Outnumbered By Morons 'Till He Died (Figures)

"[Michael Crichton] was,..a champion of good science, and never more so than in a 2003 lecture at Caltech, hilariously titled 'Aliens Cause Global Warming.'

'As the 20th century drew to a close,' he warned, 'the connection between hard scientific fact and public policy became increasingly elastic. In part this was possible because of the complacency of the scientific profession; in part because of the lack of good science education among the public; in part because of the rise of specialized advocacy groups which have been enormously effective in getting publicity and shaping policy; and in great part because of the decline of the media as an independent assessor of fact.'

The speech drew considerable criticism, as did 'State of Fear,' the 2004 novel that drew on the same themes. Al Gore, among others, was dismissive. Then again, Crichton had serious scientific credentials."

-- The Editors, on the death of the first author to elegantly deconstruct the NewAge haze on environmentalism, in The Wall Street Journal.