The hits keep on being lame

The Oklahoman has kept up its end of the bargin in going after climate change science, doing everything it can to discredit research all in the name of making sure the plutocrats keep their pockets lined with lazily-earned money from oil and coal. Their letters section was true to form in having a recent point/counter-point involving the topic, but it looks like they wanted to add a few more counter-points to the discussion.

Sadly, Larry Bartels of Norman wrote exactly the sort of lazy letter that the Oklahoman loves to run when it comes to pushing its own agenda. In discussing a previous letter, Bartels writes:

Just because the temperature has increased in the United States for a year doesn't mean that the same is happening on a global scale. Temperatures below freezing in late April and early May could reverse last year's trend. Picking one country out of an entire planet, or picking one year out of the last 10, is ridiculous.

The only positive one can say about this letter is that at least it's short and to the point. Other than that...

First off, re the "global scale" argument-- he has a point. Unfortunately:

Oh. So... basically, Mr. Bartels is a willfully uninformed fool. Because, actually, temperatures have been rising on a global scale for a few decades now. Oh well-- at least carbondioxide levels haven't reached all-time highs. Oh, wait.

In any event, what's particularly amusing in all of this is that Mr. Bartels parrots the exact same point the Oklahoman makes in a recent editorial:

This is news that a climate change zealot won't want to hear, but it comes from a climatologist, not a global warming denier: Statewide average temperatures in Oklahoma rank the month as the seventh coolest April since record keeping began in 1895. Temperatures were 4.1 degrees below normal.

April was cooler than average, so there can't be global warming, right?!? Fortunately, this tactic has been addressed already:

Climate change denial is a major industry, lavishly financed by Exxon, the Koch brothers and others with a financial stake in the continued burning of fossil fuels. And exploiting variability is one of the key tricks of that industry’s trade. Applications range from the Fox News perennial — “It’s cold outside! Al Gore was wrong!” — to the constant claims that we’re experiencing global cooling, not warming, because it’s not as hot right now as it was a few years back.

And there it is. The more the Oklahoman spouts off such ignorance, the more likely it is that its plutocratic agenda will succeed-- sadly, at the expense of places like Oklahoma. As Krugman notes, places like Oklahoma are in dire need of water and they haven't had enough in awhile. He goes on, saying,

Now, maybe this drought will break in time to avoid the worst. But there will be more events like this. Joseph Romm, the influential climate blogger, has coined the term “Dust-Bowlification” for the prospect of extended periods of extreme drought in formerly productive agricultural areas. He has been arguing for some time that this phenomenon, with its disastrous effects on food security, is likely to be the leading edge of damage from climate change, taking place over the next few decades

Unfortunately, the Oklahoman doesn't actually care about the farmers and ranchers who read their paper. They just want their votes, and they are willing to lie to such people time and again to get those votes. Worse, they use the letters of uninformed patsies to help further their propaganda machine.