Climate model predictions of global warming have generally been fairly consistent in projecting future warming, as shown in this animated chart:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BZ38rf7F3al/
The chart is taken from this 2017 article: Analysis: How well have climate models projected global warming?:
> "While some models projected less warming than we’ve experienced and some projected more, all showed surface temperature increases between 1970 and 2016 that were not too far off from what actually occurred, particularly when differences in assumed future emissions are taken into account."
https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-how-well-have-climate-m...
In general the climate science has been very sloppy so they lost a lot of trust. This starts with the name greenhouse effect that describes something different from the main effect in a greenhouse (warm air cannot escape vs reflected radiation). And goes on with melting glaciers in the Himalayas in the next 30 years. Climate gate didn’t increase trust either.
Of course this doesn’t prove that climate scientists are wrong. But they appear more confident than they should.
It's like the early days of the space race. Scientists would say things are dangerous and were just being alarmist, or think it was safe then the whole thing blew up killing everyone aboard. Scientists can't always predict the future as accurately as they think.
I don't think this is a good reason to just blithely hope for the best, though.