Climate Change: Fact or Fiction?

Climate Change: Fact or Fiction?

When we look around, it is easy to find messages on climate change. However, we do not always find that these messages stand for the same position, as some will support the idea of climate change, while others protest it. Specifically, in this post I would like to compare the ideas presented by Bill McKibben and John Coleman from our class readings. McKibben is a strong supporter of global warming, while Coleman explains in his interview with Megyn Kelly from Fox News, that it is a hoax. I will also take some time to examine my show and tell example of the Toyota 'Prius Family' commercial from 2014.

After watching the conversation between David Letterman and Bill McKibben, it is clear that McKibben has a strong stance on stopping the effects of global warming. McKibben alludes to the fact that he has written multiple on the issue spanning from the 1980s until now, which shows he obviously believes that global warming is a concerning matter. On the other hand, John Coleman's interview with Fox News' Megyn Kelly completely slams the concept of global warming. Coleman believes that global warming is a complete hoax created by politicians to be utilized as another revenue stream. He backs his argument with research that he and others in the scientific community support because they feel that carbon is not a harmful enough greenhouse gas to create a concerning issue.

The last piece of environmental communication that I will examine is my show and tell example, which is the Toyota 'Prius Family' commercial. In the video, the original Toyota Prius model is driving through a beautifully animated green, hilly landscape with a upbeat jingle in the background. Towards the end of the commercial, three new Prius models are introduced into the 'Prius Family' — a larger Prius as family vehicle (Prius V), a smaller Prius as a city car (Prius C), and an electrically rechargeable version (Prius Plug-in Hybrid). The whole concept is that these new versions of the Prius provide "a Prius for everyone," as the slogan goes. It is clear that this example is also in favour of global warming as a real threat to the Earth and human life because Toyota is producing vehicles that reduce carbon emissions. 

To put a cap on this post, I would like to say that I am not a scientist so I do not have a valid voice in the argument of global warming as fact or fiction from a scientific standpoint. However, from the standpoint of logic and common sense, I do hold a valid opinion. The facts of our recent global temperatures show that they are consistently increasing. Year after year we continue to break records of the hottest calendar year on record http://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/articles/2015-unambiguously-the-hottest-year-on-record-says-report/62357/. From looking at the information, which shows that temperatures have consistently increased since the start of the industrial revolution, it is hard to believe that global warming and climate change is a hoax. My perspective is that global warming is real and we must slow down the rate in which we contribute to the issue. Before humans began burning fossil fuels at extremely high rates, climate change did not seem to be an issue. It is our responsibility as the most prominent contributors to global warming to stop the changing climate.        

Bibliography

McKibben, B. (2012). Global Warming's Terrifying New Math: Three simple numbers that add up to global catastrophe — and that make clear who the real enemy is. Rolling Stone, July 19.