AND THE WEATHER 50 YEARS FROM NOW WILL BE... – AT 9:01 A.M. ET:   Our intellectually astute secretary of state says that anyone who has doubts about global warming predictions is a flat Earther.  Maybe we need more flat Earthers.  From Bloomberg: 

Surprised by how tough this winter has been? You’re in good company: Last fall the Climate Prediction Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted that temperatures would be above normal from November through January across much of the Lower 48 states.

And...

“Not one of our better forecasts,” admits Mike Halpert, the Climate Prediction Center’s acting director. The center grades itself on what it calls the Heidke skill score, which ranges from 100 (perfection) to -50 (monkeys throwing darts would have done better). October’s forecast for the three-month period of November through January came in at -22. Truth be told, the September prediction for October-December was slightly worse, at -23. The main cause in both cases was the same: Underestimating the mammoth December cold wave, which brought snow to Dallas and chilled partiers in Times Square on New Year’s Eve.

The winter has stayed cold in 2014, and snowfall and snow cover are way above average. USA Today reported on Feb. 14 that there was snow on the ground in part of every state except Florida. That includes the peaks of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea in otherwise balmy Hawaii.

COMMENT:  These are the people who assure us that they can predict temperatures for the next 50 years.  And they are (violin music please) "scientists."  Yes, they are.  But scientists are often wrong, as the history of science shows.  And real scientists are constantly probing and questioning, not using terms like "the scientific consensus" or "settled science."  Science, like the weather, is never settled.

February 20, 2014