From our Owatonna, MN Correspondent

For years, scientists decried our use of fossil fuels over the past century as being a chief cause (sometimes the only cause) of Global Warming (GW). As the debate intensified, critics lambasted scientists for trying to scare the world into drastic measures. Carbon taxes, reducing power usage by unrealistic amounts, and fighting the effects of GW with trillions of dollars in taxes, were some of the suggestions that raised significant opposition from skeptics.

So, the scientific community (with prodding from liberal media I think), changed GW to Climate Change (CC). Still the same problems, still the same suggestions for carbon taxes and reducing fossil fuel usage, still a call for massive taxes to fight the problem. Just a new name for the issue. What’s in a name? What’s the difference? Does it matter? If so, why?

Global Warming sounds dangerous. Warming implies eventually getting too warm, maybe unbearably warm, too warm to survive. Climate Change sounds like a normal part of life. Everything changes eventually. We all know that weather changes daily in most parts of the world. Climate Change just magnifies weather. “Change” also takes away “warming” as the only path our climate can follow. It’s more variable, might or might not happen, and it implies less urgency.

But why would the media and scientists want to water down a problem that many call the most pressing problem on Earth today? My best guess is so they can sell it to the skeptical public easier. GW is a “hot button” term that incites instant emotion in most people. To reason with anyone, you need them thinking with as little emotion as possible. Hence the name change.

This planet has gone through regular cycles of warming and cooling for billions of years. Whether our planet will continue to warm as predicted by the experts, I do not know. I also don’t know with 100% certainty that fossil fuel use is responsible for GW or CC. It seems to be a moot point since we can’t instantly correct this problem. The only prudent action is to conserve resources, which is good economics along with good Christian Stewardship (not wasting anything), and deal the best we can with whatever nature throws at us with climate change or natural disasters or water and food issues.