'It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong.' – Voltaire
In my last column I touched on issues of credibility and motives. Namely, the hype and words of ignorant politicians versus the opinions of actual experts. One example I used was the debate of global warming. On that issue, would you be more inclined to believe a politician who stands to gain something or an actual climatologist who stands to gain nothing from their view of the matter?
It's actually happening right now.
George Taylor is Oregon's State Climatologist and has been for more than 17 years. It's also his belief that humans are NOT the main cause of the Earth's climate change.
Enter politics.
Oregon's Governor, Ted Kulongoski, now wants to strip Taylor of that title and make the position one that he will personally appoint. His reasoning is that Taylor's beliefs on global warming don't coincide with the state's goals to reduce greenhouse gases. (You can read more about it here.)
Notice that the state government already has a predetermined view on how to fight global warming and that man is the root cause of it. Anyone who thinks or says otherwise stands to LOSE in this debate and will be removed from the equation.
The State Climatologist of almost 20 years, George Taylor, stands to gain little or nothing on his expert opinion on the issue of global warming.
Not so for Oregon's politicians.
Is there any mystery as to what will happen to Taylor or the position he holds?
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