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20 Aug 2012 7:55 PM

Todd Akin is a moron on climate change tooBy Lisa Hymas

Todd Akin, not the brightest bulb around. (Photos by MoBikeFed & Igor Zh.)

Todd Akin is not only fundamentally deluded about the basic facts of women’s reproductive systems. He’s also fundamentally deluded about the basic facts of climate change.

Here is the Missouri GOP Senate candidate on the floor of the House of Representatives in 2009, flaunting his ignorance for all the world to see:

This whole thing strikes me, if it weren’t so serious, as being a comedy, you know. I mean, we just went from winter to spring. In Missouri, when we go from winter to spring, that’s a good climate change. I don’t want to stop that climate change, you know. So, and who in the world would want to put politicians in charge of the weather anyway? What a dumb idea.

During that same spiel, he also said, “Some of the models said that we’re going to have surf at the front steps of the Capitol pretty soon. I was really looking forward to that.” Hang ten!

Here’s more on climate change from Akin’s official website, in which he tries to sound science-y smart and just doesn’t quite manage to pull it off:

Although some of the physics and meteorology surrounding climate is well understood, the question of predicting future climate trends as well as man’s ability to definitively influence them is still an active field of scientific research. Moreover, despite our desire for complete certainty, we must understand that global climate is very complex phenomena. No one variable can be taken as the sole driver of climate and there exist cycles within cycles of meteorological variability. [Editor's note: blah blah blah.] Scientists state that the planet has gone through many natural heating and cooling cycles over the last thousand years.
While scientists understand that increased levels of CO2 and other greenhouse gases work to trap heat, those gases are not the only variables when it comes to Earth’s temperature trends. For example, the sun itself has variable output, which affects temperature cycles. Currently, scientists are somewhat puzzled by a current-extended minimum in solar activity. [Editor's note: blah blah.] Such a long-term lack of solar output in the early 18th century, referred to as the Maunder Minimum, is thought to have contributed to the last mini-ice age. Of course, factors such as solar variability — that could cause a mini-ice age — would probably not afford a man-made solution. [Editor's note: herp derp.]

That’s just in case you needed a reason to dislike Todd Akin. You know, besides the fact that he categorizes rape based on its legitimacy and would oppose abortion in every conceivable scenario save his being abducted by space worms who then laid eggs in his brain. Or maybe that already happened. That would explain a lot.