Climate and the First Amendment

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The Framers apparently had little concept of the power the Executive Branch and its agencies would develop over time; or, the influence that international bodies would have on the conduct of affairs in the United States. The First Amendment prohibits Congress from making laws, but does not expressly prohibit the Executive Branch from making rules which have essentially the same effect.

The United Nations has effectively established climate change as a form of secular religion globally. Interestingly, this secular religion has been accepted by the leaders of numerous established religions, who support adherence to its beliefs.

The Executive Branch of the US government has essentially established climate change as a form of secular religion in the US. This religion has a system of beliefs which are expected to be accepted without question. These beliefs include: the existence and pre-eminence of anthropogenic climate change; the causes of anthropogenic climate change; the modeled scenarios of potential future climate change; and, the actions required to avoid or mitigate impending climate catastrophe.

Those who question this system of secular religious beliefs are called deniers and treated as heretics. Certain members of Congress, though not the Congress as a body, have attempted to intimidate and silence non-believers, questioning their freedom to speak out in opposition to the climate orthodoxy. Scientists have been removed from positions in the federal government and state governments because they questioned the climate orthodoxy. Other scientists have left the climate change field as the result of harassment.

The current US President is skeptical of the beliefs of this secular religion, as is the current Administrator of US EPA. They are acting to dismantle some of the administrative rules established in support of the climate change religion in the US; and, to reduce or eliminate government funding in support of the climate change religion, including funding to the UN. Their actions are also encouraging skeptics to speak more freely regarding their issues with the climate orthodoxy.

Belief in the modeled scenarios of potential future climate change is currently being called into question on two fronts. First, the modelers have been forced to acknowledge that the models are showing far more rapid warming than is actually occurring, even compared to the “adjusted” temperature anomalies. Also, numerous recent studies have suggested climate sensitivities lower than the sensitivity range used by the climate models.

While the recent science suggests that there might not be an impending climate catastrophe, numerous spokespersons for the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change have recently concluded that the emissions reductions committed to in the Paris Accords are insufficient to achieve the objective of keeping the global temperature anomaly increase below 2^oC.

Again, it appears that the “settled science” on which the climate change religion is based might not be as settled as we have been asked to believe.