They say the Almighty has moved to New Zealand. Continue Reading →
Views: 2
Assisting supermarket social distancing
We make the effort
The Supermarket Social Distancing aid — a two-metre hula hoop.
so you don’t have to
In our supermarket visits, fellow shoppers constantly infringe on our two social metres of separation, so I’ve devised a simple, inexpensive and easily-procured solution.
Sitting comfortably on the head and waist bands, the Keep-Off Social Distancer leaves your hands free to select the items you need.
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Bygone days
Now we’re all wondering about the future.
Yes, we got thumped by the English, but I’m not pessimistic about the AB’s prospects. They bounced back with a firm statement in trouncing Wales. Continue Reading →
Views: 77
Was climate change a lucky escape from lack of warming?
For a long time the common name for the greatest challenge of our generation was “global warming” — in fact, it must have been twenty years or more. We all knew what it was and groaned every time the boring old subject was raised.
Then, maybe a decade or so back, just when people were starting to notice that warming had hit some speed restriction, the name seemed to morph into “climate change”. This was a new name and suddenly climate change was the bogyman. Then, of course, it was all on for young and old — every darn piece of weather was being caused by man-made “climate change”. Continue Reading →
Views: 300
Word problem is an issue
Not the word problem—the word ‘problem’. It’s an issue. Continue Reading →
Views: 54
No crime in speaking freely
[Under today’s witty Herald headline No denying global scorning Rodney Hide reveals a deft touch with a satirical whimsy. – RT]
I have to admit to a bad week. It started Monday. It was cold and I thought: “Huh, where’s global warming?” Continue Reading →
Views: 98
Aussies could win
The All Blacks had better watch those Aussies pretty closely tonight. They’re perfectly capable of scoring 60 in 90 minutes.
Views: 64
Peer review
We were discussing the difficult peer review of the new local paper A Reanalysis of Long-Term Surface Air Temperature Trends in New Zealand when one of the authors sent me this cartoon, remarking simply: Continue Reading →
Views: 41
Modern journalism meets a lion of a man
While sceptics learn to laugh at themselves
A Harley biker is visiting Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney, when he sees a little girl leaning into the lions’ cage.
Suddenly, a lion grabs her by the jacket and tries to pull her inside, in full view of her terrified, screaming parents. Continue Reading →
Views: 65
They’ve cried ‘climate alarm’ too often
h/t Magoo.
Views: 80
h/t Leonard G. Mills
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A High Court forenoon
A group of unknown people protested our case this morning at the High Court. Although they handed out copies of this amusing letter they remain unidentified. I wonder who they are?
They single out two leading members of the NZ Climate Science Coalition: Honorary Secretary Terry Dunleavy and Energy Spokesman Bryan Leyland.
An Open Letter and Appeal to Lords Terence Dunleavy and Bryan Leyland of the Climate Science Education Trust
On this day 16 July in the year 2012 in the Northern Township of Auckland, Middle Earth
On the Occasion of the Lords’ Good Endeavours to Strike Down the temperature muddlings of the Dark Lords of the National Institution of Water and Atmosphere in the High Court of our Land
Hear Ye Honourable and Esteemed Lords of Middle Earth
We of the Flat Earth Society would like to extend to you a hand of friendship and solidarity… etc., etc.
It’s an attractive, fairly consistent piece of wordsmithing, almost worthy of former ages that valued speech for its beauty before its utility. In a sensible society, entirely the right way around. Continue Reading →
Views: 55
Exguesstrapolation
Close your eyes. Think of glaciers. Now, exguesstrapolate.
This comment from Historical Imagery of Greenland Glaciers Lessens Sea Level Rise Alarm at WUWT is too good to be allowed to languish in the comments section:
*****
Severian says:
June 4, 2012 at 10:00 pm
As for extrapolations and such, remember what Mark Twain said:
“In the space of one hundred and seventy-six years the Lower Mississippi has shortened itself two hundred and forty-two miles. Continue Reading →
Views: 32
The end of scepticism
Read about the Heartland Institute’s brief experiment with provocative marketing.
