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Josh
Josh "A Disgrace to the Profession" by Mark Steyn - now available
Aug 11, 2015 Josh Mark Steyn 
In the US you can order Mark Steyn's book here and orders can be shipped to the UK, if not from Amazon then try Mark's own bookstore.
It has cartoons by me and was a fun project to be involved in. It is also a hugely entertaining and informative read and, although I might be slightly biased, I think this is going to be this summer's must-read climate tome!
Posted by Josh
Update on Aug 11, 2015 by
Josh
Josh
Reader Comments (81)
Got my copy, arrived today, signed and everything. Josh's cartoons are the icing on the cake.
Hi Josh
Touch of genius to have you on board for Steyn's latest!
Just shows the difference a good cartoonist makes. Lightens everything up and adds a nice, calm and humorous tone.
Your steady work has been IMO one of the best supports that sceptics for which could have wished.
Well done, that man!
Unless I was looking at the wrong site, Amazon does not yet have any reviews on Mark's book. Rather surprising... I figured at least half a dozen warmists would have given it a review Loooong before it actually came out!
Onwards and upwards Josh!
Is it ok to use this thread to ask how this case is proceeding? It seems *somewhat implausible* that what should be a straightforward case still hasn't been heard to completion. It must simply be an amazing coincidence that said case happens to involve Michael Mann, the world's most contentious 'science' graph and that a negative result for Mann could blow the entire climate debate to pieces.
Excellent, well done, both !
@cheshirered. current comment on the state of play in Stein v Green Blob can be found at :
http://www.steynonline.com/7091/a-disgrace-to-the-professionand elsewhere on the site.
You are all very kind ;-)
It is hard to put the book down and even harder not to read out the quotes to anyone passing by. My favourite is from Jonathan Jones: "Do I expect you to publicly denounce the hockey stick as obvious drivel? Well yes..."
And this is just 'Volume One".
[typo fixed]
The Kindle link goes to a different book. It looks like A Disgrace is not available on Kindle (yet)
Through the mysterious powers bestowed upon them by the Holy Hockey Stick, I expect regular Guardian contributors will have written reviews without even having seen the book.
Completely off topic, (sorry, sorry), but I thought you might be interested in this at around 01:19:32, particularly given the Scottish connection, Bish.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b064xcm4
From 01:22:42 onwards is particularly interesting.
Love your cartoons, Josh, and apologies for jumping in on your post.
I placed an order some time ago but didn't realise you had drawn cartoons for it, Josh. That's an added bonus.
STEYN , everybody, STEYN !
...and it is JONATHAN Jones.
Prices are a bit steep but I suspect that when I can steel myself to buy the Kindle edition that will be the most profitable for the author. We may not need the book but he probably needs/will need the money.
Just finished Chapter 3 - I think this is going to be a game-changer in the Climate Wars.
Mark's racy, readable style accompanied by your visual humour is going to reach a lot of people who might struggle with the technical intricacies of climate fraud.
Maybe this will begin to compensate for the absence of critical journalistic commentary on the most expensive & fraudulent boondoggle ever inflicted on the world's taxpayers.
Let's hope so anyway.
Here is the source of that JJ quote.
I do hope that the book includes quotes not just from sceptical scientists but also from Mann's own colleagues, such as the Barnett one on that page, "His statistics were suspect as i remember. for instance, i seem to remember he used, say, 4 EOFs as predictors. But he prescreened them and threw one away because it was not useful..."
Simon Tett: "I don't think we can say we didn't do Mann et al because we think it is crap!"
Douglas Maraun " I think, that "our" reaction on the errors found in Mike Mann's work were not especially honest."
Rob Wilson: "There has been criticism by Macintyre of Mann's sole reliance on RE, and I am now starting to believe the accusations."
I see from Steve Milloy's tweets that some of these are in there, such as
Phil Jones "you're on very dodgy ground"
and Briffa "I am sick to death of Mann stating his reconstruction represents the tropical area ..."
and Wigley "At the very least MBH is a very sloppy piece of work"
There are at least 30 climategate emails of this type.
I love the "Volume 1" :)
Ref Paul Matthews 3:54 Jonathan Jones (JJ) quote (well worth reading, and rereading, again and again)
Would a pathologist determine anything unusual in the brain ring growth of pathological climate scientists? Differences in density or darkness due to CO2's diminishing threat attacking their logic functions, or wallets maybe?
Or is it the rest of the world's logic functions and wallets that remain under attack by pathological climate scientists?
Looks like Mikey's bitten off more than he can chew.
geronimo, Mann's appetite for more, has always exceeded the wallets of those funding him.
I am looking forward to Volumes II-XX
John Silver, the prequel is pretty good too. Different author, AW Montford, The Hockey Stick Illusion.
In fact it was poorly judged by Guardian Climate Science gossip columnists, who had not read it, but they are scrupulously professional about not reading anything they don't believe in.
Finished all but the epilogue and footnotes 20 ago, started amazon review but daughter and friends want to go swimming so it will wait, not typing it on phone.
