Climate denials politically motivated

To the editor:Environmental protection was once nonpartisan. Republicans and Democrats cooperated. The result was cleaner air, cleaner water and endangered-species protection. Regrettably, times have changed. Last week's trio of politically motivated Southeast Missourian climate-change denials appeared.

David Limbaugh's extensive nonsensical diatribe castigated as godless Luddites all scientists studying climate change who agree with the consensus, claiming such scientists have joined a left-wing conspiracy to undermine the U.S. economy.

The James and Mary Nall conspiracy illusion is liberal governments concocting climate change to undermine their personal freedoms. Mary's effort at convincing readers included a Web site they claim provides peer-reviewed scientific evidence denying the consensus. The intended Web location merely dredges unsubstantiated and ancient opinion from politicians, journalists and a few eccentric scientists published on Web sites of fringe institutes and news outlets. The links from this page do not lead to peer-reviewed journal articles. Meanwhile, the research papers from which Nall quoted inaccurately are used out of context (the Crichton technique). Contrary to the Nall interpretation, the authors agree with the consensus regarding climate change.

These deniers clearly have a political ax to grind and are willing to sacrifice future generations to grind it.

If specialists diagnosed you with a life-threatening disease, would you adopt the Limbaugh approach (it's a pagan conspiracy), the Nall approach (ancient legend claims the disease a myth) or would you seek treatment? What would be prudent? The Climate Change Initiative attempts to restore nonpartisanship.

JEROME HULEHAN, Jackson