This week I’ve been reading ‘Scared to Death – from BSE to Global Warming; why scares are costing us the Earth.’

Quite a long title – and a lot of read at nearly 500 pages. Well worth it though – here’s what it says about itself:

This book for the first time tells the inside story of each of the major scares of the past two decades, showing how they have followed a remarkably consistent pattern. It analyses the crucial role played in each case by scientists who have misread or manipulated the evidence; by the media and lobbyists who eagerly promote the scare without regard to the facts; and finally by the politicians and officials who come up with an absurdly disproportionate response, leaving us all to pay a colossal price, which may run into billions or even hundreds of billions of pounds. This book culminates in a chillingly detailed account of the story behind what it shows has become the greatest scare of them all: the belief that the world faces disaster through man-made global warming.

Personally, I’m convinced by much of their argument – and glad I read it in preparation for this coming talk tomorrow on ‘God and the Environment.’ We are to care for the world and be good stewards of it, but the best way is not to be like so many people blindly believe whatever gets pushed our way and sold as truth, because an ‘expert’ said it, the paper wrote it, and a politician spun it. Anyone really concerned for the planet should read this book.