[*Or not…]

“What we are doing is economics, not science,” Lomborg told ABC Radio earlier this week, with no hint of irony.

No irony, but the “not science” part is certainly true when he is involved.

The UWA must be a little slow in updating their site. They list him as giving a talk on March 11, but he doesn’t show up (yet) in searches of people, either restricted to staff or in general. (I am assuming that they list adjuncts during their time of appointment, as least in department level rosters: that might not be the case.)

… today in 45 degree blustery “spring” weather.

It was 25 degrees in my food freezer this morning. It’s like spring never came.

“»Vi hilser det velkommen, hvis Bjørn Lomborg vender tilbage. Vi har brug for flere stemmer i klimadebatten. Den er for ensidig og lidt for elitær, og det er vigtigt, at vi bliver politisk udfordret,« siger V-ordføreren.
»Hvor meget og hvordan, vi kan støtte Lomborgs tænketank, må vi se på. I første omgang vil jeg tage initiativ til et møde med ham,« siger Lars Christian Lilleholt.
http://www.b.dk/globalt/venstre-vil-stoette-lomborgs-taenketank
(“ ‘We would welcome it if Bjørn Lomborg returned. We need more voices in the climate debate. It’s too one-sided and a little too elitist, and it’s important that we’re challenged politically,’ says the Venstre spokesman.
‘How much and how we can support Lomborg’s think tank (is something) we’ll have to look at. First I’ll take the initiative to have a meeting with him,’ says Lars Christian Lilleholt.”)

Fortunately, from the perspective of Danish self-respect, this is less probable now (though this does indicate how destructive a new right-wing government would be), but Denmark’s gain is Australia’s pain. Abbott has followed the Danish playbook by first decimating the Climate Commission and then supporting a denialist celebrity who argues against taking action to stop fossil fuel emissions. Something similar has happened in Canada under Harper, and, if the Republicans had their way, it would happen in the U.S.

http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2015/s4221859.htm

NB. It starts off with discussing recent severe flooding in New South Wales -Sydney and Newcastle area – scroll down for the section about Lomberg.

@5. Desertphile : I really hope you are right. The harm his govt is causing every day in so many areas is just horrifying.

All you need to do is just give them the message they want to hear—as I count my pennies (thanks to our anti-environmental gov’t screwing us out of science jobs) I figure I could probably make a great deal more money if I started telling select think-tanks that the warming of the far north and Arctic (where I do much of my work…when I have it) isn’t nearly that bad, and is good for the people up there.

These tanks would be delighted to have a biologist on board with their message. While I’m at it, I could say how good the tar sands will be for wildlife, and that polar bears aren’t in danger at all. Sigh. Damn conscience. Damn passion for my work.