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It’s not just the ID guys – get this one re a fellow who questioned some climate change panel

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From City Journal:

Another dissenter, the American atmospheric physicist Murry Salby, has produced a serious analysis that undermines key assumptions underpinning the AGW worldview. His work and its reception illustrate just how unsettled climate science remains—and how determined AGW proponents are to enforce consensus on one of the great questions of our age.

In April 2013, concluding a European tour to present his research, Salby arrived at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris for a flight back to Australia, where he was a professor of climate science at Macquarie University. He discovered, to his dismay, that the university had canceled the return leg of his nonrefundable ticket. With Salby stranded, Macquarie then undertook misconduct proceedings against him that swiftly culminated in his dismissal. The university claimed that it did not sack Salby for his climate views but rather because he failed to “fulfill his academic obligations, including the obligation to teach” and because he violated “University policies in relation to travel and use of University resources.”

Salby and his supporters find it hard to believe the school’s claims. Salby’s detractors point to reports of his investigation by the National Science Foundation (NSF) for alleged ethical improprieties, claims surrounding which surfaced on an anti-climate-skeptic blog, along with court papers relating to his divorce. Salby has indeed been embroiled in conflicts with the NSF—the organization debarred him from receiving research grants for three years, even though, teaching in Australia, he wasn’t eligible, anyway—and with the University of Colorado, where he taught previously and was involved in a decade-long dispute with another academic. At one point, the NSF investigated the disappearance of $100,000 in Salby’s research funds, which, in the wake of the investigation, was returned to Salby’s group. However, all these matters have involved bureaucratic rights and wrongs. They have no bearing on his science, just as Antoine Lavoisier’s being a tax farmer had no bearing on his demolition of the phlogiston theory of combustion. And Salby had earned high marks as a scientist. …

Actually it is questionable that being a good scientist is any kind of a defense any more if one is undermining fashionable and bureaucratically profitable nonsense.

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Comments
The real issue us saving the planet from the people who want to save the planet. ;-) -QQuerius
August 31, 2014
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FYI: just saw this, but don't understand much on the subject. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2738653/Stunning-satellite-images-summer-ice-cap-thicker-covers-1-7million-square-kilometres-MORE-2-years-ago-despite-Al-Gore-s-prediction-ICE-FREE-now.htmlDionisio
August 31, 2014
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Joe: "Parts per million- there still isn’t any evidence that supports that our atmosphere is so sensitive to CO2 that parts per million can cause dramatic changes. Talk about a bad design to be so sensitive- sure some things require sensitivity at some minute level-> nerves for example, but not our planet." So, you think that parts per million is a very small amount? Be my guest to drink water with parts per million of cyanide, arsenic, lead, cadmium, or any number of other chemicals. From an environmental impact perspective, parts per million is the equivalent of raw sewage.Acartia_bogart
August 21, 2014
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Mark Frank,
City Journal seems to be right when it says However, all these matters have involved bureaucratic rights and wrongs. They have no bearing on his science,
Whew! And I was beginning to worry that the slaughter of dissenting academics was looking like the treatment of young African American males in the U.S. I'm so glad to hear that it was completely justified without any harassment at all, and the tiny missteps are being looked into for possible policy adjustments. Besides, it been quite a few days and all this is old news. And rumors that Professor Salby was stabbed in the back six times have proved to be untrue. -QQuerius
August 19, 2014
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Strange that “news” should choose to write about something over a year old! Perhaps you should have another poster called “current news”?   Anyhow I did a little poking around. I strongly recommend reading Macquarie’s statement on the matter.
The University provided the resources needed to allow Professor Salby to conduct his research including start-up funding of several hundred thousand dollars, and supported his applications for 2 prestigious fellowships which included commitments of over $1 million dollars in support, contingent on the success of his application. Professor Salby's employment was not terminated in any way related to his views on climate science, but rather due to misconduct in two areas. The first was his repeated refusal to teach, over a sustained period of time, in contravention of his contract of employment.   The second reason was inappropriate use of University resources. Professor Salby travelled to Europe during a time when he was obliged to be at the University against direct, written instruction. Furthermore he used a University credit card to pay for the flights through an unapproved agency. This is against University policy. It is true that his return flight was cancelled in an attempt to prevent the unauthorised travel and limit the unauthorised expenditure.  This was done in error and the University is reviewing relevant processes.
City Journal seems to be right when it says However, all these matters have involved bureaucratic rights and wrongs. They have no bearing on his science,Mark Frank
August 19, 2014
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Sad, and indefensible. The Uni in Oz is seriously liable if half what is said is true regarding the ticket incident and how its cancellation laid a base for a trumped up disissal. KF.kairosfocus
August 19, 2014
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Parts per million- there still isn't any evidence that supports that our atmosphere is so sensitive to CO2 that parts per million can cause dramatic changes. Talk about a bad design to be so sensitive- sure some things require sensitivity at some minute level-> nerves for example, but not our planet.Joe
August 19, 2014
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