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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Just a brief note to clarify a recent posting of
mine: When I described the left's view of humanity as the root of all
evil, I was not referring to original sin, but to the contemporary view that our
effect on this planet is always negative. It also seems to be the left's
position that our effects on each other are predominantly negative.
</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>As to the first point: As the climate has
changed time and time again, over millions of years, from extremes of hot and
cold, wet and dry, we are advised that we are now responsible for this most
recent shift in temperatures. Our effect is negative. When loggers
cut trees to provide shelter, it devastates habitat. But when loggers
reforest, or home owners plant trees, these activities are never weighed into
the equation. Our effect is always characterized as negative or
destructive. I remember a fascinating experience as I was attempting, some
12 years ago, to help my toddler play Microsoft's "Dangerous Creatures"
"educational" software. The opening screen held what looked like a
calendar, with a different toothed beast in each box; lions, tigers, bears,
wolves. I was struck by the inclusion in this collage of a diaper clad
human infant! Curious, I clicked on this image meant for young children,
and was advised that the human being was the most destructive species on the
planet, being responsible for the destruction of this that and the other
thing. Well. Quite a message to teach our young, wouldn't you
say? And we wonder why their self esteem is at times lacking. It is
this type of hostile, self-loathing posture of today's liberals toward
humanity that I meant to refer to.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>As to our effect on each other, the war in Iraq
provides a glaring example. The left views the conflict through the above
template, peaceable little country being overrun by resource hungry,
imperialistic behemoth with no regard for human rights. Destruction
right and left, wholesale torture and death even among the civilian
population. A closer, less hyperventilating examination reveals that
examples of torture are VERY sporadic, and the uncondoned actions of a few
idiots, not official policy. Further inspection reveals that we are in
fact engaged in a number of humanitarian activities, building schools and
providing infrastructure, etc. Contrary to the left wing view that all
Iraqis long for our defeat and removal, it becomes apparent that in fact 97 some
percent of them are tickled to have us there and embrace the recent
changes. One learns that we are fighting the other 3% who are in many
cases Saddam loyalists and those sponsored by Syria and others to shoot at
American troops in exchange for cash. This reality was most recently
confirmed by my discussion of our Iraqi policy with a recently discharged, JASOC
sniper with many hours of experience in Cambodia, Iraq and Aphghanistan whom I
encountered while scouting the woods around St,. Maries.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I simply wish to suggest to liberals that perhaps
human beings are capable of some good, at least every once in a
while. That we are not doomed to devastate our environment and die,
piteously wailing for more, without the benevolent guidance of the
anointed.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Later,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>-Tony</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=ngier@uidaho.edu href="mailto:ngier@uidaho.edu">Nick Gier</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=vision2020@moscow.com
href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com">vision2020@moscow.com</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Saturday, March 31, 2007 10:00
AM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: [Vision2020] Amazonian
Deforestation and Global Warming:Was:Ed theViking, Greenland, and Global
Warming</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>Good Morning Visionaries:<BR><BR>A very serious allegation has
been leveled against presumably all doctoral committees in the world: to wit,
that Ph.D. candidates must conform to a "left-wing" agenda, curiously defined
as "humanity is the root of all evil." <BR><BR>There is a delicious
irony in this ludicrous hypothesis: all theses done at conservative Christian
schools that use Luther's or Calvin's doctrine of human depravity would have
to be declared "left-wing."<BR><BR>Unless the person can support such a
comprehensive and breath taking claim, I think we can all be safe in assuming
that U. S. doctoral committees hold their students to the highest objective
standards for which our graduate schools are world famous.<BR><BR>Looking back
at my 1973 dissertation on Martin Heidegger, who was the first Nazi rector at
Freiburg University, I'm at a loss how either I or my committee could have had
a "left-wing" agenda.<BR><BR>Nick Gier<BR><BR>At 08:39 AM 3/31/2007, you
wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=cite cite="" type="cite"><FONT face="Arial, Helvetica"
size=2>Ted makes an important point about the political pressures faced by
scientists in an academic environment which encourages if not enforces
conformity to conventional wisdom. The resulting group think is hardly
conducive to flushing out truth from prejudice and presumption. In such an
