What are the problems with the surface temperature data?

The main problem is over land where most of the warming has actually occurred. The difficulty is that you have a lot of variation in temperatures over short distances. We have evidence that there is a warm bias in the surface record and that claims like ‘2005 being the warmest on record etc.’ are not valid. The different communities that are collecting these data, the East Anglia group in the UK, the GISS group (NASA) and the group at NOAA, have different analyses, but they are basically extracting their record from the same raw data, which have these biases. We think the surface air temperature is a very poor metric to compare against. Unfortunately that’s what the IPCC has chosen.

Is there an alternative?

I have suggested assessing the ocean heat content trends (see), which is a much more robust diagnostic for global warming or cooling. See the full interview here

The United States’ leading hurricane forecaster said Friday that global ocean currents, not human-produced carbon dioxide, are responsible for global warming, and the Earth may begin to cool on its own in five to 10 years. William Gray, a Colorado State University researcher best known for his annual forecasts of hurricanes along the U.S. Atlantic coast, also said increasing levels of carbon dioxide will not produce more or stronger hurricanes.

He said that over the past 40 years the number of major hurricanes making landfall on the U.S. Atlantic coast has declined compared with the previous 40 years, even though carbon dioxide levels have risen. Gray, speaking to a group of Republican state lawmakers, had harsh words for researchers and politicians who say man-made greenhouse gases are responsible for global warming. “They’re blaming it all on humans, which is crazy,” he said. “We’re not the cause of it.”
See full story here

Anderson (Science 2007) concludes that “sea-level rise may not destabilize ice sheets as much as previously feared,” which in turn suggests that sea level itself may not rise as fast or as high as previously feared. In addition, sea-level rise due to polar ice wastage is currently progressing at what could only be called a snail’s pace, all of which facts lead us to wonder ... Just what make-believe world is Al Gore living in?  See full story here

Prize-potential pontificating is never more appropriate than in a journalistic exposé of heartless, power-hungry villains oppressing powerless victims and raping the Earth. And Vanity Fair’s 2007 Green Issue oozes with righteous indignation toward all those evil executive-branch politicians and big businesses which exploit the earth for power and profit.  Climate scientist mocks Vanity Fair’s Green Issue as ‘mindless hypocrisy’

”...there’s no question in my mind that humanity is able to affect climate on a local scale. We all know that cities are warmer than the suburbs or surrounding countryside. So there’s clear indication that human beings, in producing energy, in just living, generate heat. We’re not going to go back to living without energy. Whether or not human beings can produce a global climate change is an important question. This question is not at all settled...”
Read interview here

In Roger Pielke’s excellent Climate Science weblog, there were two guest op ed blogs worth a read. One by Hendrik Tennekes (actually third in a series) and another by Ben Herman.

Also Roger proposes a much needed Litmus Test to track model forecast global warming and Proposes Evaporation Is Equal To Precipitation On The Global Scale - Implications To the Conclusion On A Claimed Increase of Atmospheric Water Vapor

Just a sampling of great posts. 

A series of papers and newspapers stories raise the questions: Are Southern Oceans
Enhancing or Retarding Global Warming?” Is Antarctica Melting or Growing? Are
Phantom Eddies Roaming the Southern Seas?

"There are two sides in the global warming debate—those who think the earth is doomed and those who do not believe anything is happening. There is also the question as to whether or not any global warming might be human-induced as opposed to a natural cycle. State Climatologist David Legates told WGMD’s Randy Nelson show that the arguments on both sides concerning global warming-- really don’t solve anything. Legates adds that rather than focusing on the climate issue, there are a lot of things than can be done on a prudent basis, such as conserving energy.”