Physicist Steven Koonin served in Barack Obama’s Energy Department from 2009 to 2011. Like Obama, Dr. Koonin believes that man-made global warming poses a danger and must be addressed. But he also has a more realistic view of just how complicated Mother Natures is, as he expressed in a Wall Street Journal article titled “Climate Science Is Not Settled.” The idea that climate change is new, he writes, is simply wrong: “The climate has always changed and always will.” Humans provide a relatively tiny carbon footprint “in relation to the climate system as a whole,” which “sets a very high bar for confidently projecting the consequences of human influences.” Additionally, climate models’ failure to accurately predict global temperatures because of their inability to decipher the various factors reflect a significant problem. “[These] are not ‘minor’ issues to be ‘cleaned up’ by further research,” Koonin notes. “Rather, they are deficiencies that erode confidence in the computer projections.” In summary, “Any serious discussion of the changing climate must begin by acknowledging not only the scientific certainties but also the uncertainties, especially in projecting the future.” On that point, we can certainly agree. Now if he could only convince his former boss. More…