In another sign that this year is going to be the year of global warming awareness, Al Gore and the IPCC are sharing the 1.5 million dollar Nobel Peace Prize this year. Gore said he was “deeply honored,” adding that “the climate crisis is not a political issue it is a moral and spiritual challenge to all of humanity,” according to a written statement. Gore plans on donating his half of the money to The Alliance for Climate Protection.
Gore and the IPCC have done more to raise awareness about global warming than just about anyone. The IPCC is comprised of thousands of scientists who have worked to solidify a consensus on just how serious global warming is. Gore has done more than perhaps any single person for raising the issue. Together they have somehow managed to wake up a reluctant nation into starting to realize that something is going horribly wrong, and that we are going to need to do something about it.
Gore said he was “deeply honored” to get the prize, and in my opinion he deeply deserves it. “It’s the climate stupid”, that is nothing is a bigger issue than the climate of the earth. Poverty, health care, terrorism, all of these issues become moot if the very climate of the earth shifts to one that is detrimental to survival. This is not to say that all of those issues aren’t important, in fact they are all intricately involved with climate change.
We need a political leader who will realize this and treat them all with the seriousness they warrant. Unfortunately Gore says he will not run for the presidency, even though there is a movement to draft him. Perhaps someone how doesn’t want to be president, would be the best person for the job. I applaud the Nobel committee for bringing further attention to this vital issue, and hope that this will spur further action to halt human caused global warming.
I find it strange that Professor Lonnie G. Thompson, of Ohio State University, School of Earth Sciences & Byrd Polar Research Center didn’t receive 1/4 Nobel Prize with Mr. Gore. According to the Nobel Website 1/2 the Nobel Peace Prize went to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and it was split with Mr. Al Gore. I think it would be only right that Mr. Gore should split 1/2 his prize with Professor Thompson.
If one didn’t fall asleep in Mr. Gore’s movie, one would know Mr. Gore received a majority of the Scientific Date and Information for his movie from Professor Lonnie G. Thompson, a man who has spent more time above 18,000 feet than any other person on Earth, according to Rolling Stone Magazine. Can someone tell me why the Nobel Foundation didn’t recognize Glaciologist Professor Lonnie G. Thompson and why he didn’t receive 1/4 award, if Mr. Gore presented his Scientific Date / Information in his film?
Brian: I think the rational behind their choice went something like this…”who has made the biggest impact on getting people to know about the dangers of global warming” answer “Al Gore and the IPCC” There are many many talented and brilliant people that know a lot more than Al Gore does about global warming. But Al Gore has managed to open the eyes of a lot of hillbilly Americans, and as America is the biggest emitter of CO2 on the planet, that is no small feat. They went for who made the biggest bang on the public stage, not who did the most work. Or at least thats what I gather form what I have read and heard.