Slowly, The Gloves Start Coming Off

Congresspeople wield their elected status as a birthright, and have always felt free, as part of their mission to serve the American people, to ignore history, custom, and plain facts. New efforts by scientists to rein them in in regards to climate science should prove interesting, particularly as the scientists depend on funding from the federal government. Congressional tyranny is one direction we could head; an enlightened Congress seems less likely, but you never know!:

Hundreds of US scientists are joining a mass effort to speak out on climate change, experts said Monday after skeptics gained political ground with last week's Republican gains in Congress.

The moves signals a bold approach by scientists, typically reluctant to get involved in policy debates, as US President Barack Obama's efforts to set stricter penalties for polluters face near-certain defeat in the legislature.

..."I think it is important for scientists to assure that the public and policy makers have a clear view of what scientific findings are and what the implications of those findings are," said Princeton University scientist Michael Oppenheimer.

"To the extent that some members of the new majority in the House have exhibited a contrarianism to science, I think it is a good way to have a scientific community there to help keep its facts clear."

One group of about 40 scientists has been mobilized as a "rapid response team" to dive into the often hostile media environment and try to correct misinformation about global warming, said organizer John Abraham.

"We did not form this to take a stance against climate change skeptics. However if a skeptical argument is put forward that doesn't agree with science, we will refute that," said Abraham, an associate professor at the University of Minnesota.

...Big oil and coal companies invest millions of dollars each year lobbying Washington that strict regulations on polluters would slash jobs and cause energy prices to spike, vastly outspending environmental groups.

As many as half of the 100 new Republican members of Congress "deny the existence of man-made climatechange" while 86 percent oppose any climate change legislation that would boost government revenue, according to a recent post on ThinkProgress, a blog by left-wing think-tank the Center for American Progress.