's Greenhouse Calculator, which tells kids when they ought to die, on the basis of how much CO2 they use.
Is Global Warming a Fraud?
Ross McKitrick: Defects in key climate data are uncovered by Professor Ross McKitrick. In National Post, 1 October 2009.
Ross McKittrick is a Professor of Environmental Economics at the University of Guelph. Here is an extract from his candid article:[T]he key ingredient in most of the studies that have been invoked to support the Hockey Stick, namely the Briffa Yamal series, depends on the influence of a woefully thin subsample of trees and the exclusion of readily-available data for the same area. Whatever is going on here, it is not science.I have been probing the arguments for global warming for well over a decade. In collaboration with a lot of excellent coauthors I have consistently found that when the layers get peeled back, what lies at the core is either flawed, misleading or simply non-existent. The surface temperature data is a contaminated mess with a significant warm bias, and as I have detailed elsewhere the IPCC fabricated evidence in its 2007 report to cover up the problem. Climate models are in gross disagreement with observations, and the discrepancy is growing with each passing year. The often-hyped claim that the modern climate has departed from natural variability depended on flawed statistical methods and low-quality data. The IPCC review process, of which I was a member last time, is nothing at all like what the public has been told: Conflicts of interest are endemic, critical evidence is systematically ignored and there are no effective checks and balances against bias or distortion.
I get exasperated with fellow academics, and others who ought to know better, who pile on to the supposed global warming consensus without bothering to investigate any of the glaring scientific discrepancies and procedural flaws. Over the coming few years, as the costs of global warming policies mount and the evidence of a crisis continues to collapse, perhaps it will become socially permissible for people to start thinking for themselves again. In the meantime I am grateful for those few independent thinkers, like Steve McIntyre, who continue to ask the right questions and insist on scientific standards of openness and transparency.
9.8.3.1 Practical Solutions to the Problem of Global Warming
Here is the Web site of Tom Blees' latest best-seller, Prescription for the Planet (you can read Chapter 1 online here and Chapter 4 here).
Heavyweight physics prof weighs into climate/energy scrap. From The Register, 20 June 2008.
Professor David J. C. MacKay, of the Cambridge University Department of Physics, has weighed into the climate/energy debate with several things that so far have been mostly lacking: hard numbers, willingness to upset all sides, and an attempt to see whether the various agendas put forward would actually stack up. He has put forward no less than five different plans for combating global warming, and he has dispassionately evaluated the pros and cons of each. His book, "Sustainable Energy - Without the hot air" can be downloaded here.Q&A with Ian Clifford CEO of Zenn Motors: EEStor to Publicly Prove its Technology Imminently.
Although no-one has ever publicly confirmed seeing an EESU in operation, these devices have the potential to disruptively leapfrog lithium-ion batteries for electric cars. They are orders of magnitude lighter and energy dense, can be recharged in minutes, do not appreciably degrade and cost a fraction of what lithium-ion batteries do to produce. The ZENNCity electric car which would be the first vehicle to use these batteries has a 52kwh 250 mile range EESU that would only weigh 280 pounds.The power and the glory: Special Report on The Future of Energy. From The Economist, 19 June 2008.
The Copenhagen Consensus, 2008.
The Copenhagen Consensus could serve as a model for a way to resolve the global warming policy debate. An expert panel of eight economists, including five Nobel Laureates, ranked the list of spending priorities that was published in May 2008 in Copenhagen. Solar power research is one of the most useful things that can be done at the moment, to fight global warming.
(a)Nuclear Power
Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) nuclear power - Q and A by Professor Barry Brook.
Professor Barry Brook holds the Foundation Sir Hubert Wilkins Chair of Climate Change and is Director of Climate Science at The Environment Institute, University of Adelaide. An excerpt from his article:It seems like something that only a crazed conspiracy theorist would come up with. A source of carbon-free energy that holds the potential to provide base load power for the planet for thousands of years hence, and which could be built along the existing transmission grid and even be housed within retrofitted coal-fired power stations. A process that could eat existing nuclear waste instead of needing to store it in highly secure vaults such as Yucca Mountain for hundreds of millennia. A technology that enjoyed large investments in R&D by government, only to have the funding zeroed for political reasons when close to large-scale demonstration - and then the scientists involved told not to publicise this fact. Well that, in caricature, is the basic story of Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) nuclear power.Integral Fast Reactors: Source of Safe, Abundant, Non-Polluting Power by Dr. George S. Stanford.
George Stanford, Ph.D., is a nuclear reactor physicist, now retired from Argonne National Laboratory after a career of experimental work pertaining to power-reactor safety.
(b) Solar Power
Solar's time has finally arrived by Jon R. Luoma. In Yale Environment 360, 28 July 2008.
After years of optimistic predictions and false starts, it looks like solar's moment is here at last. Analysts say a pattern of rapid growth, technological breakthroughs, and falling production costs has put solar power on the brink of becoming the world's dominant electricity source.
(i) Solar Power from Outer Space
How to harvest solar power? Beam it down from space!
A 2007 report released by the Pentagon's National Security Space Office, encouraged the U.S. government to spearhead the development of space power systems.
"A single kilometer-wide band of geosynchronous Earth orbit experiences enough solar flux in one year to nearly equal the amount of energy contained within all known recoverable conventional oil reserves on Earth today," the report said.
(ii) Solar Power from PhotoVoltaic Cells
Cheap way to 'split water' could lead to abundant clean fuel by Alok Jha, green technology correspondent. In The Guardian, Thursday, July 31, 2008.
Scientists have found an inexpensive way to produce hydrogen from water, a discovery that could lead to a plentiful source of environmentally friendly fuel to power homes and cars. The technique, which mimics the way photosynthesis works in plants, also provides a highly efficient way to store energy, potentially paving the way to making solar power more economically viable. Daniel Nocera, a chemist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has developed a catalyst made from cobalt and phosphorus that can split water at room temperature. He said the discovery could have major implications for the uptake of solar photovoltaic technology.Solar dyes give a guiding light by Matt McGrath, BBC News, 11 July 2008.
