Pogo Science

"We have met the enemy and he is us." ~Pogo

There is a modern branch of science that worships this view. Or, rather, there are scientists who believe that man is responsible for the destruction of the environment, the wonton depletion of resources and the global warming they say is going to roast our butts if we don't immediately stop industrial society from emitting carbon dioxide. Being duly convinced of the accuracy and righteousness of their observations confirmation bias drives their political activism to the detriment of the truth. These scientists become like doctors who refuse to help despite having taken the Hippocratic Oath. Somehow these scientists know how the world works and data to the contrary must be wrong or ignored. They are blessed. They are the chosen. Cognitive dissonance has no place in Pogo science since they know who the enemy is. They are self-anointed.

"The Earth has cancer and the cancer is Man." ~Club of Rome

And yet, it is cognitive dissonance contrasted with confirmation bias presented transparently on the same table that results in the distillation of the truth. Self assurance is no guide to verity but can be an impediment to its discovery. 

Pogo science does not care about the truth. It is the end that drives policy. Pogo science begins with the premise that humans are the source of the world's problems and that they need to be controlled by the self appointed philosopher kings for the sake of the planet. Scientific observations which confirm this bias are used to 'legitimize' the view. Contrary opinion is ignored or attacked as funded by vested interests as if funding can determine truth.

"In searching for a new enemy to unite us, we came up with the idea that pollution, the threat of global warming, water shortages, famine and the like would fit the bill....All these dangers are caused by human intervention....and thus the “real enemy, then, is humanity itself....believe humanity requires a common motivation, namely a common adversary in order to realize world government. It does not matter if this common enemy is “a real one or…. one invented for the purpose." ~Club of Rome

Pogo science lives in the mind of the alarmist and politics drives Pogo science. Invention reinforced with repetition by a complicit media (we love a good scare story) accommodates the politician's need to feed his crony capitalist constituents a share of the spoils of election and his need to be regaled with accolades as he defends the environment against the rapacious and uncaring nature of unbridled consumption. The need for research funding fuels the search for crises that will attract that funding from politicians who apportion the research grants. Scares attract funding. Exaggeration of the scares will raise the profile of the problem and attract additional funding. Media hype. Political cronyism. 'Scientific' amplification. They feed each other in a mutually satisfying circle of certainty. 

The casualty often excluded from the circle is the truth. 

But veracity is not important, only the goal. And the goal is control.


They want to control how you transport your groceries.
They want to control the light bulbs you use.
They want to control how your dispose of your garbage.
They want to control what you eat.
They want to control how you get from place to place.
They want to control the origin of your electricity.
They want to control your thermostat - 68 everyone, no higher in winter.
They want to control your procreation.
They want to control your access to health care.
They want to control how many people get to exist on the planet. 
They want to control your access to data.
They want to control your access to communication.
They want to control your freedom.

Give them your freedom and you give them your life.

Sensitize the populous to environmental control with recycling, plastic bags, light bulbs and then move to the big stuff. 

Pogo science leads to tyranny by the keepers of the data, the philosopher kings and their media lapdogs.

“Today’s debate about global warming is essentially a debate about freedom. The environmentalists would like to mastermind each and every possible (and impossible) aspect of our lives.”
Vaclav Klaus
Blue Planet in Green Shackles

Not everyone buys into the misanthropic nature of human action. Some of us have not lost sight of the good that humans do. As Christina Aguilera sings: Things Keep Getting Better. Below are some antidotes to the acrid message of the Club of Rome.









 






We have also met the solution and he is us. Until someone can show me that there is a limit to the ingenuity of the human brain my faith in net human goodness will remain unshaken.