The facts of climate change remain true, constant

Most climate scientists agree the world is experiencing a climate crisis. Monte Heil (Daily Bee, Jan. 21, 2025) opines, “If it isn't a crisis for you, then for you it isn't a crisis.” How is that homespun aphorism relevant to the fact extreme weather is steadily increasing in intensity and frequency?

In his letter of Nov. 21, 2024, Heil stated, “And science then [in the days of Isaac Newton, Galileo Galilei, and other scientific greats] was true science, not junk like today.” He now claims he never made such a comparison. It's difficult to have a meaningful discussion with someone who disagrees with himself.

Heil incorrectly claims that Einstein's theory of general relativity has nothing to do with Newton's Law of Gravity. Einstein's theory replaces Newton's gravitational force between objects with the concept of a distortion of spacetime by heavy objects. Einstein's theory is a rethinking that successfully explains observations that aren't explicable using Newton's Law. Search for “Einstein showed Newton was wrong about gravity. Now scientists are coming for Einstein.”

Heil asked for my scientific credentials. I have a B.S. (chemistry) and an M.S. (biochemistry) from the University of Idaho and a Ph.D. (experimental oncology) from the University of Wisconsin. While I'm admittedly not an expert on climate science, I do understand scientific methodology and the importance of scientific consensus. Heil describes himself as an “old country boy” with no apparent formal scientific training. It may be presumptuous of me, but I'm not overly impressed by his qualifications to critically address any science-related topic.

JACK DeBAUN

Dover