Saturday, December 10, 2016

Global Warming Induced Climate Change Is A Matter of Law - 2

Fig. 1 Is Saturn's Hexagon defying the law?
Once upon a time scientists explored events and described "laws" (e.g. NASA Cassini).

The law of gravity, the laws of thermodynamics, and other natural laws were and still are within their province.

This concept was not altogether alien to the civil laws of cities, states, or nations.

That is known as comity.

As it turns out, one very basic reason for that comity is due to the common sense recognition that law was back then, and still is, a simple matter of sorting out who had or has "the say":
The government of the United States has been emphatically termed a government of laws, and not of men. It will certainly cease to deserve this high appellation if the laws furnish no remedy for the violation of a vested legal right ... It is emphatically the province and duty of the Judicial Department [the judicial branch] to say what the law is.
(Marbury v Madison). That province of the judicial branch of the U.S. Government includes hearing the words and reading the works of professional scientists supplied as facts in various cases:
Based on respected scientific opinion that a well-documented rise in global temperatures and attendant climatological and environmental changes
Fig. 2 Thou shalt not have sharp edges @ 300 mph
have resulted from a significant increase in the atmospheric concentration of “greenhouse gases,” a group of private organizations petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to begin regulating the emissions of four such gases, including carbon dioxide, under §202(a)(1) of the Clean Air Act, which requires that the EPA “shall by regulation prescribe . . . standards applicable to the emission of any air pollutant from any class . . . of new motor vehicles . . . which in [the EPA Administrator’s] judgment cause[s], or contribute[s] to, air pollution . . . reasonably . . . anticipated to endanger public health or welfare,” 42 U. S. C. §7521(a)(1). The Act defines “air pollutant” to include “any air pollution agent . . . , including any physical, chemical . . . substance . . . emitted into . . . the ambient air.” §7602(g). EPA ultimately denied the petition, reasoning that (1) the Act does not authorize it to issue mandatory regulations to address global climate change, and (2) even if it had the authority to set greenhouse gas emission standards, it would have been unwise to do so at that time because a causal link between greenhouse gases and the increase in global surface air temperatures was not unequivocally established.
...
Massachusetts and other state and local governments, sought review in the D. C. Circuit [... which held...] that the EPA Administrator properly exercised his discretion in denying the rulemaking petition.
...
[Supreme Court Conclusion:] The judgment of the Court of Appeals is reversed, and the case is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
(Global Warming Induced Climate Change Is A Matter of Law, quoting Massachusetts v. EPA, 549 U.S. 497, 127 S. Ct. 1438 (2007), emphasis added).  That case was decided by seven Republican-appointed justices, and two Democrat-appointed justices.

As with cases involving speeding laws, when we are stopped for exceeding the speed limit, it is of no moment to tell the police officer that we do not believe in speeding laws.

Fig. 3 Downtown Deniersville
Nevertheless, there are various underpinnings of just that within the ongoing political discourse coming out of the new York White House (Fig. 3) following the coup parade (A Tale of Coup Cities, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13).

The Administrative Department has lost its way (You Are Here, "mad bull lost your way" - Rolling Stones @ Gimme Shelter), and in the tradition of the W Direction (The W Direction = The Perilous Path), now thinks it is the one with the say to make the laws rather than administer the laws.

They don't believe in any of that stinkin' clean air or stinkin' water jargon ("so what if I was exceeding the speed limit, I don't believe in speeding laws officer").

Not only that, they have even sent invaders into the realm of those who are required to enforce the law of the land.

Yes, and they are doing that nonsense even though the supreme law of the land (ruled as such by the Supreme Court) is contrary to their beliefs.

But, ignoring the legislative law of the congress, and the case law of the judicial branch of U.S. Government, they hazard this:
President-elect Donald Trump's Energy Department transition team sent the agency a memo this week asking for the names of people who have worked on climate change and the professional society memberships of lab workers, alarming employees and advisors.

The memo sent to the Energy Department on Tuesday and seen by Reuters on Friday, contains 74 questions including a request for a list of all department employees and contractors who attended the annual global climate talks hosted by the United Nations within the last five years.
(Trump Team Alarms Energy Department, emphasis added). They are alarmists of the authoritarian sort (The Authoritarianism of Climate Change). 

UPDATE: The McCarthyite request was rescinded after the DOI refused the request and congress members wrote them to say it was an abuse of authority (NewsMax).


To the contrary, I am an alarmist of the Paul Revere sort, holding two lanterns aloft while exclaiming "one if by land, two if by sea".

Anyway, it boils down to them wanting a list of the names of government employees who obey the law in "a government of laws, and not of men" so that those obedient government employees can be punished (The Queens of Stalingrad - 2).

Trust trumps paranoia.

The previous post in this series is here.

The Pillars of Knowledge: Faith and Trust?



6 comments:

  1. Tom, a.k.a. Anonymous, seems to be having a difficult time logging on.

    Perhaps this blog should go to the "prove you are not a robot" type of comment sign in.

    You could show Tom the NASA photo at the top of this post and say "click on all pictures that are boobs" ... Tom would be able to sign in much easier then.

    ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Good one, Randy!

    Tom

    ReplyDelete
  3. Seafloor Methane
    http://arctic-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/seafloor-methane.html

    Methane levels over the Arctic Ocean are higher than elsewhere on Earth. As the animation below shows, methane levels were as high as 2436 parts per billion (ppb) on the afternoon of December 5, 2016, with most methane rising up from the water, in particular over the Arctic Ocean.

    Methane levels over the Arctic Ocean have been high for more than a month. [more]

    Tom

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Methane quantity readings are likely to follow a non-linear path as the ice cover melts and the meltwater is relocated toward the equator.

      The open water will then warm more rapidly than before, first near the shallower clathrate deposits, then it will go deeper with time.

      Delete
  4. Melting glaciers prove global climate changes as a matter of fact too: link

    ReplyDelete