Jonah Goldberg's Ignorance

Jonah Goldberg, who allegedly displays what the LA Times calls "hard-hitting insight," completely misunderstands the implications of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano. He believes that it warms the planet:

Question for the Planet Gore Guys   [Jonah Goldberg]

So, how many more Priuses will the world have to buy to offset this Icelandic volcano?

Of course, every freshman knows that volcanoes cool the planet, temporarily, and do not emit nearly enough carbon dioxide to counter that.

Yet Goldberg has been allowed to publish several columns on global warming. This is the state of punditry in America.

PS: Here's a graphic that says the Eyjafjallajokull volcano has emitted about 15 Kmt/day CO2 so far, whereas the European aviation industry emits 344.109 Kmt/day CO2. I'm skeptical of any calculation that specifies six significant figures, so take this with a grain of salt.


PPS: A post on a Google group on geoengineering by Alan Robock says Eyjafjallajokull has emitted only about 0.004 Mmt of SO2 (a cooling agent), whereas 1991's Pinatubo eruption emitted 20 Mmt.