White House released today a new report on how climate change is going to affect the US. It's well worth reading. For instance, sometime this century, Illinois will have the climate of Texas. Let me tell you what you're in for, Illinois: it's 100 degrees outside right now in Dallas, and it is horrible. And it's only mid-June.
As for us in north Texas, by century's end, we'll likely be suffering through 110-degree days in mid-June, says the government. And there will be a lot less water to go around. Beautiful.
On the upside, the family land my kids will inherit in south Louisiana will be pretty much beachfront property. On the downside, it will be a lot closer to the much-stronger hurricanes expected to afflict us then.
One of the academics who spoke to us in Cambridge said that when he talks to climate scientists, they uniformly say the projections they're working with are worse than what they say publicly. Why don't they say publicly what they say privately? Because they don't want to panic people, he explained, and besides, there's nothing much that can be done to stop it now. All we can do is adapt.
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I'm not going to complain if we get a little of that global warming up here in Western Washington. The last two winters have been the coldest I can remember and I have lived here all my life. Many normally hardy plants were killed both winters. And the summers were chilly and wet. Enough to make a person want to move to Texas. Couldn't we just spread some of this climate change around?
AML,
No one gets promised better weather. It is likely to be more inconsistent, though. Western Washington gets much more moderate winters and summers than it would be expected to if it didn't have the Pacific currents going past. If there are changes in ocean currents, who knows what your climate will be like. Maybe you'll move to Minneapolis for the winter warmth.
Climet change is enevitable and has happend before it is an everlasting cycle that man cannot stop. there is proof that the poles have thawed and at some point the earth will restore balance (Another ice age)
However i do belive that man has speeded things up and governments are more concerned with money and business than being responsible.
the fact is what would the energy companies do if we all went solar?
what would the oil companies do if we all went Hydrogen?
we have the technology but governments will not force us to use it. if government was commited all new houses and commercial developments would have to use solar for both heat and electricity. they would tell car MFRS to produce cars powered by hydrogen by a defined date or not sell cars in this country!!
can the masses take the pain?
To think. I, a former fellow traveler of the Republicans, used to think of myself as "conservative.." Now despise the whole lot.
I so hate them.
All the babbling by Limbaugh and the rest, about how climate change is a left wing conspiracy.. And they're still at it. Most of them on the oil companies' payroll, too. Such B*****rds. So very "pro - life." So pro- tradition. Hypocrites. Yeah. I wish I could go back in time now, and vote for Gore. We probably still would have ended up in Iraq, but at least we may have done it more gracefully, without all the idiotic, graceless xenophobic ranting.. Whatever's wrong, it's all thanks to them librils n' frogs, right, Rush? Yeah. Right. Keep on babbling.
Anyway, We so deserve what we're getting. Burn, Baby Burn.
Texas has played in the world a major if not the preeminent role in stalling all advances in climate negociations. This is supported by the voting record of its people in office, public opinion polls, records and tracking of lobbying from a certain Texan oil company, its former governor and former president, etc... It is legitimate to ask for future generations whether at some point a kind "Nuernberg Process" should not at some point be started either against some individuals or the State of Texas as a whole. As soon as global warming in its effect will be clearly be identified (as a signal vs. noise), legal procedures should start. Maybe Texas should be given to people from Pacific Islands as a compensation (Palau and other are already looking at relocating) by around the year 2060 to 2100.
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