Jim,
>The 'consensus' on anthropic global warming was achieved through
>political fiat, most of the scientists signing the Kyoto declaration,
>not being experts in climate.
Sounds like you are a global warming skeptic. I'd be interested in hearing the reasons you are skeptical since I've never seen a good presentation of the other side. The only skeptics I've heard are right wing think tank talking heads or scientists who work for oil and gas companies.
A global warming hypothesis is impossible to prove definitively given the extreme complexity of the planet's atmospheric systems. Even assuming that greenhouse gases do make the planet warmer, the ultimate result may be hard to predict (I've seen models which say Europe will experience an ice age because rising global temperatures may shut off the Gulf Stream). But I am unaware of any other explanations for the large amount of recent evidence that the planet is getting warmer. The skeptics I've seen simply claim it is an unproven hypothesis, and simply give no reason for all of the changes which have been observed.
Brett