It seems lately that headlines announcing “New scientific study confirms global warming fears” have lost a bit of their impact, kind of like “Nicole Richie arrested for possession of anything illegal you can shove up your nose and doing something so asinine it’s hard to believe that a sentient being with a brain larger than that of a cabbage is slouching inside that size zero designer dress.” So why should we care about the new New York Times headline that a science panel named the IPCC has called global warming “unequivocal?”

The IPCC was formed in the 1980’s, when folks first noticed things getting a little sweaty, as the leading international network of climate scientists, to present reports on climate change.

The IPCC reports are widely regarded as the authoritative statements of scientific knowledge about climate change, and as such they carry enormous weight in both the scientific and policy communities.

And their new report says that global warming is “unequivocal.” Meanwhile, they have changed their assessment of human involvement from “likely” in 2001 to “very likely” (over 90% consensus.)

According to the New York Times, the Bush Administration “embraced the findings.” I’m sure it was quite an embrace. Hugging them like a cherished childhood teddy bear, I imagine. Squeezing them in close with firm, locked arms, until the findings made a grunting noise and politely mumbled yeah, thanks, I’m having a little trouble breathing… if you could just…

Science Panel Calls Global Warming ‘Unequivocal’ (NYT)

You're Getting Warmer (Grist)