Saturday, December 26, 2009

Climategate Denier Raises Nazi Allusions, Employs Awesome CRU Tactics, Purges Arguments That Prove Him Wrong

The invaluable Climate Depot alerts us to the uproarious antics of Michael Tobis, a leading apologist for the climate scam promoters (I've helpfully shortened the URL to his post -- http://tinyurl.com/ClimateScam). Tobis offers a variety of spectacularly poor arguments, each worth spotlighting for their peg-the-needle disconnectedness from reality.

Best of all, when challenged on his blog, Tobis chose to delete opposition comments -- even when politely phrased and attributed -- an apparent violation of his own policies. Then again, deletion of factual data seems to be a specialty of this crackerjack bunch. Consider the three tenents of Tobis' argument:

1. Did you know: global warming climate change deniers are essentially Nazis?


You'll forgive me. The fact that my paternal grandfather among other close relatives was in fact killed at a concentration camp on the basis of right-wing conspiracy theories makes it hard for me to take the matter all that lightly. I don't imagine that climate scientists are going to be rounded up and gassed anytime soon, but the reinvention of the techniques for stirring up mass paranoia would disturb me greatly even if they weren't directed, you know, at me and at some of the people I respect most in the world.

Oh, and:

2. Did you know: The Socialism-slash-personal profit meme behind AGW is a 'Ludicrous Conspiracy Theory'?


A ludicrous theory exists that people have invented "global warming" from whole cloth in order to advance either our own personal interests (the idea mocked by the title of this blog [ed: Only In It For The Gold] or, more recently, a subversive political agenda intended to

* 1) weaken the west in favor of the less developed countries
* 2) weaken the less developed countries in favor of the west
* 3) reinstate a Stalinist totalitarian state or
* 4) corner the energy market and drive small businesses into bankruptcy.

And Tobis emphasizes one final point:

3. Did you know: the Climategate disclosures represent much ado about nothing


• a rehash of a well-known controversy about how to present tree-ring data
• frustration about too much attention to substandard scientific papers slipped into the literature by marginally qualified people with nonscientific agendas, and discussions about how to handle that
• frustration about opposition by filibuster via freedom of information requests
• a single suggestion about "deleting emails", without any context, which plausibly does not refer to deleting emails from a server (scientists are probably aware that end users cannot really do this) but rather to deleting them from a response to one of many FOIA requests
• some sloppy code and a pretty sad but perfectly typical lack of understanding of the advantages of dynamic programming languages
• a couple of fudge factors explicitly labeled as such probably used in testing, commented out
• some older data for which CRU is not the originator or primary repository is not in any known dataset at CRU
• about 985 emails and 1995 other files of no apparent interest to anyone

I had attempted to respond to these disastrously flawed statements and -- predictably -- Tobis did not allow them to appear on his site. As regular readers of this site know, I let every side of an argument post. I may asterisk out a curse word now and then, but for the most part everyone is allowed to present their arguments.

Tobis' intellectual dishonesty prevented him from releasing this comment:

...the Nazis (the National Socialist Democrats) were leftists, through and through. They used a fascist version of socialism to advance their agenda.

Your apologia for Climategate is quite stunning. As for the so-called conspiracy theories regarding the socialists who have sprung up around the environmental movement, perhaps you could refute the following:

* The current EPA administrator's (Lisa Jackson) explanation that the environmental movement revolves around "social justice" and redistribution of resources ("We need to ... make clear that environmentalism goes hand-in-hand with traditional civil rights and social justice issues in our community").

* Carol Browner's involvement in the world socialist movement (until her name was scrubbed from the website).

* And the long history of the misuse of science in pursuit of "environmentalism" that have inarguably resulted in the deaths of tens of millions of innocents.

Furthermore, we now have reports from Russia, New Zealand and Australia about intentional falsification and corruption of raw data sets.

And the IPCC's own members have set up companies (e.g., EcoSecurities) and various consulting arrangements to make themselves millionaires from the very reports they've created.

This process is so corrupt that even the World Rainforest Movement (not exactly a right-wing group) has called it a "fraud".

Don't be a Climategate Denier -- it's unbecoming from a man of your stature.

Tobis (predictably) refused to let that comment appear on his blog. He alluded to it in a follow-up comment using his traditional standards of minimalist accuracy:

Readers are informed that this blog is moderated for a reason. If what you say only irritates me without interesting me at all, I make no promise to post it.

Please try to be interesting, and slightly more polite than you want to be. Thanks.

