Climate change:

Tamas Calderwood writes: Re. “Hamilton: we need a new brand of environmental radicalism” (yesterday, item 14). Clive Hamilton tells us the environmental movement is “the only force standing between us and massive climate disruption”, but then immediately goes on to detail three reasons for “the failure of mainstream environmentalism”.  But … but … if it’s failed, how can it be the only force standing between us and … oh, never mind.

Still, at least Clive understands that “some environmentalists find it hard to accept what the climate scientists are really saying”.  Things like using “tricks” to “hide the decline”, manipulating the peer-review process and the unaccountable lack of warming since 1998, I presume.  No wonder so many environmentalists find it all so hard to accept.

No such doubts from Richard Farmer though. He supports Sir John Beddington by equating climate sceptics with racists and homophobes, which is pretty pathetic really.

I get that it’s the greatest moral challenge of our time and all that jazz, but how does pointing out zero global warming for 13 years make me the same as a racist? How are homophobia and observing that the three warming spurts over the past 150 years were all the same magnitude (which combined led to a devastating 0.7C of warming… now stopped) even in the same ball park?

Nice way to conduct a debate, Richard.

Media and politics:

John Dobinson writes: Three weeks  ago Julia Gillard was perceived as wooden and uncaring and her popularity was down, while Tony Abbott was doing OK.

Enter the media: a bit of spin sees Gillard made human and, Abbott uncaring — led by a Channel 7 journalist making capital out of the death of a poor soldier, and a journo on the Insiders with his usual dreadful affectation, calling Mr Abbott bizarre.

This place really is a backwater colony when you have media manipulating politics.

Separated at birth?

“Skink” writes: Re. “Rundle: Libya? Libya?? Libya??? Oh shut up.” (yesterday, item 2). The died black hair, the sunglasses, the rock star poses … Gaddafi is not in Venezuela, he’s hanging out in LA disguised as Gene Simmons…