Considering the Republican/libertarian need to slander intellectual opponents

In musing on recent rabid (I used that word deliberately) attacks on me, I can't help but think about that Republican/libertarian passion for transforming every 'opponent' into some target for the most underhanded, grade-school level, personalized, totally distracting and irrelevant attacks.  

I've watched impeccable scientists and politicians and spokespeople trashed with the most demeaning garbage, all intent on keeping our eye's off the prize. 

Unfortunately their audience accepts and endorses such behavior and want to see issues melodramatized.  It's literally like our collective moral fiber has dissolved taking with it peoples' curiosity to understand their world.

In the past decades special-self-interest groups have calculatedly worked very hard to suppress that good old American awareness and impulse towards respect and friendship with diverse individuals.  Tragically, seems they've succeeded.

What's up with that?  Why that constant obsession with stripping us of our humanity?

It's important because after decades of increasingly better understanding, including improvements in teaching climate science, not to mention the changes being documented throughout our biosphere - that political/ideological barrier hasn't soften a bit.  

It's as though the concept of Enlightened Self Interest has never occurred to them.  Either that or their own short term self-interest eclipses everything.  I don't believe it's possible to make any significant dent without first figuring out how to grapple with that most fundamental emotional problem out there: 

The Republican/libertarian inability to recognize and acknowledge the humanity in their opponents and enemies.

and now the ugly side of the AGW dialogue.

{updated with comments June 18 evening.}

Here we have Lee Stamper, he's been commenting at YouTube on a video I featured over here on May 4th, he doesn't pretend to be interested in understanding climate science. He's just pissed off and likes verbally attacking "alarmists".   

Since there's no substance to discuss, the only reason I'm devoting a blog post to him is because his verbal abuse has just crossed over the line into the threat territory. Thus, I'll document it over here.

Lee Stamper you are welcome to comment over here, please explain why are you so over the top upset with me?

The Science Behind Global Warming (Documentary)

by Emily Blegvad

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-sy6rPJBj4 

Lee Stamper  3:30 PM | June 17, 2015  -  Writes: 

+citizenschallengeYT    now since you think you know everything about me I can see you have never been in the military bozo..if you know everything about me tell me how many Viet Cong I have notches on my knife for ? better look over your sholder you may piss the wrong person off next time

Examining denialist dodges #4 K gets down to brass tacks

{edited Wednesday morning}

Slowly wrapping up my virtual dialogue with K at the OurChangingClimate "Is Climate Science Falsifiable" thread, he has drifted a long way from discussing how falsifiability in science works, instead preferring to dodge my questions with diversions into politics, so I figure it's a good excuse to consider the Libertarian Mind in a bit more depth by going through his comment and offering my responses.   As mentioned previous this exercise offers interesting insights into the workings of the contrarian mind and might come in helpful for some.

==================

krischel Says: 

August 18, 2014 at 01:27

@citizenschallenge: You are a natural climate change denier :)

What's that mean pray tell? How can anyone deny natural climate change? 

It appears K hasn't figured out that it's impossible to grasp Manmade Global Warming without first understanding the science of "natural climate change." 

A reminder, K never did respond to my explanation that his "null hypothesis" doesn't make sense, since there's nothing "unnatural" about increased CO2 levels increasing our planet's insulation, nor that humans increasing GHGs will increase global average temperatures.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

K writes

CC: “You dismiss the guy’s academic record”

K: "Because Mann’s academic record doesn’t make up for his lies and fraud."

~ ~ ~ 

{WHAT LIES AND FRAUD?}

I've addressed this echo-chamber fantasy regarding Mann's alleged misdeeds in essay  #3 of this series.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

CC: “Your McIntyre doesn’t understand the science”

K:  "On the contrary, he’s incredibly well educated, and shows his work. Mann hides it behind lawsuits :)" 

~ ~ ~

How's being incredibly educated in mining, and investment strategies qualify him to judge climate science?

Also, what the lawsuit want's isn't Mann's work which is readily available for any serious researcher to examine {don't believe it, click here} - the lawsuit basically want's every piece of paper Mann ever wrote on.  It's a political witch hunt nothing more.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Contemplating the Contrarian Mind in Action #2

{edited 5/30, AM}

So it continues, Krischel has responded to my last response.  
For the rest of the story see my previous post "Contemplating the Contrarian Mind in Action" 
Other than that, not much going on writing wise, clients are cracking their whips so I have other work to soak up my time for a while.  But I'll be back.  ;- )

=======================================================

===============================================

krischel Says:  

May 29, 2014 at 16:37 @citizens challenge:
K-1) A set of google search parameters isn’t a citation. If you have a paper, or set of papers to cite, *specify* them.

(http://ourchangingclimate.wordpress.com/2014/02/17/is-climate-science-falsifiable/ )

~ ~ ~ 
CC says: You act like you don't appreciate that scientists have been looking at climate changes in deep time long and hard - and they have learned a great many things, that you wouldn't know about if you aren't interested in learning from them.  For example:

Neoproterozoic 'snowball Earth' simulations with a coupled climate/ice-sheet model
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v405/n6785/full/405425a0.html
A 'snowball Earth' climate triggered by continental break-up through changes in runoff
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v428/n6980/abs/nature02408.html

For a realistic review of climate models and how they are used by scientists here's an informative review written by a real climate scientist. 

On mismatches between models and observations 

Gavin Schmidt climate modeler NASA GISS @ 13 September 2013 

http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2013/09/on-mismatches-between-models-and-observations/

Contemplating the contrarian mind in action

{I did some clean up editing Friday morning - OK, time to call it done 10:00 mtn, got a fence to get back to building.
Did some more clean up editing, clarifying, added some links - 5/28 morningish - the fence is done, looks great :- )  
K's reply, with my response was added 5/28 evening, tad late, what can I say.}

There's an interesting article by Jos Hagelaars over at MyViewOnClimateChange.wordpress
"Is Climate Science falsifiable?"  It led to a dialogue that I've participated in, the most recent comment was too ripe not to pick and too long not to share over here.  K seems to think things should be argued to death and that the vaguest suggestions deserve more attention than learning about the basic fundamentals.

Worse K just seems to be tossing out headlines from denialist websites, but there's no indication that K has spent anytime seriously trying to learn about the underlying issues of these various topics.  Something that's all too common among the "science skeptical" crowd.