UPDATE Thursday 10 May
At five to nine this morning I received an email from Nick Downes, who works for Federation Media (“We specialise in doing the web right”) whose web site displays some spectacular work for some spectacular clients.
After taking some advice, I removed the Tui billboard facsimile above. Continue Reading →
Views: 370
Watch it – or the mayor gets the lamington
Pink lamingtons
From today’s Herald:
Auckland Mayor Len Brown was the target of a lamington attack at Auckland University yesterday by an angry supporter of wharf workers.
Mr Brown was coming to the end of one of his regular Mayor in the Chair public sessions in the university quadrant when a young man with dreadlocks approached him with a pink lamington, smearing pieces of the sponge cake on the mayor’s face and shirt. The man then ran off.
He was part of a group of 10 to 15 Socialist Aotearoa members protesting against Mr Brown’s lack of support for workers in the bitter Ports of Auckland dispute where 300 striking union workers were fired by management on Wednesday.
Is this a sinister new tactic by our city’s youngest socialists, or is it simply a waste of a good lamington? Only time will tell.
Views: 32
Laking, liking words, lacking in science
It’s not possible even to keep track of the alarmist stories about climate, far less to refute them all. But when one is personally cited close to home and statements are wrongfully attributed to one, one ought to address them. This Laking/Herald howler is a case in point. Laking has taken his information from the Hot Topic side of the tracks without verification, not knowing the distortions of Renowden and friends (no matter how often corrected) and must now suffer the consequences; the formerly revered Herald similarly. My good friend Barry Brill here humorously draws our attention to the doctor’s faux pas. Regular readers will know that Richard C and Andy already mentioned the Herald article in comments on our Brash post. Thanks, guys. Apologies – one is only just getting around to it – but a refuting post will follow this. – RT
The NZ Herald runs climate alarm propaganda in every shape and size, and from every imaginable point of view. But it was scraping the barrel with its recent patronising but content-free sermon from a certain George Laking – presented on its weather page under the heading of “Epsom and climate change”.
Laking is apparently an oncologist. He transparently knows nothing whatever of meteorology, and even less about economics – and therefore relies upon a quote from an IEA economist to define the state of the science. He then buttresses his scientific bombast with other strongly-held opinions from non-scientists – the World Bank, UK Ministry of Defence, the Medical Association, and the World Health Organisation.
Each one of his sources has heard a real scientist say something, somewhere, about climate science. And they are almost sure they can remember part of what was said. But, says George, global warming isn’t about science anyhow, it’s about MORALITY!
If you want to know how morality works, ask a cancer doctor. George has seen what tobacco sellers got up to and he wouldn’t be a bit surprised if climate sellers weren’t just as bad.
And it turns out George’s medical training also left him well-versed in the need to manipulate raw data to get the result you are after. He says:
“If you take the raw temperature recordings alone (like ACT or… Richard Treadgold did), you won’t see a temperature rise. But that is because the readings have to be corrected for changes in site location, exposure, and instrumentation. Treadgold overlooked this and so ACT constructed a whole court case on the most abysmal scientific howler.”
Hmm. George obviously doesn’t read very much in pursuit of his climate hobby. He certainly doesn’t express any methodological preferences as between Salinger (1981) and RS93; or even NIWA’s 2010 review versus the audit published by the NZ Climate Science Coalition. He doesn’t even differentiate between the old 7SS and the NZT7.
Poor George seems to think Richard Treadgold is helping ACT to sue somebody in Epsom. Perhaps the teacup taper?
Does the Herald read these Op-Eds before publication, or is a burning zeal to hurl abuse at non-believers seen to be a sufficient qualification?
Views: 32
Canned climate science
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Government certified and licensed by the IPCC under the Tropical Grasslands Protocol, successor to the short-lived Antarctic Protocol, after it refused to melt.
Views: 48
Sensitive climate
Steve Williams said “it was my aim to shove it up that black arsehole.”
People are upsetting themselves. This was tremendously rude, but they say it was outrageously racist. In my lexicon the rude part of it was “arsehole” (a word I never use), which is not being mentioned.
