Kids need to hear the other side of the story so that they can better target their energies, including their environmental passions. Teenagers should know that skeptics aren’t just an evil fringe in the pocket of the oil industry. Many legitimate questions remain about climate change, its causes, and potential solutions.
Inconvenient Youth members should be aware that many scientists believe that the climate was warmer during medieval times than it is today. They should ask themselves, if this is true, doesn’t it suggest that the modern warming trend may be natural, not caused by man?
There are also questions about the data used for global warming models. Much of the original temperature data used to justify claims of unprecedented warming has been destroyed or lost. Additionally, some scientists believe that changes in the environment surrounding weather stations may have contributed to perceived warming.
Some scientists argue that changes in the sun’s activity are primarily responsible for changing temperatures. Others note significant information that’s left out of UN global warming models, such as cloud cover.
Finally, while it’s nice to ride your bike to school, plant gardens, buy local produce, and use environmentally friendly light bulbs and batteries, Inconvenient Youth members should know that the policies being advanced by Al Gore's Climate Project go far beyond such measures. Proposals to curb carbon emissions would raise the cost of just about every good and service. Families would have to spend more to heat the house, get to work, and purchase food and clothing. The higher costs would ripple through the economy, reducing the number of jobs and driving youth unemployment (already about 20 percent) even higher.
Even proponents of cap-and-trade systems acknowledge that current proposals would do little to slow temperature changes, if global warming models are correct. So there would be a lot of sacrifice for little result. Teens might consider if there are more pressing causes—environmental and other—where they can have more of an impact.
It’s great that teens want to make the world a better place. But they should do their homework so they are fully informed about this issue before jumping on the Al Gore environmental bandwagon.