Mike,

Yes you are right on the semantics, CO2 more or less acts to reduce heat loss:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenhouse_gas

However, the point is so fine it is lost on most everyone, the bottom line is that CO2 and many other gasses trap energy in the earth's atmosphere that would otherwise be lost if the concentrations of these gasses were lower.

The plots that always give me pause are ones like these (the source of this graph is the DOE/Oak Ridge labs):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:G...on_by_Type.png

The industrial revolution has brought about major changes in the carbon accounting in the atmosphere, that is for sure.

For further reading on CO2 dynamics and other greenhouse gases and aerosols, from some well known and reliable sources that have nothing to do with our buddy Al:

The US EPA's website on climate change:

http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/index.html

The international panel on climate change (these guys are affiliated with the United Nations):

http://www.grida.no/climate/ipcc_tar/wg1/index.htm

The references section on this link is a great start on a list of literature on the subject. Check it out there are several pages of authors & their publications. It's all about seeing what's out there and making informed decisions for yourself. Only time will tell what is in store for us in the future.

Now if only it wasn't 10 degrees outside, and ice wasn't floating on the river, I could go fishing tomorrow and forget all about this global warming stuff.