I just picked up a book from Amazon called “How Everyday Products Make People Sick” by Dr. Paul D. Blanc and he made a comment about environmental polluter denialists that seems to fit so well to the stubborn people who continue to deny that global warming is occurring. He says that it “…follows a pattern of responses analogous to the Kubler-Ross four-stage “death and dying process”: denial, anger, bargining, and acceptance.”  He further elucidates “…the strategies used to block any effective action are:”

1. “characterizing scientific information as limited, overblown, conflicting or simply “junk”.” I have seen this time and time again where they bring up one or two “scientists” who deny global warming has anything to do with humans and they use it as a defense shield.
2. “blaming the victim and simultaneously charging that regulation is overly costly and ineffectual to boot.” The denialists say that we can’t afford to change our habits as it is economically infeasible. I say that if we want to do it and give incentives to be greener, it will make more money than if we stand idly by. Case in point is how much money we can save if we switch all of our incandescent blubs to the newer fluorescents. You can be green and economic at the same time.
3. “labeling opponents as unrealistic visionaries or, worse yet, seditioninist Luddites standing in the way of inevitable progress.” I can’t tell you how often I get “yelled at” in online forums by conservatives who follow the FOX News line who feel it is their goal in life to stop anything that might be called environmentally positive. Tree-hugger, animal fascists, and other unprintable labels have been thrown at me for daring to say that we need to change our habits or else.
4. “reaching out to the invisible hand of the marketplace as the best partner for corrective action, if such action is really needed.” Basically, we won’t do squat unless the market forces us to. Without consumers demanding it, we won’t do it. Where is America’s leadership on this?  We used to lead the world on innovation but now we sit idly by while the rest of the world takes control.

To all of the denialists of global warming out there, please don’t waste your time emailing me with “proof” that it isn’t happening. At this point in the debate I will be using the delete key not because of arrogance but out of frustration at those out there who somehow believe that it is their duty to fight for a cause that is somewhat indefensible. My motto on the argument is; If we are wrong and global warming isn’t happening by man’s hand and we do something to stop our polluting than what have we done that is so bad?  If we are right and we do nothing, what cost to humanity? If we are right and we do something now, we may pull or your know whats out of the fire and save our world for generations to come.

I highly recommend this book. It is compelling, powerful and chock-full of rich information on the effects of toxins on health by a Professor of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.