A new way of capturing the energy from the Sun could increase the power generated by solar panels tenfold, a team of American scientists has shown.Endless possibility.Interview with Hermann Scheer. In The Guardian, April 16, 2008.
Scheer is a qualified economist and a German M.P. who has been described as the "solar king." Here, he explains to Kate Connolly why he thinks that renewables are the way of the future and how they can save the world, without costing a lot of money. Scheer's recent interview ("Bring on the solar revolution", May 21, 2008) with Fred Pearce, published in New Scientist magazine can be read here. You can visit Scheer's home page here.Solar future brightens as oil soars by Ashley Seager. Article in The Guardian, June 16, 2008.
Soaring oil prices have led to such a boom for solar power that the industry could operate without subsidies in just a few years, according to industry leaders.
(iii) Concentrating Solar Power
Is Desert Solar Power the Solution to Europe's Energy Crisis? by Jens Lubbadeh, in Spiegel Online International, 30 April 2008.
A tiny fraction of the sun's energy that shines upon the deserts of North Africa and the Middle East could meet all of Europe's electricity demands. The technology to harness the energy already exists.The technology that will save humanity by Joseph Romm.
Excerpt: "One of oldest forms of energy used by humans - sunlight concentrated by mirrors - is poised to make an astonishing comeback. I believe it will be the most important form of carbon-free power in the 21st century. That's because it's the only form of clean electricity that can meet all the demanding requirements of this century."
(iv) The case AGAINST solar power
The Solar Fraud by Professor Barry Brook.
Professor Barry Brook holds the Foundation Sir Hubert Wilkins Chair of Climate Change and is Director of Climate Science at The Environment Institute, University of Adelaide. This post is a review of Howard Hayden's controversial book "The Solar Fraud: Why Solar Energy WonĂŐ Run the World." (Hayden is an Emeritus Professor of Physics at the University of Connecticut.)
(c) Biotech Solutions to Global Warming
Algae as a Biofuel
For Greening Aviation, Are Biofuels The Right Stuff? by David Biello.
Craig Venter: 18 months until 4th generation fuels.
Thirteen minutes into his Ted Talk (see video), Dr. Craig Venter, the man who mapped the human genome, declares that fourth generation fuels, that is, biofuels made by bacteria from C02, are just 18 months away. These systems might work with sequestered CO2 and possibly even solar energy. Goal No. 2 on Venter's list is to "replace [the] petrol-chemical industry" and goal No. 3 is to "become a major source of energy."Oil from algae promises biofriendly fuel by Alok Jha, green technology correspondent. In The Guardian, Thursday, July 31, 2008.
A liquid fuel made from plants that is chemically identical to crude oil but which does not contribute to climate change when it is burned or, unlike other biofuels, need agricultural land to produce sounds too good to be true. But a company in San Diego claims to have developed exactly that - a sustainable version of oil it calls "green crude".Pond life fuels bio research by Guy Healy. In The Australian, 23 July 2008.
The University of Queensland's Ben Hankamer is engineering algae to produce biofuels such as hydrogen and biodiesel oils, and investigating whether this process can be used to sequester carbon. Hankamer - an Australian Research Council principal investigator - says provided key technical milestones are overcome, a 13,000 hectare pond could provide enough fuel to satisfy Australia's entire demand. He predicts that provided parallel research streams are established - and $10 million invested - a large-scale demonstration plant could be in place in as little as five years.Scientists find bugs that eat waste and excrete petrol. Report by Chris Ayres, "The Times", June 14, 2008.
Silicon Valley is experimenting with bacteria that have been genetically altered to provide "renewable petroleum". Ayres interviews one pioneer in the field, Greg Pal, whose company, LS9, claims that the oil it makes will not only be renewable but also "carbon negative" ˇ¦meaning that the carbon it emits will be less than that sucked from the atmosphere by the raw materials from which it is made.Funding bonanza for oil-from-algae firm. Article in The Guardian, Friday May 30 2008.
A Californian start-up company promising "green crude" fuel from algae has been given $50m (25.33m pounds) in funding from investors, including Britain's biggest charity, the Wellcome Trust. The year-old start-up, Sapphire Energy, came out of "stealth mode" this week with an announcement that its trials have been so successful that its backers have promised no-limit funding.Possible Fix For Global Warming? Environmental Engineers Use Algae To Capture Carbon Dioxide. From "Science Daily," April 7, 2007.
Engineers have designed a simple, sustainable and natural carbon sequestration solution using algae. A team at Ohio University created a photo bioreactor that uses photosynthesis to grow algae, passing carbon dioxide over large membranes, placed vertically to save space. The carbon dioxide produced by the algae is harvested by dissolving into the surrounding water. The algae can be harvested and made into biodiesel fuel and feed for animals. A reactor with 1.25 million square meters of algae screens could be up and running by 2010.
Biochar
Biochar. A report by the Commonwealth Scientific Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) of Australia.
Can biochar save the planet? A report by CNN.com.
Jatropha as a Biofuel
Hailed as a Miracle Biofuel, Jatropha Falls Short of Hype by Jon R. Luoma.
(d) Geo-engineering Solutions to Global Warming
Cloud ships on course to beat climate change, says Copenhagen study. In The Times online, August 7, 2009.
Aims to provide a safe, cheap and practical geo-engineering scheme. See also The Earth Is Warming? Adjust the Thermostat by John Tierney in The New York Times, 11 August 2009. Here's how it would work:A wind-powered fleet of 1,900 ships would criss-cross the oceans, sucking up sea water and spraying it from the top of tall funnels to create vast white clouds.
