Merchants of Doubt

When studying climate science, immersing oneself in the science, the history, and the scientists it is easy to become judgmental. It is easy to ask, “How can anyone miss the overwhelming science and imagine it is not happening?”  “How does anyone avoid the conclusion that we must act decisively now?”

If you read the well written book, “Merchants of Doubt” you will know. In fact, you will acknowledge that anyone who has swallowed the anti-science lingo deserves forgiveness.   The Harvard Professor Naomi Oreskes and NASA historian Erik M. Conway did extensive research over a five-year period to uncover the roots of why 97+% of the world’s practicing climate scientists, for decades, have told us climate science is solid while, in stark contrast, we the public haven’t got the message.  Now, I know. Now, I understand why we, the US citizenry has had trouble coming to grips with the most critical scientific and moral issue humanity has faced.  It is a troubling book to read. It is the recent history of our country and our slide away from science and reason. The book is an attack on the outsized evil impact of big business, not only in Washington, but on us via the media. They have altered our understanding of issues such as tobacco smoking, acid rain, the ozone layer, secondhand smoke and the climate crisis.  The parallels of each disinformation campaign are unmistakable. The methods remain the same but become more refined each time as the propaganda organizations, who call themselves “think tanks”, race to put out their messages in clever efforts to deceive us.

The good news is the long process of gathering good data, analyzing the data, and coming to non-prejudiced conclusions prevailed in every instance prior to the climate crisis debate. Good science prevailed because it was done well, it could rely on both of our political parties to protect it, and our scientists were able to bravely face down unethical assaults on their work and on their character.  We now have warning labels on cigarettes, we no longer are subjected to the very real threat of secondhand smoke in public buildings, ozone destroying chemicals are being identified and eliminated, DDT and most pesticides are monitored, and the chemicals that cause acid rain are being removed. The hallmark clean air and clean water acts stand as protective sentinels.

It is also important to note our industries, with health and environmental restrictions, have economically thrived. The exception being the tobacco industry.

The bad news is with each scientific and moral victory, the think tanks and marketing companies who work to confuse us have perfected their tools and methods of creating doubt. The exorbitantly funded multi-year campaign to create doubt about climate change has been and continues to be successful. Half of us are still doubters.

I would like to tell you we will win this battle and our kid’s climate will be saved. With 99% of the science community in consensus you would think we could wrap up the debate and move on to solutions. After reading Merchants of Doubt there are many hurdles we must leap, and they are high ones. Here they are:

Challenge 1: We, the public must engage in science. In “The Demon-Haunted World”, Carl Sagan warns us that science literacy is essential not only to ensure economic progress but to our ability to think rationally. This ability to reason well, he insists, is essential to preserve our freedoms. He reminds us only 15% of the US population is considered scientifically literate. It is hard to disregard this sobering statistic. The cure for this is rather simple. Dedicate some time to read scientific journals.

Challenge 2: Big Business does not have moral guard rails. There is no caveat in the free market while creating a product or using the product, they should not kill the worker, the consumer, an innocent bystander, or unborn kids. You may think this statement outrageous but after next week’s column, you won’t.

Challenge 3: Political Undermining of Science. Little by little funding of science has been cut by the Republican Party. Additionally, as we see with the current administration, unrelenting pressure is applied to career scientists to make their research meet political objectives even if it conflicts with scientific truth. Our governmental system does not reward truth. If it continues to reward lying, I do not see how we can meet any challenge.

Challenge 4: The science community itself. Through most of history the great scientific minds have sought fellowship and sought constructive criticism with-in their scientific community. If they found a fellow scientist’s work to lack foundation, they would tell them so. In response, if their work was criticized by their peers, these scientists went back to the drawing boards.  Or, if still confident in their conclusions, they doubled down on their data and methods to prove themselves right. They did this primarily with-in the science community and not in the public arena.  In “Merchants of Doubt” Oreskes and Conway do not constrain their disdain for scientists who submit opinions to the public without first seeking peer support. They focus their ire on four physicists: Fred Seitz, Siegfried Singer, William Nierenberg, and Robert Jason. These scientists were, in their youth, pre-eminent physicists.  Later, some became outspoken critics of reputable scientists in other fields arrogantly portraying themselves as experts in fields they lacked expertise.

Until the science community comes to grips with scientists who have lost their scientific discipline and etiquette it is up to us to determine what information gets our respect and what gets the garbage can. If a scientist is bucking 97% of the community and he does not have expertise and history in the field he is writing about, do not play the sucker. Send that article to the circular file.

I have read a lot of books on climate science. This one is troubling because you realize everything is corruptible and there are people and institutions very good at the dark art of propaganda.

Grist, the on-line climate website, recommends books to read on climate. They say if you have the money to buy only two books, buy “Merchants of Doubt” and read it twice. I agree.

Note: The authors of “Merchants of Doubt” produced a documentary by the same name.