Sunday, May 14, 2006

Shilling Scientist Spied

The Blog | Laurie David: Another Shill the Media Should Ignore: Pat Michaels | The Huffington Post:

"As New York is being warned to expect a hurricane that could wreak havoc on the city even at Category 2 strength, industry-funded skeptics are still spreading misinformation trying to convince us that hurricane intensity has nothing to do with global warming.

The latest attempt, by Patrick J. Michaels, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, was reported by the Richmond Times-Dispatch and picked up by the Drudge Report, so it'll probably get reprinted in other papers this week.

Michaels is one of a tiny but vocal group of skeptics who, in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, still argue that global warming isn't a serious threat. Michaels acknowledges that the climate is changing, but not that it's serious or that we can do anything about it.

Michaels has been criticized by scientists for being selective and manipulative with data and is generally not taken seriously. One of the world's leading climate scientists, Dr. Tom Wigley, has referred to Michaels' statements on global warming as 'inaccurate,' 'seriously misleading,' and 'a catalog of misrepresentation and misinterpretation. . .' "

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