You don’t tell me, science, I tell you! (h/t Sheila Kennedy)
Modern day North Carolina (pdf):
The Division of Coastal Management shall be the only State agency authorized to 11 develop rates of sea-level rise and shall do so only at the request of the Commission. These 12 rates shall only be determined using historical data, and these data shall be limited to the time 13 period following the year 1900. Rates of sea-level rise may be extrapolated linearly to estimate 14 future rates of rise but shall not include scenarios of accelerated rates of sea-level rise.
In other words, only one state agency is allowed to perform calculations concerning sea level rise and, it is required to do so in a way that artificially limits the data set for making projections and the projections are required to be done in a manner that is scientifically unsound. This will allow and encourage the people of North Carolina to ignore unpleasant realities.
“Bring [my throne] closer to the sea,” Canute called. “Put it right here, right at the water’s edge.” He sat down and surveyed the ocean before him. “I notice the tide is coming in. Do you think it will stop if I give the command?”
His officers were puzzled, but they did not dare say no. “Give the order, O great king, and it will obey,” one of then assured him.
“Very well. Sea,” cried Canute, “I command you to come no further! Waves, stop your rolling!. Surf, stop your pounding! Do not dare touch my feet!”
He waited a moment, quietly, and a tiny wave rushed up the sand and lapped at his feet.
“How dare you!” Canute shouted. “Ocean, turn back now! I have ordered you to retreat before me, and now you must obey! Go back!”
And in answer another wave swept forward and curled around the king’s feet. The tide came in, just as it always did. The water rose higher and higher. It came up around the king’s chair, and wet not only his feet, but also his robe. His officers stood before him, alarmed, and wondering whether he was not mad.
“Well, my friends,” Canute said, “it seems I do not have quite so much power as you would have me believe. Perhaps you have learned something today. Perhaps now you will remember there is only one King who is all-powerful, and it is he who rules the sea, and holds the ocean in the hollow of his hand. I suggest you reserve your praises for him.”
Now, I suppose proponents of burying one’s head in the sand to ignore the rising tides might think Canute’s message a good one – only God can do anything about the tide, it’s arrogant of humans to think they can influence it. That kind of fatalistic, buck-passing, responsibility avoidance does humanity, posterity, and the earth a great disservice. But at least Canute was prepared to acknowledge that the damn tide was coming in; whatever his courtiers might be saying. These folks in North Carolina want to avoid even that so they can continue to roll in coastal development money.
Legislatively cooking the scientific books is just wrong on so many levels. Might as well just abandon the pretense of scientific observation altogether.
At this point some buffoon with nothing better to do will doubtless enter this thread to remind everyone that once upon a time the Indiana General Assembly saved Hoosiers countless computational dollars and simply issued an edict that the value of pi was exactly equal to 3.0. So far there’s not been an attempt to elevate that doctrinal issue to constitutional dimensions, but since Girl Scout cookies have both a diameter and a circumference you never know what legislative innovation might come in 2012.
I saw this last week. Developers can choose to ignore the best data, but will their lenders and insurers? Or will the legislature develop a state sanctioned pool to force the NC taxpayers to foot the bill?
I wonder how this plays with the federal flood insurance program. I don’t know how it works with coastal areas, but seems like with rivers, 100 year flood events are mapped out — not sure if this is also done by the feds; but I seem to recall state and local officials are involved with such maps. To participate in the flood program, you have to have building ordinances in place that preclude rebuilding in the flood plain once the structure has sustained some certain percentage of damage to the whole.
Hey, Don, that rube/buffoon would have been ME – but mostly because it would give me a chance to repeat the legend that it was a PURDUE (Boiler up!) professor that saved the legislature from such embarassment by hastily testifying against it before it passed out of committee.
This reminds me of when partners at my law firm would ask me to perform some legal research and provide the partner with my opinion on some dispute. The only restriction on the drafting of the Memo was that it must provide that our side was going to win.
Good one. My old law school classmate had a runnning joke about filing a motion to change the facts.
Reminds me of the Aristotle statement that Ayn Rand like to repeat about how, no matter what you say to the contrary, “A” still equals “A”. Which I took to mean that, if you ignore the reality of a thing, that reality will be along sooner or later to punch you in the throat.
Somehow I think the Catholic hierarchy need to hear this story, and this is coming from a Catholic.
I meant the above in an allegorical sense — the ocean and tide standing for something else that is lapping at the throne of perceived power.
What’s a little amusing is that the King Canute story is usually referenced in the context of a ruler with excessive pride; when the reality seems to be that he was the one demonstrating to his subordinates that his royal power only went so far.
Well, see I don’t view the story so much as about a person who has already figured out the limits of power as I do about those who don’t know it yet and are in danger of being too late.
I think in the Midwest, states should pass laws saying that the weather forecast should always say 80 degrees and sunny. I can’t wait to wear shorts outside next February!