A foregone conclusion is, “A result that is obvious to everyone even before it happens.” Who cares about data, evidence, or thoughtful analysis? Saddam Hussein winning reelection in 2002 was a foregone conclusion. We were told that with 100 percent turnout, he won the election 11 million to zero. Actually counting the voters or votes is unnecessary with such a foregone conclusion.

Global warming is another example of a foregone conclusion. Whatever the weather of the day, the cause is global warming. Seventy inches of snow recently fell in Buffalo. Slate concluded that this is further evidence of global warming. If it was 75 degrees and sunny that week, is there any doubt that Slate would reach the same conclusion? The only difference being that at least warm temperatures and global warming could have a logical connection.

Lake effect snow in Buffalo is not unusual. Cold arctic air picks up moisture over the Great Lakes and deposits it over land. The only thing unusual about the recent snow is its severity. Buffalo residents described it “as the worst in memory.” The Washington Post however already reached its foregone conclusion that we should not believe our own eyes; “Dear snow-trolls: Winter weather does not refute global warming.” Seems that any weather, warm or cold, wet or dry, storms or lack of, points to the foregone conclusion of global warming, just as every single person in Iraq made it to the polls on election day and voted to reelect Saddam.

Blame it on the polar vortex, according to climate scientists. Warming oceans and melting ice are weakening the vortex, causing colder, snowier winters. Huh? This year has given us, “The earliest ice on some of the Great Lakes in at least 40 years.” Arctic ice is decreasing as Antarctic ice is increasing, meaning a shift, not a net loss. How does one reasonably draw conclusions from conflicting and contradictory data? Unless the conclusions are foregone and data is simply window dressing.

The Buffalo snow has been bumped from the daily news cycle, replaced by the Ferguson grand jury decision and predictable riots. Which as an aside could be considered a foregone conclusion. But the global warming bandwagon rolls along. A coordinator at 350.org, a climate change advocacy group, writes, “It was not hard for me to make the connection between the tragedy in Ferguson, Missouri, and the catalyst for my work to stop the climate crisis.” If the gentle giant, Michael Brown, indeed went to his grandmother’s house last August rather than robbing a convenience store and assaulting a police officer, then the original riots would never have happened. If the grand jury indicted police officer Darren Wilson, perhaps this week’s riots would not have happened. The weather and climate would have been the same in St Louis regardless of the actions of the gentle giant or the grand jury. So would the absence of riots also be related to climate change?

Not just Ferguson, but also the Arab Spring riots. The Center for American Progress found a link between global warming and the Arab Spring. They believe, “The consequences of climate change are stressors that can ignite a volatile mix of underlying causes that erupt into revolution.” Never mind that a, “toothless and feckless foreign policy” led to much of the Middle East tumult. Instead it was a foregone conclusion that global warming was responsible.

What about Putin’s aggression in Ukraine? Could climate change be behind this too? Blogger John Casey makes this case, although not in the usual way. He believes that Putin’s moves, “May also be the first steps the Russians are taking to prepare for the coming cold!”

Silly Albert Einstein looked to physics and quantum mechanics in his quest to create a unified field theory. He should instead have used global warming as the theory explaining all the forces in nature. Climatistas have done just that. With a foregone conclusion that the planet is warming and human activity is the cause, all weather, hot, cold, or just right, bolsters this foregone conclusion. Just like in Iraq where Saddam received every single vote, regardless of who voted and how they marked their ballots.

Brian C Joondeph, MD, MPS, a Denver based physician, is an advocate of smaller, more efficient government. Twitter @retinaldoctor.