One peabrain insisted that Nazis are leftwingers because they have the word "socialist" in their name, and that my confusion on this point invalidates anything else I have to say. Refutation on that point is left as an exercise for the reader.

Obviously that was nowhere close to what was said. I posted one final comment on Tobis' site:

I see you have rejected my comment and made the claim that I am a "pea-brain" for the assertion that Nazis were leftists.

Here is an academic paper on the subject from Lawrence University. Put simply, leftism squarely assigns more power to the state; rightism assigns more power to the individual. On the one end of the former scale is despotism; on the other end is anarchy.

Hitler said himself of Nazism:

I have learned a great deal from Marxism, as I do not hesitate to admit. The difference between them and myself is that I have really put into practice what these peddlers and penpushers have timidly begun...I had only to develop logically what Social Democracy repeatedly failed in because of its attempt to realize its evolution within the framework of democracy. National Socialism is what Marxism might have been if it could have broken its absurd and artificial ties with the democratic order.

(Hitler to Rauschning, The Voice of Destruction, pg. 186).

Not to worry, I'm sure you'll hit the delete button on this message as well.

Kind of like how the raw CRU data was dispensed with.

Did Tobis permit this comment? Of course not! He's got an agenda -- which doesn't in any way include veritas -- to pursue!

And aside from an almost uncanny ability to clog toilets, Tobis appears to be just another in a long line of talentless drones. And, yes, they are in it for the gold. That much is certain.



Update: Stupid or Evil, Redux: Eternity Road

Update II: Ed Driscoll links -- thanks! -- and has the must-see graphic: 'To Be Fair, That’s A Lot Of Decline To Hide'


Linked by: Cold Fury. Thanks!

Larwyn's Linx: Obama's Executive Order and INTERPOL

Have a great link you'd like me to review? Drop me an email. You can also install a Larwyn's Linx blog widget.

Nation

Terrorist Attempt Update: Bomb Was Incendiary: Ace
AQ tries to blow up plane, AP says 'motive unclear': Atlas
Obama's Executive Order and INTERPOL: Anchoress

10 Lumps of Coal in the Health Care Bill: IBD
An Efficient Government Xmas Card: AmDig
Yes, Obama participated in the Socialist Party: PJM

The Art of the Painless Coup: Anchoress
‘Impeach Judges, Crush and Replace Left’: BMW

Economy

Give Me Liberty or Give Me Social Justice: PJM
Obama lashes out at GOP for filibuster: GWP
He feels your pain in an $8.9M rented house: GWP

Media

'This Is a Frightening New Side of Barack Obama': JWF
CNN's Ali Velshi Stops King From Naming Terrorist: NewsBusters
The Times of London Names Its Person of the Year: Neda: Atlas

RNC Chairman Michael Steele's First Blog Interview: RWN
Stories of the Year: Surber
Joy to the World: Doc Zero

An "Unusually Good Bill Clinton": LegalIns
ABC Refuses to Identify NWA Incident as Terrorism: BMW

Climate & Energy

Obama Green Plan: Substitute Dependence On Chinese Metals For Dependence On Saudi Oil: LegalIns
Video: Driving Conditions in Oklahoma Snowstorm: BMW
Bug Report: a Climategate Denier's Complaint: IIFTG

World

Christmas Greetings from Al Qaeda: Belmont
Of Executive Orders and Trojan Horses: NoisyRoom
Did Obama exempt Interpol from same legal constraints as American law-enforcement?: Morrissey

The Iranian Problem: Wolf Howling
John Kerry's Persian Delusion: LegalIns
Why does INTERPOL need immunity from American law?: Corner

SciTech

Top Ten Tech News Stories of the Decade: CNet
Kindle: Is Amazon Working Backwards?: BitsBlog

Cornucopia

Holiday Cheer: R&R
Season's Beatings From Hollywood!: JWF

Friday, December 25, 2009

Northwest Flight 253: Its attempted bombing was 'historic'

Larwyn asks the question the media hasn't bothered to: did this barbarian use information "accidentally disclosed" by the TSA a few weeks ago to help get his makeshift bomb aboard?

Spencer adds an excellent summary for the administration's homeland security "experts".

Suspect in attempted bombing of Detroit flight had visa to attend "religious ceremony"


This is potentially significant, due to the highly plausible double meaning of the "ceremony" as an act of jihad, as well as for jihadists' common habit of referring to an upcoming attack as a "wedding." At the very least, it would behoove authorities to ask for more details before granting a visa, and restrict the interval for which it is valid.

The suspect was identified as Abdul Farouk Abdulmutallab, 23, who according to federal documents is an engineering student at University College of London.

