It’s not true that global warming has been mostly ignored until the past year. The New York Times (you can’t get much more mainstream than that) has been covering it prominently for many years.

And it’s less true that the coverage has focused on denial of the problem. I was, in fact, surprised to learn that there are prominent scientists who have serious doubts about whether greenhouse gasses are a significant factor in the warming that has occured. The recent IPCC report assigns a probability of 90% to the hypothesis that greenhouse gasses have caused the bulk of the warming. 90% may be good odds, but it’s certainly not the settled science being portrayed in the media.

What’s lacking is a deep public debate by scientists on both sides of the issue. There’s too much one-sided coverage by politicians and journalists who approach the issue from a political point of view first and the science comes second. People have to learn to live with doubt and uncertainties rather than looking for sure answers when the science itself is still in flux.

Increasing communication and connections with our global friends will show how there’s a lot about this nation that is being tucked under the rug with proactive words being used for actions and requirements that actually undermine progress.