These clouds would reflect a tiny proportion, between 1 and 2 per cent, of the sunlight that would otherwise warm the ocean....
A study commissioned by the Copenhagen Consensus Centre, a think-tank that advises governments on how to spend aid money, found that the fleet would cost $9 billion (5.3 billion pounds) to test and launch within 25 years. This is a fraction of the $250 billion that the world's leading nations are considering spending each year to cut CO2 emissions.Adding Lime To Seawater May Cut Carbon Dioxide Levels Back To Pre-industrial Levels. In Science Daily, 22 July 2008.
We can combat global warming and ocean acidification by simple geo-engineering. Here's how: just add lime to seawater. Further details at www.cquestrate.com.A biased economic analysis of geoengineering by Alan Robock of Rutgers University. The article explains why geo-engineering might not be such a good idea.
(e) Wedge solutions?
Is 450 ppm (or less) politically possible? (Part 2): The 14 wedges needed to stabilize emissions by Joseph Romm.
"So here is the basic solution. I have thrown in a couple extra wedges since I have no doubt that everybody will find something objectionable in at least two of these wedges. This is what the entire planet must achieve:That should do the trick. And yes, the scale is staggering."
- One wedge of vehicle efficiency -- all cars getting 60 mpg, with no increase in miles traveled per vehicle.
- One of wind for power -- one million large (2 MW peak) wind turbines.
- One of wind for vehicles -- another 2000 GW wind. Most cars must be plug-in hybrids or pure electric vehicles.
- Three of concentrated solar thermal -- about 5000 GW peak.
- Three of efficiency -- one each for buildings, industry, and cogeneration/heat-recovery for a total of 15 to 20 million gwh.
- One of coal with carbon capture and storage -- 800 GW of coal with CCS.
- One of nuclear power -- 700 GW plus 10 Yucca mountains for storage.
- One of solar photovoltaics -- 2000 GW peak (or less PV and some geothermal, tidal, and ocean thermal).
- One of cellulosic biofuels -- using one-sixth of the world's cropland (or less land if yields significantly increase or algae-to-biofuels proves commercial at large scale).
- Two of forestry -- End all tropical deforestation. Plant new trees over an area the size of the continental U.S.
- One of soils -- Apply no-till farming to all existing croplands.
(f) Why Solutions To Global Warming Which Rely On Clean Energy Are A Bad Idea
Green and mean; the downside of clean energy by Fred Pearce. In New Scientist, 21 April 2009.
Wind power is a complete disaster by Professor Michael J. Trebilcock. In Financial Post Comment, 8 April 2009.
(g) Yes, But How Much Will It All Cost?
(i) Pessimistic assessments: The cost of fighting global warming is prohibitive
The Chilling Costs of Climate Catastrophism by Ray Evans, of the Lavoisier Institute.
This article critiques the Garnaut report, which argued that Australia (and the rest of the world) could reduce CO2 emissions without suffering significant economic damage. Here, Evans argues that "massive decarbonisation can only take place if the entire world's current stock of coal-fired power stations is replaced with nuclear power stations by 2050 (the currently favoured target date). At the same time all motor vehicles, ships and aeroplanes currently using liquid hydrocarbons (kerosene, petrol and distillate) as fuel for their engines, will have to convert to hydrogen, or accept batteries in lieu of internal combustion engines."The Mad Rush to Decarbonise by Ray Evans, of the Lavoisier Institute.
Evans argues that wind and solar power are uneconomic, and that nuclear power is the only energy source which could feasibly replace coal over the next 50 years. Also, the world would have to switch to battery-powered cars, at great cost.
(ii) Grim assessments: It may cost us tens of trillions of dollars to stop global warming, but we can still afford it
Energy Technology Perspectives 2008: Fact Sheet - the Blue Scenario by the International Energy Agency.
In this report, the IEA endorses the IPCC's forecasts, and urges immediate action. The Blue Scenario would stabilise the atmosphere's CO2 level at 450 ppm (currently it is 388 ppm).IEA report, Part 1 - Act now with clean energy or face 6 degrees C warming; cost is not high; media blows story by Joseph Romm.
The real news from the new report by the world's global energy agency is:
1. Failing to act very quickly to transform the planet's energy system puts us on a path to catastrophic outcomes.2. The investment required is "an average of some 1.1 percent of global GDP each year from now until 2050. This expenditure reflects a re-direction of economic activity and employment, and not necessarily a reduction of GDP." In fact, this investment partly pays for itself in reduced energy costs alone (not even counting the pollution reduction benefits)!
3. The world is on the brink of a renewables (and efficiency) revolution.
(iii) Optimistic assessments: It won't cost us much at all to stop global warming
Review: Prescription for the Planet by Pure Energy Systems Wiki. Lots of links relating to Tom Blees' latest best-seller, Prescription for the Planet (you can read Chapter 1 online here), including this review (continued here, here and here) by Professor Barry Brook, who holds the Foundation Sir Hubert Wilkins Chair of Climate Change and is Director of Climate Science at The Environment Institute, University of Adelaide. An excerpt from Professor Brook's review:
If the world was to replace its energy supply with IFRs, the cost would be roughly $28 trillion (including transmission lines). That's on the basis of a capital cost of $2 B/GW (so ignoring likely economies of scale that will bring prices down) and the need to supply around 8.75 terrawatts (TW) of generating capacity (for all energy use). For this, you'd need about 3,500 power plants of 2.5 GW each (using 8 x 380 MW modular reactor vessels within 4 power blocks). Any further energy supplied by renewables, geothermal and syngas (e.g., from plasma burners) would be a bonus. For reference, global electricity production in 2005 amounted to 2.3 TW, 16% of which came from nuclear. ... What may be surprising to many is that the cost of business-as-usual energy development, or a gradual path to de-carbonisation, is about $26 to 35 trillion from 2010 to 2030! These are estimates that come from credible sources such as the International Energy Agency's World Energy Outlook 2008 and Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change 2006. This is for the cost of shoring up our fossil fuel infrastructure and upgrading/replacing transmission infrastructure (IEA), or investing 1% of GDP per annum on carbon mitigation (Stern).Endless possibility. Interview with Hermann Scheer. In The Guardian, April 16, 2008.
