http://tinyurl.com/q2fzrsm

“It is difficult to get a Congressman to understand something, when his campaign contributions depend upon his not understanding it.”

Thanks for your “You can lead a man etc.” It’s worth remembering.

Re. the Upton Sinclair quote:
http://grist.org/list/sen-sheldon-whitehouse-schools-climate-deniers-in-senate-drops-mic/#comment-1522779282

Upton Sinclair famously observed, “It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.”

I’ve always said, “Sure you can make him drink….put salt in his feedbag”.

I suspect that analogy carries over to making a person think. We just have to find a way to make him/her thirsty (i.e. reframe the questions/data so they’re more open to it).

Regarding “How to talk to your uncle who thinks global warming is a hoax?

There’s a considerable difference between those who are in doubt and those who think global warming is a hoax. The first, one can attempt to reason with. The second are often so personally invested in their ignorance that they’re impervious to evidence, logic, and reason. The second group is populated with the smart alecks whose knowledge is generally limited to parroting septic talking points and regurgitating whatever crap they find on septic blogs. They are the Dunning-Krugers of the climate “debate.” The first group deserves to be treated with civility, not the second. The valid objective here, as Greg implied, is to to shut them up. How one accomplishes this depends on the relationship and the circumstances. They can’t be convinced, but they can be ridiculed.