Greg Laden pre-reviewed it on his laughable blog...the usual suspects lined up to participate, including BBD, Hank Roberts, John Mashey, Connolley, Dhogaza. All very predictable.
Received it Saturday as a signed copy to "Climate Beagle", was a complete surprise from my wonderful wife.
Read it outside on Sunday as the climate was warming, though that might have just been the afternoon Californian sun making its way to our deck.
Is this a new book, or is Mark trying to py his legal bills by putting new covers on his remainders?
In 2013 the Daily Kos reported :
Steyn's Peer-Review of Mann Backfires
Mark Steyn is a conservative pundit along the lines of Rush Limbaugh (frequently filling in for Rush on the radio) who has taken it upon himself to make Dr. Michael Mann's life unpleasant. Dr. Mann is a leading climate expert who spurred deniers' ire after his graph showing the unnatural rise in present temperatures was used in Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth." Since then, Dr. Mann has been the prime target of the climate deniers' Serengeti Strategy, a fact he talks about in his book, "Hockey Stick and Climate Wars."
Steyn's vendetta began a few years ago, when Steyn quoted a particularly offensive attack on Dr. Mann and labeled Mann’s scientific work as fraudulent. Dr. Mann fought back by suing Steyn for defamation on the grounds that that his work is demonstrably not fraudulent and that any insinuation to that effect is harmful to his career.
Most people would refrain from adding fuel to the fire if being sued by someone for attacking them. Steyn, however, is not most people. He's now self-published a book that is supposedly a collection of criticisms of Dr. Mann by other scientists. Apparently, this is Steyn’s attempt to bolster his case by showing that it is not just conservative pundits and paid spokespeople who think poorly of Dr. Mann and his hockey stick.
Steyn chose three quotes as promo material to represent the book's contents, which were all put under the microscope by Greg Laden. Laden finds that one of the scientists has recently co-authored a paper confirming Mann's hockey stick graph, and notes that his quote only appears damning because it lacks all context. A second has worked on a major paper that also confirmed Mann's hockey stick graph, and when contacted by Laden stated that the attacks on Mann "have no justification." The third quote is from a physicist who doesn't work on climate change, so he can't accurately be described as one of Mann's scientific peers.
For all his quote mining, it seems like the best Steyn could do when it came to finding criticisms from Mann's peers is write up two quotes from scientists who agree with Mann's findings and one from someone who's not a climate scientist at all. Looks like Steyn's efforts here fall as flat as the handle on Mann's hockey stick."
Russell, if you don't want to buy his book you can contribute in other ways by visiting the Mark Steyn on-line website. He offers gift certificates if you are having difficulty deciding how to help.
Every rule has an exception, and Russell is now BH's.
Every rule has an exception, and Russell is now BH's.
Russell needs to wear his reading glasses when surfing. That Daily Kos thing isn't from 2013 but from six weeks ago. See here:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/06/23/1395870/-Steyn-s-Peer-Review-of-Mann-Backfires#
But I liked their limp denunciation so much we use it in the promotional materials:
http://www.steynstore.com/product133.html
Still, if it helps you, sweetie, feel free to push it back two years and pretend it's from 2013. Mann pushed that lone Gaspé tree-ring back and pretends it started in 1400 and no one seems to have minded.
Better luck next time.
Mark should go easy on the Haut Cotes du Greenland
No need for pushback either: the weight of the scientific evidence is enormous and ever growing :
The problem now , as in 2013 is pseudoskeptics spouting scientific nonsense, mark included, are dim-wittedly reinforcing the case made by our wannbe policy masters in UNEP and the EU.
Mark continues to play into their hands by failing to do his scientific homeework: the other snowshow just fell on his efforts to re-re write palaeoclimate history with not one but four papers corroberatng the tree ring record with ever better gephys results :
M.G.L. Baillie, and J. McAneney, "Tree ring effects and ice core acidities clarify the volcanic record of the first millennium", Climate of the Past, vol. 11, pp. 105-114, 2015. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/cp-11-105-2015
B.M. Vinther, H.B. Clausen, S.J. Johnsen, S.O. Rasmussen, K.K. Andersen, S.L. Buchardt, D. Dahl-Jensen, I.K. Seierstad, M. Siggaard-Andersen, J.P. Steffensen, A. Svensson, J. Olsen, and J. Heinemeier, "A synchronized dating of three Greenland ice cores throughout the Holocene", J. Geophys. Res., vol. 111, 2006. http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2005JD006921
M. Sigl, J.R. McConnell, L. Layman, O. Maselli, K. McGwire, D. Pasteris, D. Dahl-Jensen, J.P. Steffensen, B. Vinther, R. Edwards, R. Mulvaney, and S. Kipfstuhl, "A new bipolar ice core record of volcanism from WAIS Divide and NEEM and implications for climate forcing of the last 2000 years", Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, vol. 118, pp. 1151-1169, 2013. http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2012JD018603
M. Sigl, M. Winstrup, J.R. McConnell, K.C. Welten, G. Plunkett, F. Ludlow, U. Büntgen, M. Caffee, N. Chellman, D. Dahl-Jensen, H. Fischer, S. Kipfstuhl, C. Kostick, O.J. Maselli, F. Mekhaldi, R. Mulvaney, R. Muscheler, D.R. Pasteris, J.R. Pilcher, M. Salzer, S. Schüpbach, J.P. Steffensen, B.M. Vinther, and T.E. Woodruff, "Timing and climate forcing of volcanic eruptions for the past 2,500 years", Nature, vol. 523, pp. 543-549, 2015. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature14565
Why are they missing from Mark's retread of his last barkboiler?