There were two parts to the comment and one was false. Tiger has an arsehole, so Williams was incorrect to say he is an arsehole, because if you are one you cannot have one.
Of course, our favourite system of criticising people is to name them with a part of our anatomy, from the nether regions. Only a few parts are suitable. It doesn’t work to call someone a chin or an elbow. Although it can enhance the epithet to add their skin colour, which is always suitable for criticism.
Woods is undeniably black. In every photograph of him that I’ve seen, he does not have white skin, he has black skin. But people are objecting to calling him black.
Which means that Williams is being excoriated for telling the truth. Why?
Because we demand truth to be varnished, to have some gloss and to sound softer to sensitive souls.
But if the skin is black, it’s black, and why can’t you say so?
Views: 17
New proof of AGW
Climate changes and we didn’t see it coming.
French soccer team 1959
French soccer team 2008
The effects of climate change can no longer be ignored
h/t Keith Hancox.
Views: 324
Hone is a lovely man
Well, I’m gobsmacked!
I’ve received a report that Hone Harawira has a redeeming feature.
It would seem that, among his many sins, he doesn’t believe in Global Warming, according to TV3 News this evening.
Well done, him; seems he’s not such a bad egg after all!
Views: 380
Wrong side of the pain
Thanks, Ross!
I just got off the phone with a friend in Minnesota.
He said that since early this morning the snow has been nearly waist high and is still falling. The temperature is dropping below zero and the north wind is increasing. His wife has done nothing but look through the kitchen window all day. He says that if it gets much worse, he may have to let her in.
Ross Muir
Views: 340
Old lessons good lessons
Dear Sir, A friend of mine in New England has a neighbour who has received a Government cheque for 1,000 dollars this year for not raising hogs. So my friend now wants to go into the business himself, he not being very prosperous just now. He says, in fact, that the idea of not raising hogs appeals to him very strongly. Of course, he will need a hired man, and that is where I come in. I write to you as to your opinion of the best kind of farm not to raise hogs on, the best strain of hogs not to raise and how best to keep an inventory of hogs you are not raising. Also, do you think capital could be raised by issuance of a non-hog raising gold bond? The friend who got the 1,000 dollars got it for not raising 500 hogs. Now, we figure we might easily not raise 1,500 or 2,000 hogs, so you see the possible profits are only limited by the number of hogs we do not raise.
The letter below surfaced in an email group today (on the right is its earliest incarnation). It’s creative writing and, if you’re in a good mood when you read it, finely stimulating, even hilarious.
But I was moved to investigate. Google gave several recent references, the earliest was May 7, 2006. I kept looking; there are a score of references dated December 2009.
Then, on a blog from Quite Interesting Ltd (www.qi.com), came word it was from 1982. The writer traces it back from 2006 to an entry in Hansard in October 1994. I urge you to take a look; the story is interesting enough, to be sure.
The matter has by now quite fastened on our writer’s imagination and he presses his investigation on and on, discovering it on both sides of the Atlantic and in ever earlier decades. Eventually he turns it up, almost fully formed, in 1935, with beginnings in Hansard, no less, in a shipping context, in 1934!
Old or new, early or late, it contains elementary economics lessons for ever. Not to mention some of the driest British (or American) humour you’ll find anywhere.
NIGEL JOHNSON-HILL, PARKFARM, MILLAND, LIPHOOK GU30 7JT
Rt Hon David Miliband MP
Secretary of State.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA),
Nobel House
17 Smith Square
London
SW1P 3JR
16 July 2009
Dear Secretary of State,
My friend, who is in farming at the moment, recently received a cheque for £3,000 from the Rural Payments Agency for not rearing pigs. I would now like to join the “not rearing pigs” business. Continue Reading →
Views: 114
Humour
Our laughter can wound or caress. It’s hard to laugh with real amusement at our enemy because it feels like embracing them. We don’t want to approve.
I invite you to do so now. Of course, this cartoon isn’t a bit funny. Is it?
Views: 153