Grice On Global Warming

From:

http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2010/02/10/adrian-macnair-global-warming-cancelled-on-account-of-snow.aspx

Grice writes: "Snow in Washington does not disprove anything. Australia is getting record draughts at the same time. If the winds push hard over the arctic and down the Atlantic, you will get winter snow on the east coast and warm weather in BC.
If the winds blow the opposite direction, you will get colder weather on the west coast."

(That is Dan Grice, incidentally).

Comment: "... Grice: Problem with your analysis is that it means that 'global warming' is perfectly consistent with a major continental glacier sitting in the middle of the Canadian shield."

Another comment:
"... Grice, I apologize in advance if English is your second language. You should, however, make sure you understand grammar and word usage before you call people "retards." "Draughts" is another word for checkers. I believe the word you're looking for is "droughts." You use the plural "temperatures" when the singular "temperature" is called for. "Worst" is the superlative form when your sentence requires the comparative form "worse." "Affects" is a verb meaning to influence. I believe you were looking for the noun "effects" which means "the results." I'm not really sure what "CO2 based heat inclusion" is supposed to mean. It appears to gobbledygook. The "a" in "arctic" (sic) is generally capitalized and should read "Arctic." I'd like to give you an out and say these are typos, but clearly they are mistakes made from ignorance. If you're a troll, then you got me, but if you're going to use an ad hominem like "retard" then you'd better set a higher standard. Still, if I had to choose between you're knowledge of the language and the understanding of the science, I believe I'd have to say your language skills are your strong suit. Weather isn't climate, but one can't help but laugh at the irony in this post regardless of whether you are a climate skeptic or a warmist."

A defence of Grice:

Commenter wrote:

"You should make sure you understand grammar and
word usage before you call people "retards.""

This seems to involve a regressus ad infinitum. For then one would need to check with checks of word usage, and then nobody could be starting to use language, at all!

""Draughts" is another word for checkers. I believe the word you're looking for is "droughts.""

A word is what you find. If he found "draught", it IS draught. Authorial intention.

"You use the plural "temperatures" when the singular "temperature" is called for."

This may have relevance with count nouns ("pig"), with mass nouns ("temperatures") who cares? I wouldn´t say Jack and Jill have two fevers. They have a fever. But strictly, they have TWO fevers (or temperatures).

""Worst" is the superlative form when your sentence requires the comparative form "worse.""

This is a figure of speech called hyperbole. E.g. "That´s GREAT". Great is like biggest but we don´t need to specify in each case the term of comparison. It is understood by context.

""Affects" is a verb meaning to influence. I believe you were looking for the noun "effects" which means "the results.""

When it comes to global warming, affect is what affect us. The effects are mechanical, and we have no control upon them. It´s only through affects that we may effect a change when it comes to global warming.

"I'm not really sure what "CO2 based heat inclusion" is supposed to mean. It appears to gobbledygook."

"Co2" is a well-known chemical symbolism. And it includes heat. Try to get combustion without heat.

"The "a" in "arctic" (sic) is generally capitalized and should read "Arctic.""

But the a in ass is never capitalised.

"I'd like to give you an out and say these are typos, but clearly they are mistakes made from ignorance."

That´s a plenoasm, if you are Socratic. How can you make a mistake which is NOT made from ignorance? Silly.

"If you're a troll, then you got me, but if you're going to use an ad hominem like "retard" then you'd better set a higher standard."

"retard" is political. It means rearguard, literally.

"Still, if I had to choose between you're knowledge of the language and the understanding of the science, I believe I'd have to say your language skills are your strong suit."

Neither are yours, as you write "you´re" when you mean "your".

"Weather isn't climate, but one can't help but laugh at the irony in this post regardless of whether you are a climate skeptic or a warmist.""

He is a Griceian alright and you should better leave him alone. Of course, weather IS climate. I suppose you are not familiar with that gem of the novel -- now filmed with Joanna Lumley and Michael York, "The weather in the streets", based on R. Lehmann´s period novel. A must for any warmist.