Government splits climate change message

Today was the day that the Australian Government, notorious for dragging its feet on climate change, tabled its carbon trading system recommendations by the House of Representative’s Standing Committee on Science and Innovation. For a moment it looked like the Government was finally coming clean; The report begins with the statement “there is now compelling evidence that human activity is changing the global climate". There must be an election on. It appears Howard has minimised damage of his abrupt change from years of neglect, and encouraging activities that aggravate the problem.

But then the nutters of Flat-Earth Society of the Liberal Party broke ranks.

FOUR Coalition MPs have questioned the consensus that humans are causing climate change.

The four backbenchers have questioned the link between human activity and global warming, saying Mars, Jupiter, Pluto and Neptune are also warming up.

Nuclear physicist and West Australian MP Denis Jensen, former ministers and NSW backbenchers Jackie Kelly and Danna Vale, and Northern Territory MP Dave Tollner say the hypothesis of “anthropogenic" or human created global warming was based on theoretical models and unproven economic assumptions.

In a dissenting chapter to a parliamentary report, the four labelled as fanatics those who believe humans are causing climate change.

"The science related to anthropogenic global warming is not, despite the assurances of some, settled in the scientific community,'' they wrote.

"Another problem with the view that it is anthropogenic greenhouse gases that have caused warming is that warming has also been observed on Mars, Jupiter, Triton, Pluto, Neptune and others.

In this day and age, hey? My immediate instinct is that Howard is up to his old and mean tricks again. Mars, Jupiter.

MP Peter Garrett, Labor environment spokesman: "Mr Howard which planet are these backbenchers on?"

John Howard, Liberal Australian Prime Minister: "On the planet inhabited by people who hate the Australian coal industry."

Huh? Howard's nutters are equivalent to people who recognise that we have to cut our emissions? And he ties them, us, to alleged hatred of the coal industry. That's clever Johnny for you. But, he's not stupid either.

Peter Garrett: "Mr Prime Minister, do you agree with their views?"

John Howard: "No I don’t agree with their views,"

He's not going out of his way to censure them, though.

Global Warning Climate Change Energy