Gore Urges Scientists to Be More Active
Posted on: Friday, 15 December 2006, 11:25 CST
SAN FRANCISCO -- Former Vice President Al Gore said Thursday there was a "temptation" to suppress scientific findings that don't agree with policy and urged scientists to take a more active role in communicating research with the public.
Without specifically naming the Bush administration, Gore lamented at a gathering of earth and space scientists that policymakers used to take science into account in their decision-making, but not anymore.
"Earth science has been singled out" and ignored by government, particularly work dealing with climate change, he said during an hour-long speech during the American Geophysical Union meeting.
"There is a greater temptation to ignore inconvenient truths, to set aside knowledge that might challenge a prevailing policy," said Gore, who was greeted with a standing ovation.
Gore cited a recent article by The Associated Press, which reported that new rules at the U.S. Geological Survey required the screening of scientific papers or prepared talks by agency scientists.
Earlier this year, prominent NASA climate scientist James Hansen accused the Bush administration of trying to silence him after a speech he gave on global warming. Two federal agencies last month launched an investigation into whether the administration tried to prevent government scientists from speaking freely about climate change.
Some scientists and climate models are predicting that unchecked human-caused global warming over the next century is expected to raise sea levels and cause extremes in temperatures.
Gore, who stars in the global warming documentary "An Inconvenient Truth," urged scientists to educate the public about what he calls the "climate crisis" and to summon the courage to fight back when "important truths are being ignored, resisted or censored."
Gore did not take questions from scientists or reporters.
Gore, who lost his 2000 White House bid to President Bush, recently stepped back into the spotlight, crisscrossing the country to promote his book and movie and fueling speculation of another run in 2008. Gore has said he has not completely ruled it out.
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On the Net:
American Geophysical Union: http://www.agu.org
Source: By ALICIA CHANG/AP
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User Comments (78)
| 28. |
Posted by alann kish on 12/15/2006, 12:57 global warming denier = Holocaust denier = Iran = islamofacist = terrorist = nuclear halocaust = environmental catastraphy. Either way ALGORE gets what he wants. |
| 27. |
Posted by Dana on 12/15/2006, 12:55 Scientists silenced? Surely he must be refering to the ones who disagree with him because they are the ones silenced. If you rightly point out any facts that run contrary to the fashionable theory that man is causing global warming then you are considered a nut and not given the light of day. Gore is a publicity hound who is trying to ride the fake horse of global warming to the White House. |
| 26. |
Posted by Patty-Cakes Mikarthe on 12/15/2006, 12:51 Al Gore is an insufferable ninny! |
| 25. |
Posted by Bruce on 12/15/2006, 12:49 Nice to see all the knuckle-draggers from Drudge over. This is sure to raise the level of discourse. |
| 24. |
Posted by DAN H on 12/15/2006, 12:49 Al Gore is a human toothache with the charisma of a 19th century Latin tutor. He has changed the whole theory of global warming from a topic of scientific debate, to a cult in which "non-believers" are evil and must be stopped. He is an example of why science and politics do not mix. |
| 23. |
Posted by Ken on 12/15/2006, 12:49 It is ALGORE that is suppressing the opinions of scientist. Any scientist that has a differing opinion than 'the world is coming to an end because of man made global warning' is label by ALGORE and the extreme left as not reputable, liars, right wing, and many more unsavory personal attack names. His agenda is political not environmental. It is shameful that ALGORE puts himself ahead of the nation he purports to support. |
| 22. |
Posted by Dan on 12/15/2006, 12:44 While Bush II may not be the best President we've ever seen, when you look at the other options [Gore & Kerry] you soon realize that we did the best with the hand we [the American people] were dealt. Until Gore takes commercial flights, I think he has no right to preach the global warming myth. |
| 21. |
Posted by Steve on 12/15/2006, 12:42 By the way, I do not believe there is evidence for man-made links to global warming, nor that we could do anything to thwart such problems. |
| 20. |
