U.S. balks at new climate report

The United States and China want to amend a major report by U.N.-sponsored climate researchers to play down its conclusion that quick, affordable action can limit the worst effects of global warming, according to documents reviewed Monday by The Associated Press.

The critiques, among hundreds of government comments on the draft document, are the prelude to what is expected to be a contentious weeklong meeting as scientists and national delegations wrangle over final wording in the report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, to be issued Friday.

"play down its conclusion..."

[iminplaya]

Well, yeah! You're steppin' on some major toes here. This is a job for the economists. Obviously they know much more about climate than some dopey scientists who only study facts. If the economists say 550, then 550 it must be. Think of the share holders. How would you like it if you had to wait another year to put in the pool? Well, all right then. Let's sit back and let then take care of it. I'm sure they will be more than happy to sell you whatever snake oi....er...ointments you might need to tolerate th

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[HomelessInLaJolla]

How much is it going to cost us to have them wrangle over the final wording, how much of that could have been spent on developing cleaner technologies, and how much of that cost is going to cause us to cut corners on things like smokestack scrubbers, oil changes, air filters, or force us to drive our cars rather than walk or bike because, collectively, we lost the ten extra minutes that we had.