Global Warming Swindle filmmaker responds to critics.

British documentary filmmaker Martin Durkin has taken his share of heat for producing a film, entitled The Great Global Warming Swindle, that calls into question the conventional wisdom on global warming. Aired first on British television, the documentary has now been shown on Australian television, where it was a ratings success with nearly one-fourth of all Australian viewers tuning in.

In both countries, the success of the film has been accompanied by harsh criticism from those supporting the orthodox view of global warming. "This isn't a documentary, because documentaries are about fact," said Professor Ove Hoegh-Guldberg of the University of Queensland. Australian politician Lyn Allison derided the film as one suited only to "conspiracy theorist skeptics."

Durkin responded to the criticism in the Australian newspaper on July 7. Pointing out that global warming is a political theory and not a scientific theory, Durkin noted, "The present alarm is not based on observational data. It is based on models." Global warming has caught on as a cause, he said, because "the media and academe (as those of us on the inside know very well) are, in the main, soft left and soft green. We like things that are natural, we think the market is cruel, and we recycle not because it's logical but because it feels right. In these circles global warming has become part of social etiquette. It is as unacceptable to question it as it is to say that you admire George W. Bush or think organic food is a con."