Letters to the editor October 6
Perry right on climate
While I agree with Oren M. Spiegler that some of Gov. Perry’s opinions make one pause (“Perry’s problems,” Sept. 22), Mr. Spiegler can strike the fact that Perry “questions whether global warming is largely man-made” off his list of concerns.
Perry is being realistic about the highly immature science of climate change and simply voicing what has been known to be true in the climate science community for years. And that is that, while today’s science is not sufficiently advanced to reliably predict future climate, there is strong evidence that our greenhouse gas emissions have only a small impact on climate. Solar and other natural forces appear to dominate.
This is not a stance taken only by a small number of outliers. The Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change, the latest report of which was released Aug. 29, includes thousands of references to peer-reviewed scientific papers that completely contradict the politically correct view that a climate crisis is coming and human emissions are the cause.
Of course, natural climate change will continue and so we need to help vulnerable people adapt. But the idea that we can stop climate change is simply science fiction.
Tom Harris
Ottawa, Canada
(The author is executive director of the International Climate Science Coalition.)
Cutting P.A. aid the wrong move
Obscured in the fight over which party loves Israel more (“Perry slams Obama for endangering Israel,” Sept. 21) is a much more serious issue now before Congress: U.S. aid to the Palestinian Authority.
As someone who cares deeply about the long-term security of Israel, I have been appalled at calls for cutting off funding to the Palestinian Authority, the United Nations and any nation that supports Palestinian aspirations in reaction to the recent Palestinian bid for statehood at the U.N.
Don’t these members of Congress know that the security of Israel depends on having a pragmatic Palestinian government and that such a cutoff would only undermine Abbas’ moderate regime and strengthen more radical elements like Hamas? Don’t they know that many high-level Israeli defense leaders have gone on record stating that the U.S.-trained Palestinian Authority security forces have contributed significantly to making last year the most terror free year in Israel’s history?
Stopping funding to the Palestinian Authority would be extremely dangerous for Israel. After years of calling on the Palestinians to turn away from violence, shouldn’t we applaud the Palestinian Authority for pursuing nonviolent means in its legitimate quest for a state living in peace beside Israel? Let’s work with the Palestinians, not punish them.
Eileen Kraus-Dobratz
Friendship
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