Medieval global warming, threats to Internet freedom, and the Cybersecurity Act
Today in the News
GLOBAL WARMING – MARLO LEWIS
Globalwarming.org: Was the Medieval Warm Period Confined to Europe?
That’s what the self-anointed ‘consensus of scientists’ claims. As noted in a previous post this week, right after the IPCC famously declared that the 1990s were likely the warmest decade of the past millennium, they stated: “Evidence does not support the existence of globally synchronous periods of cooling or warming associated with the ‘Little Ice Age’ and ‘Medieval Warm Period’” (Third Assessment Report, Chap. 2, p. 102).
But those remarkable Idsos, Shirwood, Craig, and Keith, keep reviewing studies that find evidence of the Medieval Warm Period (MWP) and Little Ice Age (LIA) not only in Europe but also in Asia, Africa, Australia/New Zealand, North America, South America, the Oceans, and even Antarctica. What’s more, the preponderance of these studies indicate that the MWP was warmer than the current warm period (CWP).
THREATS TO INTERNET FREEDOM – FRED CAMPBELL
The Atlantic: Why Conservatives Must Heed Congressman Issa’s Call
In yesterday’s Atlantic interview, Republican Congressman Darrell Issa issued a conservative call to action on Internet policy: “The tech world needs us.” He’s right. Companies seeking government benefits and progressive advocates seeking increased government control are driving the Internet policy agenda – and they are winning. Government control of communications is Dictatorship 101, yet conservatives have been largely absent from the key technology policy debates that are shaping our communications future. To preserve the ability to innovate without the permission of “kings, presidents, and voting,” conservatives must heed Issa’s call to defend the Internet from government control.
CYBERSECURITY ACT – BEN SPERRY
Openmarket.org: Amendment to Cybersecurity Act Would Deter Federal Government Privacy Abuses
In the ongoing debate over the Senate’s Cybersecurity Act of 2012 (S. 3414), one major point of contention is whether the bill adequately safeguards individuals’ private data from governmental abuses. While CEI praised recent changes to the bill’s information sharing provisions, we remain seriously concerned about the bill’s implications for privacy competition and trust in cloud computing.
[This]week, the Senate is expected to vote on a flurry of amendments to S. 3414, some of which are available here. One smart proposal, spearheaded by Sen. Daniel Akaka, would amend the Cybersecurity Act and several existing laws to better ensure the federal government doesn’t abuse the information it acquires and maintains about private individuals.
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The Greenland Ice Melt: Should We Be Alarmed?
Maryland’s Unconstitutional School Discipline Quotas
Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick One Signature Away From Health Care Mistake
CEI’s Battered Business Bureau: The Week In Regulation
The federal government has a Florida Tomato Committee. It is increasing its assessment rates for tomato growers.