Scheer is a qualified economist and a German M.P. who has been described as the "solar king." Here, he explains to Kate Connolly why he thinks that renewables are the way of the future and how they can save the world, without costing a lot of money. Scheer's recent interview ("Bring on the solar revolution", May 21, 2008) with Fred Pearce, published in New Scientist magazine can be read here. You can visit Scheer's home page here.Cheap way to 'split water' could lead to abundant clean fuel by Alok Jha, green technology correspondent. In The Guardian, Thursday, July 31, 2008.
Scientists have found an inexpensive way to produce hydrogen from water, a discovery that could lead to a plentiful source of environmentally friendly fuel to power homes and cars. The technique, which mimics the way photosynthesis works in plants, also provides a highly efficient way to store energy, potentially paving the way to making solar power more economically viable. Daniel Nocera, a chemist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has developed a catalyst made from cobalt and phosphorus that can split water at room temperature. He said the discovery could have major implications for the uptake of solar photovoltaic technology.Adding Lime To Seawater May Cut Carbon Dioxide Levels Back To Pre-industrial Levels. In Science Daily, 22 July 2008.
We can combat global warming and ocean acidification by simple geo-engineering. Here's how: just add lime to seawater. Further details at www.cquestrate.com.
(iv) Moderately upbeat assessments: the cost is high but not exorbitant, and doing nothing will cost us a lot more
Why even strong climate action has such a low total cost - one tenth of a penny on the dollar by Dr. Joseph Romm.
Excerpt:In 2050, global average macro-economic costs for mitigation towards stabilisation between 710 and 445 ppm CO2-eq[uivalent] are between a 1% gain and 5.5% decrease of global GDP. This corresponds to slowing average annual global GDP growth by less than 0.12 percentage points... ...I want to be clear here that stabilizing at 445 ppm CO2-eq[uivalent] does require a significant annual investment, as the IEA analysis shows. The IEA puts the investment at $45 trillion, which sounds like an unimaginably large amount of money - but spread over more than four decades and compared to the worldĂÔ total wealth during that time, it is literally a drop in the bucket - 1.1 percent or one part in 90 of the worldĂÔ total wealth.Climate Change Opportunity by Fred Krupp.
Excerpt: "If you're worried that stopping global warming will wreck the economy, you're looking at this all wrong. Solving global warming will be an added cost, yes - but a bargain compared with the economic cost of unchecked climate change. And fixing this problem will create an historic economic opportunity."Garnaut Climate Change Review: Interim Report to the Commonwealth and Territory Governments of Australia by Professor Ross Garnaut.
Summarises trhe impact of global warming on Australia and the Indian-Pacific region in the 21st century, and makes appropriate policy recommendations for the Australian government.
9.8.3.2 Why Should We Worry About Man-Made Global Warming?
Informed, Unbiased Sources of Information about Global Warming
Climate Debate Daily - A New Way to Understand Disputes About Global Warming. Named by the Times of London as one of the five top eco-news sites on the Internet.
This Web site is scrupulously fair: on one side it presents calls to action (essays and research supporting the idea that global warming poses a clear threat to humanity, that it is largely caused by human activity, and that solutions to the problems of climate change lie within human reach), while on the other side, it presents dissenting voices (Essays and research challenging the view that the world warming that began around 1880 is caused by human activity, that it poses a serious threat, or that the vagaries of earth's climate are within human control).
The Case for Acting NOW to Stop Global Warming
An introduction to global warming impacts: Hell and High Water by Dr. Joseph Romm.
Dr. Romm is a physicist who formerly worked for the Department of Energy, and also the founder and director of the Center for Energy and Climate Solutions.Science academies urge 50% CO2 cuts by 2050. Reuters report by Alister Doyle.
Major economies should aim to halve world emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050 and work out ways to bury gases in a wider assault on climate change, the science academies of 13 nations (Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, the UK and US) said on Tuesday, June 10, 2008. Click here for the Joint Science Academies' Statement.
Remember This: 350 parts per million by Bill McKibben.
A NASA scientist named James Hansen has offered a simple, straightforward and mind-blowing bottom line for the planet: 350, as in parts per million carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. It's the number that may define our future. We're already at 383 parts per million, and it's knocking the planet off kilter in substantial ways. So, what does that mean? It means, Hansen says, that we've gone too far. "The evidence indicates we've aimed too high - that the safe upper limit for atmospheric CO2is no more than 350 ppm,"Target Atmospheric CO2 - Where Should Humanity Aim? by James Hansen et al. Submitted to Science, 7 April 2008. Posted on the arXiv.org website.
"Paleoclimate data show that climate sensitivity is ~3 degrees Celsius for doubled CO2, including only fast feedback processes. Equilibrium sensitivity, including slower surface albedo feedbacks, is ~6 degrees Celsius for doubled CO2 for the range of climate states between glacial conditions and icefree Antarctica. Decreasing CO2 was the main cause of a cooling trend that began 50 million years ago, large scale glaciation occurring when CO2 fell to 425 plus or minus 75 ppm, a level that will be exceeded within decades, barring prompt policy changes. If humanity wishes to preserve a planet similar to that on which civilization developed and to which life on Earth is adapted, paleoclimate evidence and ongoing climate change suggest that CO2 will need to be reduced from its current 385 ppm to at most 350 ppm. The largest uncertainty in the target arises from possible changes of non-CO2 forcings. An initial 350 ppm CO2 target may be achievable by phasing out coal use except where CO2 is captured and adopting agricultural and forestry practices that sequester carbon. If the present overshoot of this target CO2 is not brief, there is a possibility of seeding irreversible catastrophic effects."Carbon Output Must Near Zero To Avert Danger, New Studies Say by Juliet Elperin, writing in The Washington Post.