Posted by Ted on 12/15/2006, 12:42 I find it hilarious that some people still see Al Gore as an intelligent person. The man is about as bright as a box of rocks. |
| 19. |
Posted by Hank on 12/15/2006, 12:40 What is scary is that the once and almost president, Al "Chicken Little" Gore, actually believes this! Amazing! |
| 18. |
Posted by Steve on 12/15/2006, 12:39 A publicized scientific debate from experts from both sides would probably not be understood by half of the non-science community simply because it would be jargon ridden, require much data mastication and interpretation and follow a scientific method not utilized by the lay society. Bottom line, non-scientist will probably not have their minds changed after such a debate because of partisan tendencies, especially since the debate would essentially be meaningless. |
| 17. |
Posted by Hank on 12/15/2006, 12:37 Al "Chicken Little" Gore is just a fruit cake. And to think he was almost our president! |
| 16. |
Posted by Bob on 12/15/2006, 12:28 Antonios: Please don't cite science facts from Algore and Brokaw - that is so embarrassing for you. |
| 15. |
Posted by Manbearpig on 12/15/2006, 12:26 Me Manbearpig, an' I'ma'comin' to GITcha! |
| 14. |
Posted by Rick Schwalbach on 12/15/2006, 12:22 The key phrase here is "did not take questions from scientists or reporters." He never does - his junk science would never hold up to their challenges. |
| 13. |
Posted by Rick Patel on 12/15/2006, 12:21 "And now I made the sad discovery that men of weak or pathological character can inject their twisted political passions even into scientific life." -Heisenberg It is sad that a raving lunatic politician can get a room to rise in ovation, and damned tragic that it was a room of supposedly trained scientists. They're really brainwashed. Which makes all of their "science" quite suspect. |
| 12. |
Posted by Antonios on 12/15/2006, 12:21 The problem besides the rising sea level is the fact that the added temperature will cause massive devastative effect to the earth. If you would like to see a non-biased perspective check out the Discovery Channel's documentary hosted by Tom Brokaw "Global Warming:What You Need To Know" |
| 11. |
Posted by Antonios on 12/15/2006, 12:21 The problem besides the rising sea level is the fact that the added temperature will cause massive devestative effect to the earth. If you would like to see a non-biased perspective check out the Discovery Channel's documentary hosted by Tom Brokaw "Global Warming:What You Need To Know" |
| 10. |
Posted by beno on 12/15/2006, 12:09 so,if the seas rise, don't you just build a seawall,or move to 30 ft. above sea level. I live at 700 ft above sea level, why should I care? |
| 9. |
Posted by Lee on 12/15/2006, 12:07 Gore needs to be careful what he wishes for. The scientists that he has accused of being equal to holocaust-deniers may get more vocal about putting forth the real evidence that "Climate Change" is mostly a natural cycle the Earth goes through repeatedly with only minor effects caused by human activities. |
| 8. |
Posted by Ross on 12/15/2006, 12:07 Why doesn't he shut up!! |
| 7. |
Posted by mikej on 12/15/2006, 12:02 I agree with Al Gore ... Everyone needs to read this report which disputes everything Al Gore and his minions say. Global warming is all about politics and has nothing to do with honest science. http://epw.senate.gov/speechitem.cfm?party=rep&id=263759 |
| 6. |
Posted by jason on 12/15/2006, 12:01 james hansen.. isnt that the same guy who got a quarter million dollars from heinz (kerry) ketchup? almost as if only half the story is being told. almost as if hansen was paid to make it look like he was being oppressed.... |
| 5. |
Posted by Tom in Oregon City on 12/15/2006, 11:59 When there are agricultural colonies in Greenland again, perhaps the world will have awoken to the fact that CO2 does not correlate with global temperature at all across the ages, and correlates only slightly in the last century. Let's hope those who demand control of the resources of this planet -- which give the poor of the world the chance to live better and longer -- fail in their quest to "save" us from AGW before that understanding dawns. |
| 4. |
Posted by John Galt on 12/15/2006, 11:54 The mendacity of Alicia Chang. The American Geophysical Union is NOT in agreement with Algore. |
| 3. |
Posted by Chris on 12/15/2006, 11:51 As I was walking up the stair I saw ALGORE who was not there He was not there again today I wish ALGORE would GO AWAY! |
| 2. |
Posted by Craig on 12/15/2006, 11:43 That's because it's a hoax, no real scientific facts. Gore is a has been. |
| 1. |
Posted by Ron Supprice on 12/15/2006, 11:29 Will Al Gore ever stop lecturing everyone?! |
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