He was flying from Nigeria to the United States for a religious ceremony, according to his entry visa, which was issued June 16, 2008 and was good until June 12, 2010.

The government had no immediate plans after the incident to raise the threat level, a federal government source said.

The suspect had been in a law enforcement-intelligence database but was not on the government's no-fly list, according to a law enforcement official. [...]

The suspect told authorities that he had explosive powder taped to his leg and used a syringe of chemicals to mix with the powder that was to cause explosion. This is of concert because it is a method of mixing that is consistent with terror techniques...

...An in-flight emergency was declared when a fire indicator light when on in the cockpit, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The pilot asked for airport rescue and firefighting services, and for law enforcement to meet the flight at gate, the TSA said.

It is unclear how powerful the explosive could have been and what the man's intentions were. Initial reports were that fireworks or firecrackers had gone off on the plane.

The man suffered second-degree burns, which is consistent with a small fireworks device, police sources said...

The Airbus A330-300, a twin-engine jet, was carrying 278 passengers. Michelle Malkin has more information.


Exploring Urban Detroit -- Another Blue State Utopia

OnlyNDetroit offers a fascinating glimpse of Detroit's illustrious past -- and its astonishingly dismal present.

Pay a virtual visit to Detroit. It's the only way to travel in Detroit's urban core.

Inexplicably, Michigan continues to lose population despite its awesome Democrat leadership.


The Chase

This is weird.

Been driving for 25 miles and this big ol' truck's been following me the whole way.

Creepy.

Whoa. He's been getting closer and closer...

Damn! What the...

S***! He's gettin' right up on my bumper!

Alright, that's it. I'm pulling over. What the heck is going on here?

A frickin' Brinks truck?

What the hell? He's getting out of the armored car... walking up here...

Officer - is there some sort of a problem?

Sir, I couldn't help but notice the Obama sticker on the back of your car.

Yeah? So what? Did I do something wrong?

No, sir. But could you look in your rear-view mirror once more?

What the hell? What are those two eyeballs doing on your armored car?

Those, sir? That's the $480,000 your family could have saved by voting Republican over the last eighty years.

The Illustrated Obamaconomy

Marla at Zero Hedge relays photographs of the bustling holiday shopping season at Los Angeles' tony Beverly Center and Westfield Century City.

Beverly Center is located smack dab in the middle of Beverly Hills while WCC is a few miles west in, well, Westwood.

Let's check out the parking lot for the Beverly Center the day before Christmas: hopefully we can find a spot!

Neat! Plenty o' spots left!

Behold: the power of Schwarzenomics!


You could should a pellet gun in random directions and only wound mannequins.

Nothing spells "bargain" like a going-out-of-business sale!

If we could only find the Beverly Center's Dollar Store, I'll bet we could spot the crowds!

Fortunately lots more folks showed up while we were shopping!

Let's head over to Westwood's Westfield mall!

Jam-packed with shoppers enjoying the immense value creation of the Obamaconomy!

You can barely wedge yourself into Macy's.

Ditto the Apple Store.

Thank heavens the $787 billion Stimulus package kicked in when it did. We could have been suffering from a real malaise without the astute economic stewardship of Obama, Pelosi and Reid.

Larwyn's Linx: Merry Christmas to Our Troops

Have a great link you'd like me to review? Drop me an email. You can also install a Larwyn's Linx blog widget.

Nation

Merry Christmas to Our Troops: PJM
Christmas Carols from the White House: GrandRants
Reagan's Address to the Nation on Christmas Day: BigGov

Democrats leave us with worst present ever: PJM
Hey, lets revisit the ObamaCare™ campaign promises!: Ace
S.P.U.D. -- AKA, The "Hard Pivot": JOM

Daley Machine Sees Writing on the Wall: BigGov
The Audacity of Unchecked Corruption: AT
Stunner: Obama Family Will Skip Christmas Services: GWP

Economy

As Nation Struggles, Obama Hikes Fed Bureaucrat Wages: SAB
Rude awakening for naive Left about big government: Freddoso
House push-back, a two edged sword: Power Line

In TN, stimulus jobs cost $235,912 per person: KnoxNews
Obama Losing Appeal with African-Americans: BigFeed
Wall Street Still Fleecing Customers (Thanks, W.H.): InstaPundit

Media

The Interview: GM's Place
A football player with a higher calling: Kane
'Fell' 'Out' 'Of' 'Bed': SondraK