Stabilizing Carbon Emissions is the Only Option. Ken Caldeira of the Department of Global Ecology at the Carnegie Institution of Washington talks to Beyond Zero Emissions. The text of the paper he co-authored with H. Damon Matthews in Geophysical Research Letters can be found here.
What about Methane?
Could Methane Trigger a Climate Doomsday Within a Human Lifespan?
Shaky ground by Alicia Newton. In Geophysical Research Letters 35, L10703, (2008).
Articles on permafrost from the Resilient Earth Website. These articles were published in peer-reviewed scientific journals.
What about the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum?
Could Human CO2 Emissions Cause Another PETM? by Doug Hoffman.
The Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum was a catastrophic event 55 million years ago, when atmospheric temperatures warmed by 5 to 9 degrees Celsius globally, and the Arctic sea surface temperature soared as high as 24 degrees Celsius. In this article, Hoffman concludes that it would take mankind at least 2,000 years to trigger such a catastrophe at the current rate of greenhouse gas emissions and concludes:I see no way that this is remotely plausible given the limited amount of fossil fuel reserves and the march of technological progress...
Key Documents
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Report for 2007. The IPCC's fourth and latest assessment report.
The Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change.
A 700-page report released on October 30, 2006 by economist Nicholas Stern for the British government, which discusses the effect of climate change and global warming on the world economy.Wikipedia article: Stern Review.
Includes links to positive critical responses by some economists, as well as critiques by other economists.
A Critique of Common Arguments Against Global Warming
A Tutorial on the Basic Physics of Climate Change by Drs. David Hafemeister and Peter Schwartz, Physics Department, Cal Poly University, San Luis Obispo, California. In Physics and Society, July 2008.
Conclusion: Earth is getting warmer. Basic atmospheric models clearly predict that additional greenhouse gasses will raise the temperature of Earth. To argue otherwise, one must prove a physical mechanism that gives a reasonable alternative cause of warming. This has not been done. Sunspot and temperature correlations do not prove causality.Spot the Recycled Denial Series by Professor Barry Brook.
Professor Barry Brook holds the Foundation Sir Hubert Wilkins Chair of Climate Change and is Director of Climate Science at The Environment Institute, University of Adelaide. In this series, he rebuts common canards put forward by prominent global warming sceptics.Skeptical Science.com. A Web site debunking arguments against global warming.
Climate Change: A Guide for the Perplexed by New Scientist magazine (16 May 2007).
Rebuts 26 common myths relating to global warming, and makes a powerful case that this warming is indeed due to human activities.Critique of 'The Great Global Warming Swindle', a program directed by Martin Durkin and aired on Channel 4 on Thursday, March 8, 2007 by Sir John Houghton.
Rebuts most of the claims made in the program, which purported to debunk the science of global warming.The Great Global Warming Swindle Debate, shown on ABC TV on July 14, 2007. (Part 0: Introduction)
Part 1 (Interview with Martin Durkin) Part 2 (Interview with Martin Durkin, continued)
Part 3 (Debate between the panelists) Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 (End of debate)
Part 8 (Questions from the audience)
The Case AGAINST Worrying About Global Warming
Professor Richard Lindzen, climatologist
Resisting Climate Hysteria by Professor Richard Lindzen.
Richard S. Lindzen is the Alfred P. Sloan Professor of Atmospheric Sciences at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.The Climate Science Isn't Settled by Dr. Richard Lindzen, professor of meteorology at M.I.T. In the Online Wall Street Journal, November 30, 2009.
Dr. Roy Spencer, former NASA climatologist
Dr. Roy Spencer's blog.. Dr. Roy Spencer is a former NASA climatologist who thinks that current climate models that project temperature rises of up to 6 degrees as a result of human activities actually have the causation the wrong way round. Dr. Spencer's models suggest that the magnitude of man-made global warming in the 21st century will be small and manageable (about 1 degree Celsius).
On the Diagnosis of Radiative Feedback in the Presence of Unknown Radiative Forcing, - or - Connecting the Dots: Theoretical & Observational Evidence for Negative Cloud Feedbacks PDF version of a talk by Roy W. Spencer and William D. Braswell, The University of Alabama in Huntsville, 16 December 2009 AGU Meeting, San Francisco, CA.
Global Warming Skepticism 101 by Dr. Roy Spencer. Article posted on December 9, 2009. Dispels the common fallacies in the arguments for dangerous man-made global warming.
Global Warming and Nature's Thermostat by Dr. Roy Spencer.
This e-book makes a persuasive case that precipitation systems act as a thermostat, reducing the Earth's greenhouse effect (and thus causing enhanced cooling) when temperatures get too high, and warming the Earth when temperatures get too low.Roy Spencer explains the "Infrared Iris" effect in a recorded speech to the 2008 International Climate Change Conference.
Measurements by NASA's Aqua satellite indicate that warming from additional carbon dioxide in the air is actually generating negative feedback, rather than the positive feedback predicted by existing computer models. This means that Earth's climate is more robust than was assumed in the climate models. Spencer expects that it will take three to four years before this negative feedback effect is professionally acknowledged. Roy Spencer discovered a very strong negative feedback of -6.5 W/m2/K. (Compare this with the total CO2 "forcing" of 1.6 W/m2.)Has Global Warming Research Misinterpreted Cloud Behavior? by Dr. Roy Spencer. Article in Science Daily, 2008.
