Skeptic, "So-Called Skeptic", Denier

People who express doubts about global warming are referred to by several terms. I prefer "skeptic." Scientists are by nature and training skeptical. New facts must be demonstrated to be true by the scientific method before they are accepted. Everything else is conjecture about which skepticism is not just acceptable but necessary.

Former Vice President Al Gore uses the term "so-called skeptic" in his award-winning movie. I'm not sure where he's going with this term. There's nothing so-called about our skepticism. We are self-described skeptics. It's about as impolite as if one were to refer to him as a "so-called climate science expert."

The most pejorative term is "global warming denier." This conjures up an image of a narrow, close-minded person who has already made up his mind and is not willing to listen to rational, factual arguments. There is a world of difference between this and a person skeptical of new theories which are unsupported by solid, scientific evidence. The term "denier" may also be an attempt to link global warming skeptics with infamous deniers, like Holocaust deniers. In fact, one somewhat rabid global warming advocate directly states that those who express doubts over global warming are in fact worse than the Nazis, because the damage that global warming will impart on the earth will exceed the damage the Nazis perpetrated.