February 04, 2011 04:15 AM UTC

Dr. Urbina, Meet the Flat Earth Society

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• by: Colorado Pols

Here’s another instructive bit of forwarded multimedia that we didn’t want to escape mention–from the Senate confirmation hearing yesterday of Gov. John Hickenlooper’s pick to head the state Department of Public Health and Environment, Dr. Chris Urbina. We think that by the end of this roughly six and a half minutes of audio, you’ll join us in expressing regret on behalf of the entire institution of the Colorado Senate that a person of the education and qualifications of Dr. Urbina had to endure what really does amount to a profound insult to his intelligence.

Because, dear reader, Dr. Urbina got what might have been his first taste of one of our very favorite legislators, state Sen. Kevin Lundberg. And Lundberg wanted to talk “global warming.”

Can’t see the audio player? Click here.

But wait, what’s the only way Lundberg’s lowbrow grilling could get any better? Why, if Sen. Shawn Mitchell doesn’t think Dr. Urbina answered Lundberg’s questions about wonderful, non toxic, makes-the-trees-happy carbon dioxide correctly!

Can’t see the audio player? Click here.

Dr. Urbina can’t completely hide the exasperation by the end, and he wasn’t the only one in the room from what we’re told–this includes some Republicans. At least they didn’t crack about how cold it was this week and human-caused climate change is therefore obviously a myth, because that sounds even better when you play it back to melting glaciers and drowning polar bears.

Don’t rule out worse embarrassments from the realm of possibility, we suppose; perhaps Tom Tancredo will be ambassador to Mexico someday.