To me, this is another area where it's 'all about the money'. I agree with much of what you said, both sides are guilty of exaggeration and speculation, so it's a hard one to figure out. I do get sick of all the 'know it alls' that try to convince themselves that the science is on their side, when science is never, ever on anyone's side. Facts is facts. And today's proven fact is often proven wrong tomorrow.
Yes, I can about the environment as much as the next average Joe ... but this whole debate has gone long past science IMHO and borders on religion.
I edited my previous comment w/ an example before you replied. It just never ends to surprise me all the people who purport to care about the environment but don't actually make meaningful changes to practice what they preach.
edit: I meant after you replied.
There's this weird belief that climate skeptics don't recycle, aren't into conservation, and don't care about the environment. I'm undecided on the actual impact b/c there's so much false data and propaganda floating around from both sides. I'm concerned about everything from the electronic waste we mass produce to the insane amounts of pollution in major cities. A lot of environmentally friendly legislation isn't what it appears on the surface. Few people actually realize VW lobbied for the very laws they broke. There was no actual government regulation or testing of their products but I guarantee they'd fund plenty of studies on any new competitors.
Going back to being in cub scouts I was taught to care for the environment. I actually take time to reduce my own carbon foot print. I could afford a new phone every year easily but I'm rocking a HTC evo 4g lte from 2012. I've repaired it, it's got an otter box, and it runs faster than most my friends Iphones and newer devices b/c I reset it yearly and disable apps I don't use. I can do everything from voice search, to gps, it's a wireless hotspot when I need one to whatever. So it doesn't open with a fingerprint or facial recognition. I'll live and don't really want those features at any rate. I'm not gonna go grab the newest Iphone to keep up with the joneses while this one still works great.