Scientific claims must be proven

Now that we've observed another Earth Day and the media has held their microphones to the marchers in the street to get succinct comments on the horrors of man-made climate change, let's take a breath. I've been labeled a "climate change denier" by some readers of this newspaper. I'm not. The climate is always changing. Hard to argue against that. I just believe that carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels have little to do with climate change, and I can prove it.

I can prove that carbon dioxide is not a pollutant. I can prove that when the sun gets warmer, the earth gets warmer. And I can prove that when the earth gets warmer, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increases due to the release of many gases from the oceans, including carbon dioxide, methane and even water vapor. I can prove that water vapor is the primary "greenhouse gas."

I can prove that the lag in time from an increase in sun activity to the additional release of carbon dioxide from the oceans is about 800 years. I can prove that Greenland was green in the 10th century, then got very cold. I can prove that the earth wobbles and changes local climates. I can prove the Bering Sea froze early during the late 1970s. I can prove that surface temperature readings at airports are affected by area development. I can prove that atmospheric temperature readings from satellites launched in the '70s are not as accurate as that from new satellites and weather balloons.

But I don't have to prove any of that. I'm just an engineer like Bill Nye, the Science guy. I can say anything without proving any of it. It's a free country, for now at least.