Estimates of the climate's CO2 sensitivity have been premised on the questionable assumption that temperature changes cause clouds to change, and not vice versa. In a recent peer-reviewed paper in "Journal of Climate", Dr. Roy Spencer argues that to the extent that the cloud changes actually cause temperature change, this assumption can ultimately lead to overestimates of how sensitive Earth's climate is to our greenhouse gas emissions. This is why climate models produce too much global warming. The new paper doesn't disprove the theory that global warming is manmade; instead, it offers an alternative explanation for what we see in the climate system which has the potential for greatly reducing estimates of mankind's impact on Earth's climate.
Professor Fred Singer, climatologist
Nature, Not Human Activity, Rules the Climate: Summary for Policyholders of the Report of the Non-governmental International Panel on Climate Change (edited by Fred Singer, March 2008).
The NIPCC report concludes that natural processes are very likely to be the dominant cause of the observed increase in global temperatures since the mid-20th century, although anthropogenic greenhouse gases may have produced some of the observed warming.Global Warming: Man-Made or Natural? by Fred Singer, Professor Emeritus of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia.
Professor Singer was the founding dean of the School of Environmental and Planetary Sciences at the University of Miami, the founding director of the U.S. National Weather Satellite Service, and served for five years as vice chairman of the U.S. National Advisory Committee on Oceans and Atmosphere. He is the author of a dozen books, including, most recently, Unstoppable Global Warming: Every 1500 Years. In this article, he disposes of many of the arguments commonly put forward in support of man-made global warming, and suggests that although the Earth is heating, this may be a good thing overall.
Dr. Patrick Frank, research chemist
A Climate of Belief by Patrick Frank. In The Skeptic, vol. 14 no. 1.
Patrick Frank is a Ph.D. chemist with more than 50 peer-reviewed articles. Here, he argues that the claim that anthropogenic CO2 is responsible for the current warming of Earth climate is scientifically insupportable because climate models are unreliable.
The limits of resolution of the GCMs [general circulation models] - their pixel size - is huge compared to what they are trying to project. In each new projection year of a century-scale calculation, the growing uncertainty in the climate impact of clouds alone makes the view of a GCM become progressively fuzzier... It is well-known among climatologists that large swaths of the physics in GCMs are not well understood. Where the uncertainty is significant GCMs have "parameters," which are best judgments for how certain climate processes work. General Circulation Models have dozens of parameters and possibly a million variables, and all of them have some sort of error or uncertainty...So the bottom line is this: When it comes to future climate, no one knows what they're talking about. No one. Not the IPCC nor its scientists, not the US National Academy of Sciences, not the NRDC or National Geographic, not the US Congressional House leadership, not me, not you, and certainly not Mr. Albert Gore. Earth's climate is warming and no one knows exactly why.
Dr. Douglas Hoffman, co-author of the blog The Resilient Earth
Climate Models Irreducibly Imprecise by Dr. Douglas Hoffman (7 January 2010).
A number of recent papers analyzing the nature of climate models have yielded a stunning result little known outside of mathematical circles—climate models like the ones relied on by the IPCC contain “irreducible imprecision.” According to one researcher, all interesting solutions for atmospheric and oceanic simulation (AOS) models are chaotic, hence almost certainly structurally unstable. Further more, this instability is an intrinsic mathematical property of the models which can not be eliminated. Analysis suggests that models should only be used to study processes and phenomena, not for precise comparisons with nature.Global Warming Predictions Invalidated by Dr. Douglas Hoffman (5 November 2009).
A new study in the journal Science has just shown that all of the climate modeling results of the past are erroneous. The IPCC's modeling cronies have just been told that the figures used for greenhouse gas forcings are incorrect, meaning none of the model results from prior IPCC reports can be considered valid. What has caused climate scientists' assumptions to go awry? Short lived aerosol particles in the atmosphere changing how greenhouse gases react in previously unsuspected ways. The result is another devastating blow to the climate catastrophists' computer generated apocalyptic fantasies.Climate Models Blown Away By Water Vapor by Dr. Douglas Hoffman (20 September 2009).
In a detailed study of the mechanisms and effects of water vapor, published in Reviews of Geophysics, Tapio Schneider and Xavier Levine of the California Institute of Technology, and Paul A. O’Gorman of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, have expanded our knowledge of water's role in climate regulation while showing just how poorly understood the Earth climate system really is. At present, scientists have no satisfactory theory of what controls the static stability of the subtropical and extratropical atmosphere. Without such a theory it is impossible to predict changes in atmospheric circulation, it is impossible to predict changes in the hydrological cycle, it is impossible to predict storm frequencies, intensities and tracks. Future climate cannot be predicted without a theory explaining how climate works, yet the IPCC has confidently made predictions regarding changes in storms, precipitation and climate for decades, even centuries into the future.
Viscount Christopher Monckton, mathematician
Climate Sensitivity Reconsidered by Viscount Christopher Monckton of Brenchley. In Physics and Society, July 2008.
Viscount Monckton's paper has been attacked (see here), but he has responded decisively to the attempted rebuttals here and here.)A Climate Science Brief by Viscount Christopher Monckton. A non-technical exposition of the key arguments.
Science and Public Policy Institute Web page. A collection of articles, videos and other resources on global warming and other environmental issues.
Willis Eschenbach, amateur scientist
The Thermostat Hypothesis by Willis Eschenbach.
The Thermostat Hypothesis is that tropical clouds and thunderstorms actively regulate the temperature of the earth. This keeps the earth at a equilibrium temperature. Several kinds of evidence are presented to establish and elucidate the Thermostat Hypothesis – historical temperature stability of the Earth, theoretical considerations, satellite photos, and a description of the equilibrium mechanism.
The Precautionary Principle
The Precautionary Principle Run Amock. Article by Harold Ambler, 9 December 2009.
Ambler argues that it is wrong to apply the precautionary principle to global warming. Every dollar spent researching and “fighting” climate change is one less dollar that can be spent on something else, such as installing clean-water systems installed in the Third World.Climate, Caution and Precaution by Willis Eschenbach.
