Slashdot: Ice-Free Summers Coming to Arctic

I'm not sure what to think of this. The article talks about the inevitability that in coming years, the Arctic icecap will melt due to global warming.

My only contention is that the Earth has always had cyclical warming patterns. Remember back when a mile-high glacier sat on top of where I am typing right now? It was pretty cold then. And before that, this area was almost tropical. Talk about extremes...

Something happened to cool the Earth so much that we entered an ice age, and then something happened to warm the Earth so much that the ice age ended. I don't think that we can blame the Bush administration for those events millions of years ago (though, I'm sure that some Leftists would try).

Maybe industrial activity today is accelerating whatever natural warming trend was already in place, but my personal belief is that the Earth has its own agenda, and it's rather unlikely that mankind could have too much effect in changing it.

Keep in mind, also, that one major volcanic eruption that sends a lot of ash into the atmosphere will cool things down considerably (if only for a year). We'd be facing famine at that point, so I think I'd rather have things a little warm compared to being a little cool.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_Without_a_Summer