Pascal's wager and Global Warming

Once again on the first day of the new year, 2011, I saw a rant about how global warming is all part of some Democratic scam to steal profit, success, and power from corporations. There is, to quote them, no scientific evidence to support the claims of Global Warming. Now that in itself seems rather strange because I have read lots of scientists who conclude that there is Global Warming, but I might be willing to accept in principle that there is no conclusive proof for Global Warming. Even as there is no conclusive proof for half of the things we do based on our current scientific information.

But it seems to me that the question of Global Warming could very well benefit from applying Pascal's Wager about the existence of God and Heaven. Pascal was a French mathematician and theologian. He proposed the following argument. If we "wager" that there is a God and Heaven, and live with that faith, and die and there is a God and a Heaven, then you win. If you wager that there is not a God and a Heaven, and you die and there is a God and a Heaven, you lose. If you wager that there is a God and a Heaven and you die and there is no heaven and no God, then you have lose. If you don't believe in God and a Heaven, and you die, and there is no God and no heaven, then you may win the wager, but you are still dead and no place to go. So the only good wager is to believe there is a God and a Heaven and see what happens. It is the only wager that has a possibility of winning.

If that wager is applied to Global Warming and we begin to make changes that are shaped by that conviction then we may some positive changes in our lives which are good even if we discover that Global Warming is not as serious as some fear. If we wager that there is no Global Warming and do nothing and there is Global Warming happening, then there are going to be very serious negative consequences. The wager that there might be Global warming benefits us even if it turns out to be unnecessary. The wager that there is no Global Warming happening will bring more of the same for society now or worse.

The wager that Global Warming may be happening and making changes as a result of that conviction is the wager that has a win-win either way it happens. The wager that it is not happening has a negative outcome and a neutral (life goes on as currently being lived)outcome. It seems wise to me to wager that Global warming is happening.