Argues that the oft-hear assertion that the “Precautionary Principle” requires us to take action to reduce CO2 rests on a misunderstanding of the Precautionary Principle.Big talk, small stick by Greg Sheridan (foreign editor). In The Australian, 17 July 2008.
Neither the developed nor the developing world is ready to give up growth for climate change.
Reliability of the Peer-Review Process
A Climatology Conspiracy? by Professors David H. Douglass and John R. Christy. In American Thinker, December 20, 2009.
David H. Douglass is Professor of Physics, University of Rochester. John R. Christy is Distinguished Professor, Atmospheric Science, the University of Alabama in Huntsville. Extract:The CRU e-mails have revealed how the normal conventions of the peer review process appear to have been compromised by a team* of global warming scientists, with the willing cooperation of the editor of the International Journal of Climatology (IJC), Glenn McGregor. The team spent nearly a year preparing and publishing a paper that attempted to rebut a previously published paper in IJC by Douglass, Christy, Pearson, and Singer (DCPS). The DCPS paper, reviewed and accepted in the traditional manner, had shown that the IPCC models that predicted significant "global warming" in fact largely disagreed with the observational data.We will let the reader judge whether this team effort, revealed in dozens of e-mails and taking nearly a year, involves inappropriate behavior, including (a) unusual cooperation between authors and editor, (b) misstatement of known facts, (c) character assassination, (d) avoidance of traditional scientific give-and-take, (e) using confidential information, (f) misrepresentation (or misunderstanding) of the scientific question posed by DCPS, (g) withholding data, and more.
Reliability of Temperature Data
Russian IEA claims CRU tampered with climate data – cherrypicked warmest stations
What’s going on? CRU takes down Briffa Tree Ring Data and more
Climategate reveals 'the most influential tree in the world' by Christopher Booker.
Frigid Folly: UHI, siting issues, and adjustments in Antarctic GHCN data
GISS "raw" station data – before and after
Painting by numbers: NASA's peculiar thermometer by Steven Goddard.
NASA scientists warn that unless we change our carbon-spewing ways, civilization is in big trouble. But can we really trust NASA's temperature data?
9.8.3.3 The Correct Christian Response to Man-Made Global Warming, If it is Real
(a) Christians who view man-made global warming as a serious threat to civilisation and to the environment
Global Warming and the Environment. A collection of essays in Christianity Today.
Recently evangelicals have become the surprise proponents of policies promoting care for creation, including halting global warming.Global Warming, Climate Change and Sustainability: Challenge to Scientists, Policy Makers and Christians by Sir John Houghton.
"In this paper, I first list some of the growing threats to the environment and introduce the important concept of sustainability. I then explain the threat arising from human induced climate change, summarising its scientific basis and the most significant impacts. I proceed to outline the action that is necessary to halt climate change especially in the energy sector. Finally, I emphasise the moral imperative for action and suggest how Christians in particular should respond to the challenge." - Sir John Houghton, F.R.S., President of the John Ray Initiative, and former chairman or co-chairman of Scientific Assessment for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), 1988-2002.Is Christianity anti-Environmental? by Rich Deem.
The charge has been made that Christianity is anti-environmental. However, none of these charges of anti-environmentalism stand up to scripture found in the Bible.Is Global Warming Real? by Rich Deem.
This is a "big picture" analysis of the scientific studies related to global warming. Recently, 86 evangelical leaders signed an initiative urging the adoption of legislation to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Are these suggestions the best way to address the global warming issue?An Evangelical Declaration on the Care of Creation by Evangelical Environmental Network.
(b) Christians who do NOT view man-made global warming as a looming catastrophe
Cornwall Declaration by the Interfaith Stewardship Alliance. A rival Evangelical perspective on global warming and other environmental challenges.
Scientific Orthodoxies, Politicized Science, and Catastrophic Global Warming: Challenges to Evangelicals Navigating Rough Waters in Science and Policy by Professor E. Calvin Beisner, Associate Professor of Historical Theology and Social Ethics, Knox Theological Seminary Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
Global Warming and Pagan Emptiness. Michael Gilchrist interviews Cardinal George Pell.
In the debate over the theory of global warming, Cardinal George Pell of Sydney is a decided skeptic. His forthright reservations about the claim of catastrophic man-made climate change have made him a target for criticism in Australia.
(c) The Case for making modest, rational investments of money to combat global warming
The Copenhagen Consensus, 2008.
The Copenhagen Consensus is not in any way religious. However, its decision-making procedures could serve as a model for a way to resolve the global warming policy debate. An expert panel of eight economists, including five Nobel Laureates, ranked the list of spending priorities that was published in May 2008 in Copenhagen.
General DiscussionWhat it Means to be a Person: The Challenge of Human Sexuality by Pope John Paul II.
Excerpts from his classic, Love and Responsibility, written while the future Pope was still known as Fr. Karol Wojtyla. The book is an attempt "to put the norms of Catholic sexual morality on a firm basis...relying on the most elementary and incontrovertible moral truths and the most fundamental values or goods. Such a good is the person, and the moral truth most closely bound up with the world of persons is 'the commandment to love' - for love is a good peculiar to the world of persons."Sexual and Marital Ethics by the MIT Anscombe Society.
A collection of easy-to-read, scholarly articles on the purpose of sex and the meaning of marriage.Body Language by Christopher West.
A collection of articles on the Theology of the Body, by a Catholic speaker, educator and father, who is a Fellow of The Theology of the Body Institute.
Marriage
Sex and Consequences by Professor Peter Wood.
An anthropologist vindicates the traditional family.The Meaning of Marriage by Zenit International News Agency.
A new collection of essays from across the academic disciplines argues that marriage need not be defended solely through appeals to religious authority or tradition.Is Living Together Before Marriage a Good Idea? by Rich Deem.
