Al Gore, Global Warming, and Mythology
posted October 31, 2009 - 9:17pmRecently Al Gore was asked about an English court’s ruling that there were nine factual errors in his movie “An Inconvenient Truth” by the Irish filmmaker Phelim McAleer. It was evident that Mr. Gore would not respond to McAleer’s question about the court&rsquo s ruling. As a professor of ancient history and mythology I was intrigued as to why Mr. Gore purposely evaded the question. Other than not wanting to admit that he had indeed made some mistakes, I thought there was good reason to keep the argument of “Global Warming” in the realm of myth. What is meant by that is discussed below.
The word “Myth”
When one brings up the word “myth” traditionally the hearer thinks of stories that are connected with some being, hero, or event that usually has some deity or demigod to explain a rite, practice, or natural phenomena. However, myths are more than primitive fiction, fables told to children, or stories about Greek and Roman gods. Anciently the word myth, from the Greek word mythos meant story, history or word.[1]
The reason for Myths
Myths are the human mind working with life experiences attempting to develop explanations and encouragement to guide us in life. Through the use of symbols and narrative, myths offer a vision of reality consisting of some fact and or human experience woven in a tapestry of imaginative language to present an inner meaning to life’s challenges. Thus, it can be said that humans are myth-making animals. We use stories and words (myths) to pass on values, morals, societal norms, aspirations, etc.
The communal aspect
Myths are communal in that they can bind a group, community, or nation together in a common ideological, psychological, or spiritually activities. They project a cultures aspirations, values, and fears. Therefore, as a political or social tool, they can be very effective in communicating the values, ideology, and accepted truths of a particular group, community, government or nation. Hitler’s use of mythology to produce, define, and legitimize a “master race” is a powerful example of how myths can be used in this manner. Let me be clear that I am not comparing Mr. Gore to Hitler or his practices.
Myth and Global Warming
However, one can see why it would advantageous for Mr. Gore to keep the discussion of global warming in the realm of stories (present situations or possible future possibilities), and or antidotal explanations. To declare that the debate on global warming through science is over because all the facts are in puts the discussion in the domain of myth – stories, antidotes, cataclysmic warnings, fear mongering, etc. There are billions of dollars at stake for those who support global warming as an agenda to effect social policy, thus the stakes are high. Factual debate or even admission that some of the facts are wrong could lead to disastrous affects where it really counts – the pocket book. Perhaps the use of myth and its ability to unite around a common cause is why President Obama does not nor will not discuss the facts of health care – just a thought.
[1] myth. (2009). In Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Retrieved October 20, 2009, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mythand Webster’s Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Gramercy, s.v. myth.
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Comments
I did flag it since it belongs in Religion.
Thanks for your disagreement. This does belong in religion. You are welcome to believe whatever you wish, of course. The very keyboard you type on; the plane you used to own and fly; the disappointment with other's grasp of myth and mythology are brought to you by pure science and hard technology. These electronics and digital creations are logical outgrowths of knowledge done by experiment measurement and not by myth.
Your world of ancient history -- and mythology begins after the ice went off, very roughly 11347.623 years ago depending on which chunk of ice you were watching. Not that it matters. There is plenty of evidence that early phallic symbols and articles of reproductive interest [like hardcopy editions of Early Playboy items existed as much as 40,000 years ago, and some items are dated over 60,000 years ago, but don't seem to have much to do with a well developed concept of sexuality -- like more recent artifacts.] For your venue, you can't do archeology, you are stuck with the recorded written "language." And that is pretty new stuff. Even in Human existence. When do you suppose these bright monkeys became human with the capacity for mythology?
Come on! Give us a myth! Then post it appropriately.
Take your religion and myth and post it in the places it belongs. [Categories, mind you.] If you want to call it fiction, hey great. If xomba was really moderated, this kind of thing might be quickly relocated. But there is plenty of ignorance -- an incredible amount -- all since the ice went off, say the last 10,000 years out of our total presence of several million years.
Who was your first man? A myth? The Adam myth? I favor Eve, and the serpent in the tree, and the fruit of knowledge. Science is simply knowledge. What is worse is the ignorant pretense that you pose to the world ending dilemma that global warming poses to all human progeny, but more so the rest of the current species that will not ressurect themselves as the religion espoused here with your mythology portends. The heat, if we do not reverse the damage we have foisted on this world will bear out the most evil of your mythologies. Ignorance has limits. But the honest science defies your myths, and could aide in rectifying the continued espousal of such ignorance.
In today's issue of Science, Elizabeth Culotta , in her essay, one of the eleventh in the Year of Darwin, being noted globally, entitled "On the Origin of Religion," she quotes our good friend Charles Darwin --
"As soon as the important faculties of the imagination, wonder, and curiosity, together with some power of reasoning, had become partially developed, man would naturally crave to understand what was passing around him, and would have vaguely speculated on his own existence," Darwin, in The Descent of Man.
It takes a certain willingness to believe good stories known to be fictional. Observation made record are something else, and coupled with measurements become knowledge.
You are writing Religion. It belongs somewhere else.
But like I have said. You can do something about ignorance. It CAN be remedied. This is not the place for your religion or myth. That is why I flagged it. Good writing though.
Mythology and Science
Les - I'll agree to just disagree with your assesment. It would take to long to explain if you don't understand what mythology and myths are. You missed one of the main points of the article that science has been turned into a mythology in this area, which fits the science category. Maybe I should do an article on the myth of science - hmmmmmm.
Pipercomanche
Both of you confuse absolute garbage with Science
Mythology belongs in literature or fiction.
I used to flag these things posted to the science category, but the condition of ignorance extends to the people who could make a difference.
Sorry. It is just offensive to see it posted to science.
Of course you write well, just not in the right area do you post your good writing..
Global warming
Good article. What a lot of people do not realize is that the earth actually cooled in 2008. People need to check the facts for themselves instead of listening to propoganda.
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