Tucker Carlson argues with Bill Nye about climate change

Originally published at: http://boingboing.net/2017/02/28/tucker-carlson-argues-with-bil.html

5 Likes

Why does Tucker Carlson always wear a constipated expression?

30 Likes

Obvious answer is obvious.

The man is full of shit.

62 Likes

Better question: When is Tucker Carlson ever not an asshole?

22 Likes

Tucker Carlson is the douchiest asshat on television. Whenever I watch him, I have an overriding urge to hit him in the face with a buick.

23 Likes

Ooof, people in glass professions, working for particularly glassy corporations should not open the door to “you’re not a real X, but rather a Y” comparisons…

34 Likes

We now know with scientific certainty that it wasn’t the bow tie that made Tucker Carlson insufferable.

35 Likes

I think Maria Bartiromo has that title, but there’s so much competition

3 Likes

Thank you, Mr. Nye, for even bothering to address these idiots. Carlson clearly had hit quotes lined up about Nye and that’s about the only thing he was interested in doing: Character assassination of Nye, and then ‘assassination’ by proximity of climate change as an idea/subject (guilt by association but yeah).

It is quite literally stunning to see people deluding themselves. It’s much easier, I guess, to be able to scream “WE NEVER KNEW!!!” as the floodwaters wash away the family abode.

22 Likes

Technically, he’s correct. Bill Nye isn’t a research scientist but a mechanical engineer from Boeing… if you are up for a workout and are interested in chasing goalposts. However, an engineer with a degree from Cornell and 30 years of experience as a science educator has a pretty damn strong science background. Besides, anyone with a pulse can tell there’s climate change.

If you want to talk about not a real XYZ, Fucker Carlson isn’t a real anything. Everything about him is fake, especially his profession. That goalpost is so far away it’s not even worth chasing, it’s gone across the horizon already.

43 Likes

Carlson is a jackwipe, but Bill Nye seemed unprepared for the interview. When Carlson asked him how the climate would be different without human intervention he made no mention of the bigger issues like ozone depletion and Arctic ice melt.

1 Like

I think it’s just a mistake to engage with someone like that. No one with their critical faculties even partially engaged could possibly endure watching him – it’s like pushing your mind into a belt sander – so who’s left over that Bill Nye is hoping to reach?

5 Likes

“You’re not a scientist, Mr Nye, why should I listen to what you have to say about global warming?”

“Would it make any difference if I was a scientist? After all, you won’t listen to them either.”

45 Likes

Oy, as if popularity or unpopularity ever had any bearing on the veracity of scientific facts.

Eppur Si Muove, Tucker, which is more than we can say for your bowels.

2 Likes

Kudos to Tucker Carlson!

He has been able to maintain the fresh, smug attitude of college republican assholes half his age.

31 Likes

When the thread of the Seven Stars snaps and the man in the Moon dies?

After such a collision, would there be a local increase or a decrease in entropy? After all, deliberate stupidity is a kind of entropy in itself.

4 Likes

Do you think he ties his own bowtie or is it a clip-on?

5 Likes

Nye’s a good sport, and I think he genuinely hopes to reach people, so he’s probably just being open in who he’s willing to talk to. He gives Tucker the benefit of the doubt of wanting legitimate engagement about climate change. And that’s where he falls into the trap.

Because Nye came on to talk about anthropogenic climate change. But Tucker wanted to talk about how educated elites want to put you on crazy pills and lock you up in prison for having the GALL to QUESTION them. He explicitly name-drops Nurmeburg (because NAZIS!). Tucker’s case was “Scientific elites want you to just accept what they are saying without question and want to throw you in prison if you don’t think that’s okay.” Nye’s case is “Human beings are causing climate change.”

These aren’t even the same conversations.

Tucker was successful in this instance because Nye is a great science communicator, but I think he’s woefully uneducated about the current media environment in the US and the true agenda of an outlet like Fox News (and Tucker Carlson more specifically). Nye’s most successful moment was in revealing cognitive dissonance to be a basic human trait and arguing that this is why people might be resistant to the message. Tucker was back-footed, but successfully recovered by swinging for a “HERE IS THE SPECIFIC DATA POINT THAT YOU REFUSE TO ANSWER!” canard, making Nye look evasive when he was really just befuddled.

I think people should go on shows like this, because there needs to be evidence that people outside the bubble exist, but these shows are not good places for dialogue. They are good places to counter the grim conservative narrative, but only if you’re prepared for that conversation. You need to be able to parse their agenda quickly and respond to their emotional appeals in ways that actually diffuse it.

This means that the conversation will never be about climate change, but before we can have a conversation about climate change we need to have a lot of lower-order conversations that show to Jeb Numbnuts the Fox News Fan that scientists are not plotting to lock you up if you disagree with them.

(Which, BTW, means we’re fucked. But this historical moment isn’t just a product of even the last 20 years. In order to not be fucked right now, we’d have to turn back the clock to at LEAST WWII, I think.)

17 Likes

that “richest city in america, thanks for your tax dollars” comment?! WHAT AN ASSHAT!

13 Likes

I made the mistake of opening the youtube page, and the comments are just depressing. The number of people convinced that tucker triumphed over the evil science shill bill nye pretty much leaves me in a state of rage and sadness.

I’m amazed at bill’s patience though. No snapping, no extra rude comments. It’s impressive, honestly.

15 Likes