environment where one's doctoral thesis if it is to be accepted, must tow
the left wing, humanity is the root of all evil paradigm, it is obvious how
an aspiring scholar might be tempted to slant her research to please those
who hold her future in their hands.<BR></FONT> <BR><FONT
face="Arial, Helvetica" size=2>The university is alleged to be a place where
a variety of views are thoughtfully considered if not
embraced.<BR></FONT> <BR><FONT face="Arial, Helvetica" size=2>Would
that it were so.<BR></FONT> <BR><FONT face="Arial, Helvetica"
size=2>-T<BR></FONT>
<DL>
<DD>----- Original Message ----- <BR>
<DD>From:</B> <A href="mailto:starbliss@gmail.com">Ted Moffett</A> <BR>
<DD>To:</B> <A
href="mailto:nickgier@adelphia.net">nickgier@adelphia.net</A> <BR>
<DD>Cc:</B> <A
href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com">vision2020@moscow.com</A> <BR>
<DD>Sent:</B> Thursday, March 29, 2007 2:16 PM<BR>
<DD>Subject:</B> [Vision2020] Amazonian Deforestation and Global
Warming:Was:Ed theViking, Greenland, and Global Warming<BR><BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>Nick et. al.<BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>I'm not sure you should defer to my research on methane and other
global warming impacts of livestock, given the complexity and room for
error on such a difficult subject. But this interesting analysis
that can be read in pdf form at the web link below, that in part examines
cattle raising impacts on the Amazon rain forest, might shed light on this
issue. <BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>I cannot vouch for the correctness of the data and conclusions from
this study presented in 1996, especially given the rapid rate of change in
that area of the world, indeed, all over our planet. However, this
paper reveals the daunting complexity of environmental studies, while
demonstrating the exacting and sobering work that constitutes the day to
day efforts of most scientists, who usually don't have the inclination to
politicise their work, despite the claims of many that the hundreds of
scientists gathering data on global warming have an agenda to slant their
conclusions towards alarmism on human induced global warming. <BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>Given that scientists sometimes face political, career, or economic
pressures to slant their work, defending the independence of the community
of scientists to present their findings without these pressures biasing
their efforts, is fundamental if the public is to be accurately informed
of major scientific developments that can significantly impact the world
at large, such as climate change from human activity. <BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>Recently on C-SPAN testimony of NASA climate scientist James Hansen
before the US Congress was presented. He mentioned that he thought
the censorship of his scientific conclusions regarding human impacts on
global warming, by the Bush administration, was akin to the censorship of
science in the former Soviet Union. <BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD><A
href="http://philip.inpa.gov.br/publ_livres/Preprints/1996/REPLACE-FEM.pdf">http://philip.inpa.gov.br/publ_livres/Preprints/1996/REPLACE-FEM.pdf
</A><BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>-----<BR>
<DD>Ted Moffett<BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>On 3/15/07, <A
href="mailto:nickgier@adelphia.net">nickgier@adelphia.net</A></B> <<A
href="mailto:nickgier@adelphia.net">nickgier@adelphia.net</A>> wrote:
<BR>
<DL>
<DD>Greetings:<BR><BR>
<DD>I've not seen this message in my in-box, so I'm sending it
again.<BR><BR>
<DD>I just wanted to verify that my source on methane release from
livestock was from the UN's FAO report that Megan cited. <BR><BR>
<DD>However, I respect Ted's research and reasoning skills and I would
be happy to defer to his judgment on this issue since he has done more
research on this than anyone on this list.<BR><BR>
<DD>Thanks, Ted, for making it clear that raising beef cattle, no matter
how they fart, is a terribly inefficient and enviornmentally disastrous
way of getting the protein that we need. <BR><BR>
<DD>Nick Gier<BR><BR></DD></DL>
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<P></X-SIGSEP><FONT size=2>"Truth is the summit of being; justice is the
application of it to human affairs."<BR>--Ralph Waldo Emerson<BR><BR>"Abstract
truth has no value unless it incarnates in human beings who represent it, by
proving their readiness to die for it."<BR> --Mohandas
Gandhi<BR><BR>"Modern physics has taught us that the nature of any system
cannot be discovered by dividing it into its component parts and studying each
part by itself. . . .We must keep our attention fixed on the whole and on the
interconnection between the parts. The same is true of our intellectual life.
It is impossible to make a clear cut between science, religion, and art. The
whole is never equal simply to the sum of its various parts." --Ma</FONT><FONT
size=1>x Planck<BR><BR></FONT>Nicholas F. Gier<BR>Professor Emeritus,
Department of Philosophy, University of Idaho<BR>1037 Colt Rd., Moscow, ID
83843<BR><A href="http://users.adelphia.net/~nickgier/home.htm"
eudora="autourl">http://users.adelphia.net/~nickgier/home.htm<BR></A>208-882-9212/FAX
885-8950<BR>President, Idaho Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO<BR><A
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