Scottish Sceptic

At around 9:05pm tonight as I was pouring a drink … the lights went out. In October when Didcot had problems I said:

“This means Scotland has a “reasonable” chance [I guess 50:50] of at least one major conurbation facing an evening without power typically in January – March.”

I just didn’t think we would be suffering a power cut!
After two failed attempts the power finally came back on at 10:20.

I’ve spent most of the week surveying part of a local nature reserve. During that week, I’ve had dozens of people coming up to me to complain about a group of “environmentalists” destroying the environment. It got so bad, that I was glad when it started pouring down rain as that meant I would be left alone with nothing but my own thoughts and the distant buzz of environmentalists chainsaws destroying woodland.
People like this nature reserve because it’s a mile long walk through a mix of trees and open heath. And it used to be a magical place to take children because although relatively small, it used to be easy to get lost passing through the dense woodland and then Scottish moorland – all within a 10minute train ride of a major Scottish city.
However, it seems that someone has decided that this area should not be woodland because presumably they have decided that it is “supposed” to be open heath.
Paradoxically, much of the area used to be naturally heathland – that is until they built the path through the reserve. Before this path, much of the area was naturally free of trees – presumably because the area was frequented by deer which ate the young saplings faster than they sprouted and this kept most of the area from turning to woodland.
But it all changed when they built the path. Presumably because the dog walkers scaring away the deer. This meant that over the last decade the trees have grown up along the path, and so I didn’t see a big problem cutting down these trees where the deer no longer visit along the path.
So, I just assumed this is what was going on. But at at times, almost everyone passing was stopping to ask whether I had anything to do with this tree felling. So, with so many complaints, I eventually I went to look. It turns out that not only have they been clearing the trees along the path where it used to be clear, but they have also been clearing much of the area of woodland that was marked as woodland on the 1850 map. So although the trees themselves are not this old, it seems they have cleared an area which must have been largely untouched woodland dating back at least 165 years.
The irony, is that this area where they are clearing is well known as an area the deer shelter in during the day. So, by clearing this section, they are destroying the shelter for the deer and with less deer to keep the trees from growing on the boggier areas, the more these boggier areas will turn to the very woodland the environmentalists don’t seem to want.
It just seems to me to be pointless destruction – and the irony – pointless destruction which I presume has been carried out to “save” the environment.

My grand theory of the causation and progress of ice-ages was making steady progress before Xmas until I hit a small snag: CO2 levels do not work as a greenhouse gas! But neither do they just respond to temperature!
I’ve been thinking about it for a while without making progress, so I’m hoping that writing this article will stimulate some ideas to get around the log jam.
To recap re the evidence. We have a 400 thousand year record in the vostok ice as shown above. From this we can derive changes in CO2 and temperature (But please note both are proxies and not direct measurements as Salby showed). Continue reading →

I read today the headline: “Pope Francis says climate change is mostly man-made.” In other words, he is denying what is technically called “natural variability”, but in a previous more religious age was called “acts of god”.
And to make it all the worse in “Canute”** style he intends to issue a papal bull denying the power of god over the climate and decreeing the omnipotence of academics who have as yet proven incapable of predicting the climate.
So, if there is a god – how will (s)he react to this slight against his (her) power and authority?

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**Unlike this pope, Canute was a wise king who was fed up with his advisers who tried to tell him he was all powerful. So, to show them how idiotic the idea was of a mere human having control over nature, he had himself sat down before the natural variation we call a rising tide and commanded it to cease.
In one simple action he showed his own humility, his wisdom and the stupidity of his advisers – a lesson this pope needs to learn.

I came across an article written by someone whose house has been stolen. Given the context I immediately expected another green hypocrite and I was not mistaken.
But first, however hypocritical, obnoxious and generally “denialist” the person, a crime was committed and it’s a personal tragedy for them and no one “deserves” that. However, as they remind me so much of the hypocritical “denialists” who have a massive personal carbon footprint and then criticise us sceptics for putting the facts in the way of the hypocritical hysteria, as the block is unlikely to read this, I feel it’s worth highlighting how ridiculous their idea of “green” actually is.
Like all “Greens” they start by saying they were “going to live as ethically and responsibly as we possibly can“. So what do they do? They buy a plot of land in the wilderness: “45 minute drive to our property – a drive that I’ve made at least 20 times each way, at this point.” and what’s the first thing they do?  … destroy the wilderness or as he puts it: “after the $3,100 of additional land clearing and tree-trimming“. Continue reading →

I need £1000 in order to put myself up for election in 2015 and have enough money to print the leaflets which the establishment parties all get delivered for free.
However, even so, the £1000 (assuming lost deposit) is remarkably good value. Lenzie is full of the “decision makers” of Scotland so its a very good target for climate information, the MP is a green hypocrite and the £1000 is cheaper than paying a company to deliver them.
Whilst there have been some generous donations, unfortunately I am still very far from the £1000 and having had unpaid “work” as a climate sceptic for many years I have had no income and so I’m putting a red line down that I will not fund the campaign from my own (wife’s) pocket.

Strategy

So, I am now contemplating a sceptic keep fit program.
This program involves printing as many leaflets as the present donations can provide for and then hand delivering them. The leaflet will lay out the scientific basis against the nonsense policy of the Scottish government and then explain I would like to stand and ask for donations to help make this happen.

UKIP

For those who aren’t aware, UKIP are denying the Scottish membership any say over their party in Scotland. In particular, the “chairman” is now appointed, but contrary to the rules that say the “chairman” must not be employed in the party office, this “chairman” works for David Coburn – claiming that as an appointed “chairman” this rule does not apply.
So, this “chairman” will never willingly have an election because either they lose and keep their job or they “lose” and become an elected chairman without their EU funded salary.

On the 22nd of December my paypal “cheque” finally cleared and I confidently expected to hear the ring on the door just before or just after Xmas.
Xmas came and went. Eventually I gave the supplier a ring and they emailed me a tracking number.
What a delight! From this tracking number I can now see that the parcel was picked up by “Speedy Express Delivery Service” at 14:15:47 on 2014-12-29  …. It then arrived in Sofia (which I found was the capital of Bulgaria) at 22:16:59 on the same day …
So, what has “Speedy delivery” being doing with my parcel since?

… Nothing!

Until I checked it just now to find that as of 08:32:50 7 days after SPEEDY delivery picked it up, it has finally made it to Budapest in Hungary (next door to Bulgaria) where the status is: “Processed in Office”.

At this rate of progress I am confidently expecting my “Speedy delivery” parcel to arrive some time around March – and as a sceptic I fully anticipate it to be a box mashed to pieces missing the contents and with a customs demand that must be paid before I get the parcel to see it is without its contents.

Welcome to the internet age!

Orders placed at the speed of light.
Parcels delivered at the speed of a gestating elephant.

And the only real difference … is that I can now see online how slowly my “snail-mail” is getting to me.