Costello - Why are we still debating climate change?

CHANGE ABOUT TO GO DOWN IN THE U.S. SUPREME COURT. REPUBLICAN-LED STATES ARE FIGHTING AN OBAMA ADMINISTRATION EDICT THAT REQUIRES POWER PLANTS TO LIMIT CARBON EMISSIONS WHICH ARE BLAMED FOR GLOBAL WARNING. THEY SAY IT IS AN EDICT POWER GRAB OVER SOMETHING MANY CONSERVATIVES SAY ISN'T HAPPENING. >> I'M ALWAYS TROUBLED BY A THEORY THAT FITS EVERY PERFECT SITUATION. BACK IN THE '70s, WE WERE TOLD THERE WAS GLOBAL COOLING. EVERYONE WAS TOLD GLOBAL COOLING WAS A REALLY BIG PROBLEM. THAT FADED. WE WERE TOLD BY AL GORE AND OTHERS THERE WAS GLOBAL WARMING. THEN, IT MORPHED. IT WASN'T GLOBAL WARMING. IT BECAME CLIMATE CHANGE. THE PROBLEM WITH CLIMATE CHANGE IS THAT THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A DAY IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD IN WHICH THE CLIMATE HAS NOT CHANGED. >> IT IS ONE THING TO ARGUE OVER HOW TO LESSEN GLOBAL WARMING. THERE IS OVERWHELMING SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE THAT OUR CLIMATE IS CHANGING AND WE ARE, IN PART, TO BLAME. SOME VERY VOCAL AMERICANS, LIKE SENATOR TED CRUZ CONTINUE TO DEBATE WHAT IS SURELY FACT. I WROTE AN OP ED EXPLORING THAT QUESTION. WHAT I FOUND WAS SURPRISING. JUST 42% OF ADULTS IN THE UNITED STATES HAVE A GREAT DEAL OF CONFIDENCE IN THE SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY. MOST AMERICANS CAN'T NAME A LIVING SCIENTIST. I SUSPECT THE CLOSEST MANY GET TO A LIVING, BREATHING SCIENTIST IS THE FICTIONAL DR. SHELDON COOPER FROM THE BIG *** THEORY. HE IS BRILLIANT, CANDESCENTING AND NARCISSISTIC. WHOSE TRUST WOULD HE INSPIRE? >> DR. ANTHONY LYZER IS WITH ME. WELCOME. >> THANK YOU, CAROL. GREAT TO BE WITH YOU. >> DO THE MAJORITY OF AMERICANS DENY CLIMATE CHANGE? >> NO, THEY DON'T. ABOUT TWO-THIRDS OF AMERICANS BELIEVE THAT CLIMATE CHANGE IS REAL. WE SEE MORE BROADLY THAT THERE ARE SIX VERY DIFFERENT KINDS OF RESPONSES TO CLIMATE CHANGE THAT ARE REAL. WE FIND ABOUT 15% OF AMERICANS ARE ALARMED ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE. THEY THINK IT IS HAPPENING. IT IS HUMAN CAUSE AND A VERY SERIOUS PROBLEM. ABOUT A QUARTER ARE CONCERNED ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE. THEY THINK IT IS HAPPENING AND HUMAN CAUSED AND SERIOUS BUT THINK THE IMPACTS ARE MORE DISTANT. THERE IS ANOTHER QUARTER WE CALL THE CAUTIOUS. THESE ARE PEOPLE THAT THINK IT HAPPENING -- THEY ARE STILL CONFUSED WHETHER IT IS HAPPENING OR NOT, HUMAN CAUSED OR NATURAL. A VERY SMALL GROUP CALLED THE DISENGAGED, ABOUT 5%. THESE ARE PEOPLE WHO DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE ISSUE. THEN, 15% WE CALL THE DOUBTFUL. THESE ARE PEOPLE WHO THINK IT IS NOT HAPPENING BUT IF IT IS, IT IS NATURAL. NOTHING THAT HUMANS HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH, NOTHING WE CAN DO ANYTHING ABOUT. LAST BUT NOT LEAST IS THE LAST GROUP. THEY ARE THE ONES THAT DENY CLIMATE CHANGE IS HAPPENING. WHO ARE THEY? >> THAT GROUP WE CALL THE DISMISSIVE. THEY ARE FIRMLY CONVINCED, IT IS NOT HAPPENING, NOT HUMANLY CAUSED AND NOT A SERIOUS PROBLEM. ABOUT 3/4 OF THE GROUP BELIEVE THAT IT IS A CONSPIRACY. THEY THINK IT IS SCIENTISTS MAKING UP FACTS, A U.N. PLOT TO TAKE AWAY AMERICAN SOVEREIGNTY. IT IS A PLOT BY AL GORE. ALL OF WHICH HAS NOTHING WHATSOEVER TO DO WITH THE BASIC, FUNDAMENTAL SCIENCE IN WHAT YOU ALLUDED TO BEFORE. THE SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY, BASED UPON THE EVIDENCE, 97% OF CLIMATE SCIENTISTS AGREE THAT MY CLIMATE CHANGE IS HAPPENING IN HUMAN CAUSE. THIS HAS BECOME DEEPLY DIVISIVE IN OUR POLITICS. >> MY RESEARCH FOUND OUT THAT THEY ARE BACKED BY LOTS AND LOTS OF MONEY. A RECENT STUDY FOUND THAT CONSERVATIVE FOUNDATIONS AND OTHERS HAVE BANKROLLED CLIMATE DENIAL TO THE TUNE OF $558 MILLION BETWEEN 2003 AND 2010. WHO ARE THESE WEALTHY CLIMATE DENIERS? TWO MAIN CAMPS, THE POS SILL FUEL PRODUCERS. THEY ARE PERFECTLY HAPPY WITH THIS. THEY ARE MAKING MORE MONEY THAN ANYBODY ELSE ON THE PLANET. THE OTHER IS THE I HAD LOGICAL OPPOSITION. THAT'S WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT WITH THESE CONSERVATIVE THINK TANKS. THEY ARE DEEPLY DISTRUST FULL OF CLY PAT C CLIMATE CHANGE. IT IS NOT SOMETHING WE CAN ALL SOLVE THROUGH OUR OWN INDIVIDUAL VOLUNTARY BEHAVIOR. WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE BY TURNING OUT THE LIGHT IS AND BUYING A MORE FUEL-EFFICIENT