They say when you’re in a hole, stop digging. Too bad that astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson didn’t remember that old adage when he went on a Twitter rant going after his favorite target: warming skeptics (people who don’t think that mankind is 100 percent responsible for the warming since we left the Little Ice Age in 1850).
After tweeting comments that infuriated people on both sides of the climate aisle (plus anyone with a passing knowledge of what a climate scientist actually does), TMZ caught up with Tyson last night in NYC to explain last week’s blunder.
Here’s Tyson mixing up the job of a climate scientist and a meteorologist.
Hmm. Don’t see much denial of @NOAA climate scientists who have predicted Hurricane Harvey’s devastating path into Texas.
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) August 25, 2017
And here’s Tyson explaining his tweet while taking potshots at anyone who disagrees with him. And this guy narrates the recent reincarnation of Cosmos, a show about science?
He says, “We have people in denial of the emergent scientific consensus.” There’s that word again: consensus. Remember: consensus is a word that politicians use, not scientists. Maybe Tyson shouldn’t list “science communicator” as a skill set.
He says the “emergent scientific consensus” is why he sent out the tweet that garnered so much criticism from a large swathe of the population. The tweet got 2.3K replies and 21K retweets.
One reply came from climate scientist Tamsin Edwards:
Hi Neil, from a climate scientist – your tweet isn’t helping the widespread confusion of weather & climate….we only do the long-term stats
— Tamsin Edwards (@flimsin) August 25, 2017
Tyson goes on to say, “If you’re in denial of global warming, you’re in denial of objective scientific truths! That’s an ignorant stance!” That’s not how you win over and influence people. Ignorance is being unaware of the difference between a climatologist and a meteorologist.
Once you’ve converted people over to your position, Tyson says, you can then discuss solutions like carbon credits, solar panels, and so on. Those discussions are political. But if you debate what is or is not science, well, he doesn’t know what country that is. “It’s not the country I grew up in,” he huffs.
Tyson is the same person who posited that Earth could become like Venus if runaway global warming occurred, admitting it was unlikely because we have oceans, a much faster rotation (compared to Venus, where one day is equal to 180 Earth days), low atmospheric pressure, and other factors that would make it impossible (which begs the question, why even bring it up?).
Sorry to break the news, Tyson, but Obama’s reign is over and Hillary didn’t win. Science is slowly returning to government agencies that have been politicized for nearly eight years. When a ‘scientist’ starts calling people ignorant or holding ignorant stances, it’s time for him to hang up his lab coat.
Thinking that an essential trace gas can control the earth’s climate while ignoring other factors because they cant contribute to destroying the economy is a telltale sign that he has mental issues. I just finished reading his newest book and I really enjoyed it despite one problem I have with it. He thinks dark matter and dark energy will be proven in time and disagreeing that it might not exist at all is wrong. I felt his dislike for that line of thought so naturally I assume he was climate alarmist and of course at the end of his book he hinted at it in his last chapter. Very sad.
Surprised he feels comfortable branding people . Here’s what we deny .
Humans are no substitute for the overwhelming influence of natural climate variables . Humans don’t even understand them or their inter relationship .
Adjusting a trace gas favorable to life on earth is not going to set the earth ‘s temperature . If he thinks otherwise let’s see how the portion of CO2 from humans is going to cause the earth to have the claimed fever .
Just another liberal intellectual egghead whom their liberals turn to the same liberals who read their zodiac each day
Tyson goes on to say, “If you’re in denial of global warming, you’re in denial of objective scientific truths! That’s an ignorant stance!”
Pure projection! He is claiming a 100% scientific consensus? Based upon alarmist model based “science” which has never been validated or quantified? That has never made any skillful predictions? LOL… What a Maroon!
The problem is that he believes in objective truth, not that he follows the consensus. Objective truth is simply a boondoggle for the philosophically naive. He probably believes that every consensus he has been briefed on is objective truth.
Well put! It seems that every celebrity with some kind of a PhD after their name is now an “expert” on climate science too… Scientists worth their salt should FIRST look to sound methodology and principles before they play to popular conclusions and notoriety.
Tyson is a total idiot and nit-wit if he wants to see Ignorance then he needs to look into a mirror
Perhaps Mr. Tyson would like to digress on how his notion of “consensus” conjure is congruent and one and the same as the scientific method