Is Global Warming a Hoax?

As winter grips the Northern Hemisphere and record cold snaps blanket the region in snow and ice, it's difficult to imagine a phenomenon such as global warming. Of course, even as temperatures plunge north of the Equator, Australia is engulfed in a drought with catastrophic wildfires sweeping across the continent. Environmentalists place the blame squarely on global warming caused by greenhouse gases and increased emissions associated with humans. Global warming is the excuse for any number of unexplained phenomenon in the environment. Species extinction, climate change, shrinking polar ice caps are all blamed on global warming by environmentalists misquoting scientists who use anecdotal and sloppy research.

The fact is global warming is occurring; however no one is quite sure shy. Whether the mild temperature increase is a direct effect of humans is highly doubtful. The reason is not enough evidence exists to support any one theory over the other. Average temperatures are increasing by less than one degree per decade. This increase could be a cycle the planet has gone through several times in its four billion year history. Fossil records indicate tropical plants and climates in areas that now are buried under snow and ice for nine months out of the year. A miniature ice age occurred around medieval times, which some postulate is one of the causes of what is called the Dark Ages. The geological record indicates many ice ages have occurred and that they do happen with some frequency. If scientists are basing their theories on recorded temperatures, then they will find temperatures are increasing. Consistent recorded temperatures only go back just over one hundred years. Future scientists will more than likely record a decline in average temperatures and give environmentalists an excuse to blame global freezing.

It's hard to focus on era's lasting hundreds of years when faced with the immediate threats that are blamed on global warming. Increased iceberg activity can impact shipping lanes, which can affect delivery of food and goods around the world. Decreased habitat and changes in the environment kill off species, thousands of insects and reptiles that haven't been discovered yet, or the more visible victims, like polar bears, which look cute and cuddly, but are actually pure predators. Environmentalists have championed global climate change as the cause for cannibalistic behavior among the bear population. It's a great method of generating publicity despite the falsehood it promotes. Bears will eat bears because they are carnivorous, not because of climate change. No one has demonstrated that seal populations, a source of food for polar bears, has been affected yet. Environmentalists cling to the yet, because a worst-case scenario draws a lot of attention to the cause, which is combating global warming.

Global warming is not a hoax and the environmental impact is quite serious. But blaming humans for the phenomenon is incorrect. However, no matter what the cause, the effects on global warming will need to be addressed and only humans can correct it. Through conservation efforts, and an increased movement toward renewable energy sources, global climate change can be slowed or averted.