[JSDSKI]

Bryant, I know this isn't going to work for you because the information is from "scientists" and they are "concerned" to boot (The Union of Concerned Scientists) but here goes:

Temperature: Mean annual surface air temperature over the past 50 years has increased 3.6 to 5.4°F in Alaska and Siberia and decreased by 1.8°F over southern Greenland.

Sea ice: Sea ice extent in late summer decreased 15 to 20% over the past 30 years (see above).

Glaciers: Between 1961 and 1998, North American glaciers lost about 108 cubic miles of ice—about equivalent to spreading one foot of water over California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Colorado.

In addition:

Warming in the 20th century is greater than at any time during the past 400-600 years

Over the last 40 years, which is the period with most reliable data, the temperature increased by about 0.5 º F (0.2-0.3°Celsius).

Seven of the ten warmest years in the 20th century occurred in the 1990s. 1998, with global temperatures spiking due to one of the strongest El Niños on record, was the hottest year since reliable instrumental temperature measurements began.

I'm sure we can argue whether this is a naturally occuring phenomenon that cycles through hundreds of years.. maybe so. I just don't think the earth has ever been subjected before to the rapid change and alteration that results from the industrial and information age revolutions. I think we are walkling onto "thin" ice. And it would be best to be cautious. After all, what do the regulations really cost in the long run? Some extra expense or dollars that get rolled back into the economy in the form of wages and products anyway ? Small price to pay - IMHO.

After all, there is no reliable indicator that the expense of meeting enviornmental goals has a net negative effect on an economy. Usually the overall cost is spread over a large population - the users - and also creates new and different jobs and services.

The car manufacturer's had to be dragged kicking and screaming by the scruff of the neck to meet modern safety and emissions requirements. Few went out of business. Most of their clients would agree that cars are better and safer with the regulations currently enforced. I know that smog regs are irritating for enthusiasts and owners. OTOH, we got air bags, crushable structures, fuel injection, and computer controlled ignition and cleaner air. Not a bad deal to me.