Time to Exit: McClatchy Watch
25 Best Christmas Movies: Patterico
Brokaw Touts Corrupt Obama Friend/Mayor Kevin Johnson, Skips AmeriCorps Scandal: NewsBusters

Krauthammer's Take: Corner
Iranian-Americans: Roger Cohen 'Misguided': Corner

Climate & Energy

It's Settled: Climate Circus Was a Fairy Tale: Steyn
Ahmadinejad: "Copenhagen summit causes failure of capitalist systems": Soccer Dad
The Sound Of All Hell Breaking Loose: A Lump Of Code In Your Stocking: SDA

World

Christmas Under Communism: AT
For Obama, 2010 in the Middle East Looks More Like the Precipice of Doom than Achievement: RubRep
The Domino Effect: Spyer

Will Iran Be Stopped?: Power Line
The Prosecution of Rifqa Bary: AT (Geller)
More Mush from the Wimp: Power Line

SciTech

Top 10 Bad Things That Are Good For You: Live Science
Video games take command of war epics as movies retreat from recent conflicts: InstaPundit

Cornucopia

Duel at the Mall: Denny
Neil Patrick Harris' Closing Number at the Tony Awards: YouTube
How to spot a fake Rolex Submariner: Replica Watch Report

Best High School QB In the South Can't Get a Scholarship: BigFeed
For Your Christmas Eve Viewing Pleasure: Powers

QOTD (Drew M.):

Al Qaeda Leaders In Yemen Die From Being Run Over By A Reindeer And Air Strike But Mostly Air Strike

This Obama fellow has an interesting take on what it means to win the Nobel Peace Prize and quite frankly, I like it.

Sources tell ABC News that an air raid in Yemen this morning may have killed two top al Qaeda officials as well as an imam believed to have inspired the alleged Fort Hood shooter.

Those believed to have been present at the target in the eastern province Shabwa included the leader of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, Nasser al-Wahayshi, his No. 2, Saeed al-Shehri, and Anwar al-Awlaki, who was quoted telling Al Jazeera Web that Maj. Nidal Hasan, asked him "about killing U.S. soldiers and officers. His question was is it legitimate" under Islamic law.

Awlaki said the query was a year before the Fort Hood shooting, making him "astonished. Where was American intelligence that claimed once that it can read any car plate number anywhere in the world?"

How does our ass taste now Awlaki? Oh wait, you don't have a mouth any more. Never mind.

FTR-Awlaki was born in the US, so clearly the left will be outraged by this blatant violation of his due process rights. Me? Not so much.


Thursday, December 24, 2009

Precipice

I want you to think about the Revolutionary War.

I want you to think about the Civil War.

I want you to think about World War II.

I want you to think about the Korean War.

I want you to think about the Vietnam War.

I want you to think about all the wars.

What if we had a Commander-in-Chief like this, who doesn't desire victory?

A President who is kneecapping our soldiers with confused dictates like granting Miranda rights to terrorists captured on the battlefield; who is kneecapping our soldiers while they try to defeat this enemy; who is kneecapping our soldiers who have a dangerous, complicated and difficult enough task as it is.

I want you to think about how this President has dumbed-down the War on Terror by calling it other things, giving it bureaucratic titles.

I want you to think about how this President has traveled to Europe, Latin America and the Middle East -- and condemned his own country, apologized for it, and laid blame for all sorts of calamities at its feet.

I want you to think about the massive spending spree this President has unleashed; the greatest amount of spending of any country, ever. A President who has incurred more debt in one year than all the prior 233 years combined.

And yet when it comes to defense -- including missile defense, he slashes it.

Yes, we have a force in the Oval Office. A force for danger.

The question is whether all the good works done by all the Presidents before him, all the Commanders-in-Chief, all the excellent Attorneys General, all the excellent CIA Directors, all the troops and intelligence and law enforcement personnel, all the people who have worked so long and so hard, over the many decades...

...the question is whether what they have built will last under this President. Consider the massive debt, the crushing despotism of Iran's insane leaders, or the rise of radical extremism through the world -- this president is AWOL, other than to lobby Congress for more debt, more taxes, more government regulation, more government oversight of the economy.

Despite an unblemished series of failures -- the Post Office, Social Security, the "War on Poverty", Fannie Mae, Medicare, Freddie Mac, the Federal Reserve, Medicaid... all bankrupt, all catastrophic failures -- the Democrats now want to nationalize one-sixth of the economy. To take over the entire health care system, when the country is headed for bankruptcy.

The liberals like to say they care about humanity. About the children. I have yet to see them prove it.



Based upon: Mark Levin, 6/10/2009.