Review of The Great Global Warming Swindle

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The Great Global Warming Swindle has been the most widely watched documentary critical of the scientific consensus that climate change is due to anthropogenic activities. Aired in 2007 in the United Kingdom, the documentary claimed to debunk the “myth” of manmade global climate change, exposing it as a vast conspiracy designed to gain funding for research and push an environmental agenda that is especially harmful to the developing world. Directed by British producer Martin Durkin, the documentary includes discussion with a number of scientists who are skeptical of anthropogenic global warming and claim that there viewpoints are being deliberately censored in favor of the politically correct consensus. While critical of global…show more content…
Otherwise, planet earth would be much colder than at present. While the amount of carbon dioxide, the most significant greenhouse gas, has varied between 180 and 280 parts per million (ppm) in historical time, the current increases in this gas are unprecedented for at least the past several million years (Tripati). Since these gases are responsible for keeping the earth’s climate much warmer than it would otherwise be, it is understandable that the current level of 400 ppm (ESRL) would be accompanied by much warmer temperatures. The fact that industrialization has never occurred before and is responsible for at least a modest increase in carbon dioxide emissions would lead a reasonable person to deduce some connection.
• The moviemakers make the claim that solar activity could be responsible for earth’s recent climate changes. While it is true that the sun has been the driver for many climate changes in the past, this does not appear to be the primary driver at present, since most scientific surveys have determined that solar activity has been relatively stable over the past half century, which has seen the greatest warming (EPA). While it is true that our understanding of the sun is limited and there could be some processes that are contributing to global climate change that we do not understand, it is difficult to believe that the current climate changes can be due solely to solar activity.
• While casting doubt on anthropogenic climate
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