[Yetanfou]

I see your question and raise you a counter-question:

Define climate denier, please

I can actually answer both:

A climate alarmist is someone who agrees with the hypothesis that the planet is on the verge of a catastrophic climate change, generally assumed to be related to an increase in the average global temperature which is generally linked to human industrial activity, most notably the type of activity which involves the combustion of fossil carbon sources. This person will see the hypothetical climate catastrophe as the most important issue facing mankind and generally is willing to take drastic steps to limit its impact.

A climate denier is someone who does not agree with the hypothesis of an upcoming climate catastrophe. This does not imply the climate denier claims there is no such thing as climate change nor that human activity can and does influence climate, just that this person does not believe in an upcoming catastrophic climate upheaval.

The fact that these two terms are bandied around so easily shows how infected and polarised this issue has become. This is unfortunate as there are good arguments on both sides of the divide. The 'alarmists' generally want to get rid of fossil fuel dependencies which I consider to be a good idea, just not for the reasons they state and not with the urgency they crave. Fossil fuels are large sources of pollution (which is mostly but not entirely unrelated to the climate discussion), they are the root cause of many international conflicts. The 'deniers' generally want to keep a balance between the environmental and economical impact of reneging on or using fossil carbon sources which I tend to agree with even though I do not subscribe to the school of 'eternally growing economies'. Many on the 'denier' side are willing to increase the use of nuclear energy while many on the 'alarmist' side are averse to this option even though it offers many benefits in their goal of reducing carbon emissions. This is most likely related to the fact that the people who are on the 'alarmist' side of the divide generally identify with environmental causes which have (often successfully) fought investments in nuclear energy.

This is why it would be beneficial for all involved to open a true discussion on this subject, without throwing epithets at any and all who do not agree to the fully to a stated position.

[tjansen]

Thank you for answering the question far better than I could.

Nuclear energy is the conundrum I fail to understand, especially here in Germany. If climate change is the most important threat to humanity, why not choose the relatively easy solution to use nuclear energy, or at least continue to operate the existing plants until there is a better alternative? Or put money into research to overcome the existing shortcomings of nuclear energy. Instead most climate alarmists in Germany want to shut down all nuclear plants and all nuclear research, most prominently the Green party, thereby increasing CO2 emissions. Does that imply that nuclear energy is an even worse threat to humanity? In that case, why don't they focus on fighting nuclear energy first, which is wide-spread especially in neighbouring France.

If you want to fight something, but don't want a solution, that makes me wonder what exactly you're fighting.

[Oletros]

> Thank you for answering the question far better than I could

The OP has not answered what I have asked you and you still have not asked what is a climate alarmist and why you affirm that almost all climate scientists are climate alarmists

[Oletros]

> A climate alarmist is someone who agrees with the hypothesis that the planet is on the verge of a catastrophic climate change

I have asked the OP because he has said that "I would also expect that any climate scientist who is not also a climate alarmist would have no chance of employment" implying that all climate scientists are alarmists.

> A climate denier is someone who does not agree with the hypothesis of an upcoming climate catastrophe.

Eh, no, a climate denier is someone that denies cliamte is changing or that the main force of change is humanity

[tjansen]

> implying that all climate scientists are alarmists

Not exactly. I said that, to my knowledge, all employers of climate scientists are either on the alarmist side or on the denier/sceptic side. And I have yet to see an organisation that publishes opposing viewpoints.

That doesn't mean that climate researchers themselves are all on one side. I don't know their personal opinions, and I also think it that climate research is a field where having a valid opinion is very difficult. You can believe that a particular climate model is correct, and you can validate its prediction of the past, but you can't be sure it predicts the future accurately.

I would love to see a neutral organisation, but I have yet to find one. There are some that have a very neutral and rational tone, like the Copenhagen Consensus. But the alarmist side brands them as deniers, so I am not sure whether I can believe them either.

> Eh, no, a climate denier is someone that denies climate is changing

If you understand it literally, yes, but usually the it's about the exact impact of climate change. Nobody in his right mind can deny that CO2 has some impact. So denying means usually expecting less change.