Renowned climate scientist and vulcanologist Professor Bill McGuire found himself under fire this week after posting a controversial tweet that appeared to propose large-scale population reduction as a means to lower carbon emissions.
The since-deleted post read “If I am brutally honest the only realistic way I see emissions falling as fast as they need to to avoid catastrophic #climate breakdown is the culling of the human population by a pandemic with a very high fatality rate.”
This cretin rooting for the culling of humanity?
Professor at @ucl in London. https://t.co/MoWXiZUkxi
— Sunny (@sunnyright) May 12, 2024
McGuire’s statement was met with swift and near-universal condemnation from both the scientific community and the wider public. Fellow researchers decried the notion as “eco-fascism” while countless others expressed shock and disgust at the idea of deliberately unleashing a deadly pandemic to cull the human population.
In a follow-up tweet McGuire sought to clarify his position writing “It’s not a view I advocate or welcome but it is a fact that rapid demand reduction will be necessary to prevent catastrophic #climate change.” However this attempt at damage control did little to stem the tide of criticism directed his way.
If I am brutally honest, “culling of the human population” sounds a lot like population reduction.
I’m not a professor. Maybe I misunderstood you, psychopath. https://t.co/8HI9KMKyea pic.twitter.com/nXrTtILxFl
— No Quarter. (@beingtimfreeman) May 13, 2024
Detractors argued that McGuire’s reasoning was not only morally reprehensible but also logically flawed. Many accused him of promoting an elitist anti-human worldview often associated with the most extreme elements of the environmental movement.
The fierce backlash against McGuire’s comments highlights the contentious nature of the climate change debate and the radical measures some activists believe are warranted to tackle the issue. While the scientific consensus holds that reducing emissions is essential the vast majority reject the abhorrent suggestion that orchestrating mass deaths is an acceptable way to achieve that goal.
McGuire’s inflammatory rhetoric and the ensuing firestorm it sparked demonstrate the importance of keeping discussions about climate change grounded in facts reason and basic human decency. Reckless talk of “culling” the population has no place in serious scientific discourse and only serves to generate heat rather than light on this critical issue.