Common "wisdom" says that living together in a "trial marriage" is a good way to determine if couples are compatible before marriage. Does this idea really work? What are the factors that lead to a good marriage and how can we know if the other person is right for us?
Contraception
Contraception and Chastity by Professor Elizabeth Anscombe.
Roman Catholic thinker Elizabeth Anscombe relfects on the theological implications of contraception and chastity. Writing as a Roman Catholic, Anscombe offers a penetrating moral analysis of marriage and sexuality that will benefit any reader who rejects the secularist reduction of marriage as merely a union that sanctions sexual activity between partners.Natural Contraception 'Effective'. Article from BBC News.
Natural-Family-Planning.info A Website with lots of good links relating to natural family planning.
Humanae Vitae: A Challenge to Love by Professor Janet Smith.
All Christian churches were united in their opposition to contraception until as recently as the early decades of the 20th century. Writing from a philosopher's perspective, Professor Janet Smith explains why, in spite of the public dissent and in spite of widespread use of contraception among Catholics, the Church continues to reiterate its opposition to contraception as a great moral wrong.Contraception and a Woman's Self-Image by Jennifer Fulwiler, a former atheist who converted to Catholicism.
Differences Between The Sexes
The Biological Basis for Gender-Specific Behavior by Gregg Johnson.
"The evidence presented here suggests that [men and women] have some fundamental physiological and neural differences that are present at birth and predispose us toward certain behaviors dependent on gender... Our culture has changed, and the demands for traditional roles may have varied, yet our basic, God-given physiological differences have not. We excel at different gifts, and all the gifts are needed. Let us hope that, by recognizing the existence of gender differences, we can better understand each other and help to maximize each other's potentials."The Biblical Design for Human Sexuality by Rich Deem, M.S.
Homosexuality
The Wrong of Homosexuality by Professor John Finnis. In The Philosophy of Sex: Contemporary Readings. Edited by Alan Soble. Nicholas Power. Chapter 9.
Reason, Faith and Homosexual Acts by Professor John Finnis.
The meat of Finnis's argument against the morality of homosexual acts starts at the bottom of page 63. In this article, Finnis discusses Catholic teaching about homosexuality. He explains the philosophical rationale for that teaching, and argues that homosexual activity is wrong, along with all other nonmarital sexual activity, because it undermines the goods of marriage. Finnis's philosophical argument against the morality of homosexual acts starts at the bottom of page 63.Getting It Straight: What the Research Shows About Homosexuality by Peter Sprigg and Timothy Dailey, of the Family Research Council. Founded in 1983, the Family Research Council is a nonprofit research and educational organization dedicated to articulating and advancing a family-centered philosophy of public life. Chapters 1 to 6 are available below:
What Causes Homosexuality? How Many Homosexuals Are There? Are Homosexuals A Disadvantaged Minority? Is Homosexuality A Health Risk?
Do Homosexual Parents Pose a Risk to Children? Is There A Link Between Homosexuality And Child Abuse?
What Do Clinical Studies Say? by N.A.R.T.H. (National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality). Presents clinical evidence that at least some gay people are capable of changing their sexual orientation.
Gay Rights: Facts About Homosexuality by Faith Facts. Faith Facts is a Bible-based, para-church ministry not affiliated with any denomination. Its mission is to further the gospel, that more may find a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and the blessings of Christian living.
Responding to Pro-Gay Theology by Joe Dallas.
Joe Dallas, founder of Genesis Counseling, is the author of three books on homosexuality: Desires in Conflict, Unforgiven Sins, and A Strong Delusion: Confronting the "Gay Christian" Movement. A former gay rights activist and staff member of a Metropolitan Community Church, he has worked with hundreds of men and women struggling with homosexuality and related problems.The Condemnation of Homosexuality in Romans 1:26-27 by David E. Malick.
Sex and Consequences by Professor Peter Wood.
An anthropologist vindicates the traditional family. Professor Wood also discusses the social consequences of tolerating homosexuality and of legalizing gay marriage.Protecting America's Immune System: The Case Against Same-Sex Marriage by Dr. Frank Turek.
Homosexual Parenting: Is It Time For Change? by the American College of Pediatricians.
Points out the inherent risks of the homosexual lifestyle: violence, substance abuse, shorter lifespan and suicide. Also points out that homosexual unions rarely last longer than three years, and that monogamy is rare, promiscuity rampant.
Pornography
The Effects of Pornography on Individuals, Marriage, Family and Community - Executive Summary by Dr. Patrick Fagan. In Family Research Council (December, 2009).
Patrick F. Fagan, Ph.D. is Senior Fellow at the Family Research Council and Director of the Marriage and Religion Research Institute (MARRI), where he examines the relationships among family, marriage, religion, community, and America's social problems as illustrated in the social sciences research data. Excerpt:
Pornography is a visual representation of sexuality which distorts an individual's concept of the nature of conjugal relations. This, in turn, alters both sexual attitudes and behavior. It is a major threat to marriage, to family, to children and to individual happiness. In undermining marriage it is one of the factors in undermining social stability.
Business Ethics by Ray Cotton.
Ray Cotton is the former finance director and treasurer of Probe Ministries. Probe Ministries is a non-profit ministry whose mission is to assist the church in renewing the minds of believers with a Christian worldview and to equip the church to engage the world for Christ.
Do Christians have to pay taxes if the money is used to support abortion? by Fr. Augustine Mary. From Eternal Word Television Network.
OrthodoxyToday.org.
Commentary on social and moral issues of the day, from an Orthodox Christian perspective.How to Win the Culture War by Dr. Peter Kreeft.
From Crisis magazine, June 1998, page 12.Apologetics and Evangelism by Jimmy Williams.
James F. Williams is the founder and past president of Probe Ministries International. Here, he provides a brief analysis of the relationship of faith and understanding in evangelism, looks at several ineffective approaches, and sets out seven aggressive steps to more effective evangelism.