The Benshi

I’ve been a limited fan of climate skeptics only in that they light a fire under the bloated American environmental movement.  But an NPR segment last week asks whether their bus has now left the station with so many major corporations accepting climate change and working on the potential profit angles.  Which is what I saw in Norway two years ago where they thought it was laughable that climate skeptics even exist.  I think if I were a climate skeptic I’d start looking for a new cause.

CLIMATE SKEPTICS HAD A GREAT RUN, BUT … I wonder if they aren’t ending up like the great scene in “Life of Brian” where everyone haggles about the meaning of the cast off shoe, until they all run away in a new direction, leaving this one guy behind, still trying to preach, but with no followers left.  Kinda looks like the future for the climate skeptics.

“CASHING IN ON CLIMATE”

Warren Olney had a GREAT segment last week titled, “Cashing in on Climate,” on what I saw in Norway two years ago — that businesses can’t afford to be climate skeptics—they have long since been projecting their business plans based on the obvious patterns of climate change.

I spent two very cold, very dark, and very fun weeks in Tromso, Norway exactly two years ago.  We had a ball making the best student videos ever.  But while I was there they also held the Arctic Frontiers workshop where 1000 scientists and businessmen came together to discuss one thing—”How can we make a buck off of climate change.”

This segment of KCRW’s “To The Point” presents exactly the same story.  It tells about how long Shell Oil has been aware of and accepting climate change science, and even the big, bad Exxon Mobil is on board.

All of which makes you wonder if the climate skeptic agenda isn’t about cooked.  And overall, there’s a similar tone from the business community of, “Thanks a lot, dummies,” towards the climate skeptics in the same way that the Republican Party is projecting that tone towards the Tea Party these days.  They all had a lot of fun, but ultimately fouled things up for the smart people of the business world.

There’s reason to believe the mighty climate skeptics may be going the way of the dodo.  Which is a little sad as I found them so entertaining, but such is the Darwinian process.