While long-term cooling trends over millennia are debated, it's important to consider the context of natural variability. For instance, the Little Ice Age (roughly 1350–1850) was a period of cooler temperatures in parts of the Northern Hemisphere, but it wasn't a global trend. In fact, many regions experienced warming during that time. Also, the Medieval Warm Period (around 950–1250) saw temperatures in some areas comparable to today. These examples show that climate has always had ups and downs, and framing the past few thousand years as a "trend downwards" oversimplifies the complexity. The real takeaway is that natural cycles play a role, but human influence is now a dominant factor.