Despite the majority of scientists agreeing that global warming is occurring and is largely man-made, conservatives are now using a 13-year-old’s library research to validate their opinion that climate change is a hoax. Alex, from Wilmington Indiana, received temporary fame on Fox News on Thursday, when they reported about the 13-year-old Rush Limbaugh caller who “schools liberals” on global warming. Limbaugh offered to send him an iPad to aid him in continuing his important research.
The child called the Rush show to discuss a recent debate he’d had about global warming. He spoke like an indoctrinated pro, telling Rush how easy it was for him to visit the local library and find evidence against climate change:
I just wanted to say, at 13 years of age, I have done a speech on this, and it was really easy for me to find this evidence, really easy; and I believe the reason that the liberals do not have the evidence is because they do not want the evidence. They don’t wanna hear that it is wrong.
He went on to speak about his trip to the “health food store” the other day where he overheard a conversation between two liberals who were confused as to why it could be so cold outside if global warming is occurring, demonstrating, by his belief that the meaning of climate change is increased temperatures, that he has grown up on a healthy diet of conservative misinformation, prejudice, and denial.
Of course, Rush ate it up, gushing that it was “heartening” to know that evidence against climate change could be found in a public library, and praising the boy, who, when asked what caused him to doubt people who believe in climate change, stated he’s heard lots of evidence on the radio that global warming is a hoax. “Over the radio, we listen to different things… There’s so much evidence that global warming is not man-made,” he said.
It ‘s disturbing to be reminded that there are people who would strive to prevent a child from learning facts and formulating his own opinions. Hopefully when Alex receives his iPad, he will be able to expand his range of research beyond the backwards ideology he’s been force-fed, and maybe even view an internet article that was not hand-picked and vetted by his mother.
Alisha Mims is a writer and researcher with Ring of Fire.