That is what science is all about. Someone comes up with a new idea and then others investigate it. In the case of global warming it has been investigated by thousands of scientists over several decades and the majority have reached the conclusion that it is actually happening and it is going to cost trillions to deal with its impact. Ignoring it will not change that fact as the clown in the cartoon is discovering.
I quite enjoyed Melville’s classic, but then as a history major I wasn’t put off by the detailed descriptions of whaling and life on board a ship.