A little tale to illustrate how alarmism works.

Story submitted by WUWT reader Andre Bijkerk

A long time ago, during the ice age, the tribe wizard called the tribe together to tell them something very important and the next discussion emerged:

Tribe wizard:
“Dear tribe, I have returned from my long and dangerous quest for the truth and on the mountain top, I have found out why the river stays frozen and the land white, although the sun is high and the moon is old. Friends, it’s a very serious matter. There are strange and powerful creatures who call themselves gods.”

Old sceptic tribe idiot:
“That’s baloney, been there long time ago. Nobody is there, just barren rock.”

Tribe wizard:
“Don’t listen to that fool, dear tribe. These creatures only show themselves to the chosen ones like me. Anybody else cannot see them. And they are in anger as our tribe has displeased them and they are punishing us with casting the cold spell.”

Old sceptic tribe idiot:
“Nonsense, we had severe winters when I was young. It’s just natural variability”

(crowd murmers)

Tribe wizard:
“Quiet, quiet, don’t listen people, he is paid by the firewood companies. Luckily I have managed to calm down those gods and they promised, if I bring them all our goodies, that they will bring the summer back and the globe will warm again”.

Old sceptic tribe idiot:
“Baloney, if you give him all your goodies, you will just die sooner and nothing will change the natural course.”

Tribe wizard:
“Thou dreadful denier, how dare you risking  future of our tribe, no, even the end of the world by calling upon us the wrath of the gods? Ban him! Ban him!

And thus the old sceptic tribe idiot was gone, the tribe wizard returned to the mountain with the goodies and sure enough it worked, the summer returned and the tribe knew for a fact that the gods of the mountains needed to be kept satisfied or the world would come to an end.

“It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.” – Mark Twain

Some interesting references to give it a scientific hue:

Mercier and Sperber 2010, Why do humans reason? BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN SCIENCES (2010) 34, 57–111 doi:10.1017 /S0140525X10000968

http://evolution.binghamton.edu/evos/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Mercier-Sperber-Why-do-humans-reason.pdf

(we argue to win and dominate others, not to find the truth).

Moral Panic: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_panic

Moral enterpreneurs: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_entrepreneur

Folk devils: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folk_devil