I'll say this for Russell, he doesn't know when he's beaten, a bit like the average Liverpool fan. Don't worry about Mark's legal bills Russell, they are being crowd-funded in part by many little people who don't like being lied to from authority and lawyers who work pro bono to protect freedom of expression.
Just published, http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/08/11/a-review-of-steyns-scathing-new-book-about-michael-mann-a-disgrace-to-the-profession/
Enjoy.
Diogenes: … Greg Laden… *snork*
He discounts the opinions of others who are not “climate scientists” while not a “climate scientist” himself; why should his opinion have greater weight than other non-“climate scientists”?
Having seen his site, I cannot have any regard for him, as he lauds a lady (can’t remember her name – Lizzie Borden, perhaps?) speaking at the Nobel Institute who advocated murdering those who disagree with her – which her audience ecstatically applauded. The disgust I expressed at such a philosophy while I shredded her arguments – as well as those who rallied to support her – earned me a banning off his site. A victory, in my book. Even when he is talking about his own speciality, he shows remarkable petulance when others do not fall at his feet in wonderment at his genius. To sum up: to use him as support for your argument shows you are truly scraping the bottom of the barrel.
vvussell, are you giving expert witness evidence in support of Mann? It seems like you must be one of his supporters.
Is it the same Russell?
"Every rule has an exception, and Russell is now BH's.
Aug 11, 2015 at 9:17 PM | Unregistered CommenterAlexander K"
Wrong. "prove" in "the exception proves the rule", means "test", not confirm.
Great news. One day, the apercu of John Brignell that putting climate in front of scientist is like putting witch in front of doctor will be in common parlance. Harsh on the decent practitioners, but they, we are told, are in a tiny minority. 3% perhaps?
Russell is easily defeated with a simple tool: a thermometer.
Giggity giggity guys!!! - THANK YOU!
The trouble I have with this book title is that in reality Mann's' poor professional and personal pratice is not "A Disgrace to the Profession" but normal even rewarded and celebrated with the profession of climate 'science '
True he takes it to an extreme level , which is partly why so many on his own side cannot stand him, but much of what he does is typical of his profession.
When the profession is selling snake oil , then lying is the norm not the exception.
Russel/warrenlb
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/08/11/a-review-of-steyns-scathing-new-book-about-michael-mann-a-disgrace-to-the-profession/#comment-2005523
Gamecock, no climate scientist is defeated by a thermometer, if he knows where to shove it.
Recent UK record temperatures don't exceed body temperature.
Over at Amazon, the book has received such a review by Russell S, and follow up positive constructive feedback by others, I am sure it is guaranteed success.
It is really weird how experts in climate science still, apparently, have this amazing ability to review work they have not read.
Is this normal in climate science? Is this how peer review works in climate science publications? Nice work if you can get it.
Any chance that The Hockey Stick Illusion by AW Montford could be reprinted with lots of Josh cartoons? Climate scientists may need a good laugh before the end of the year, but they can wait, having had a laugh at the rest of the world for 20 years.
Is there a way to purchase this book via a Paypal account? I’m currently unable to use my bank account to purchase anything due to some mess with fraudulent charges (last I checked, I’m ~$200 in the hole because of them), and my only other alternative at the moment is Paypal. As far as I can see though, there’s no way to use that. Mark Steyn’s site doesn’t seem to offer it as a payment option, and Amazon never has.
golf charlie - Amazon may not be shipping the book yet - indeed they'll no longer let anyone write a review until they do - but those of us who ordered directly from SteynOnline started receiving ours this past weekend, so it's conceivable that if Russell bought one directly he might have it. But I'm not betting on it.
Brandon's plea:
Is there a way to purchase this book via a Paypal account?
I’m currently unable to use my bank account to purchase anything due to some mess with fraudulent charges
makes one wonder if has he embraced Mark's principles or his fact checker ?
Let us hope both return to attacking political correctness instead of scientific commonsense.
Russell, Is that you?
http://notrickszone.com/2015/08/06/german-scientists-former-ipcc-author-peter-wadhams-showing-pattern-of-irrationaliy-extremely-far-fringe-corner/
No. It's lobbyists up to their old tricks at a website calculated to make Orwell wince.
@ Russell 0632. That's as pitiable a case of projectionism that I've ever come across. Consider the beam in your own eye.