> And here sits the poor Captain waiting for the AC repair man. Well
> maybe next week. The bright side is that even though inside air temp
> has been over 90 degrees for over a week I have conserved vast amounts
> of energy and green house gasses. I wonder if smugness is better than
> being cool.
>>July, August and September are forecast to continue the hot trend over
>>most
>>of the United States, including the vast area of the country west of the
>>Mississippi River, as well as New England, Florida and southern Alaska.
>>
>>Pretty grim, eh? I mean, some experts are saying that polar bears may turn
>>to cannibalism because there's no food, anymore. Plus, the entire world is
>>forecasted to become hotsie-totsie. So how did the G8 Summit react? Uh,
>>just
>>before diving into their private jets and heading home, the head honchos
>>chose to "stay the course" and ignore what's going on. You go, guys!
>>
>>
>>
>>The so-called leaders of the world's industrial nations embraced an energy
>>plan that favors continued reliance on oil and other fossil fuels with no
>>hint of any solid steps to deal with the impending threat of climate
>>change.
>>Wow! Talk about your leadership! Oh, yeah. They're also pushing nuclear
>>energy. How much tin-foil do they wrap around their heads on a daily
>>basis?
>>Reynolds Wrap must be making billions.
>>
>>The G8 countries represent just 15 percent of the world's population, yet
>>they produce 45 percent of all human emissions of carbon dioxide, the
>>leading greenhouse gas responsible for global warming. So, who cares? Not
>>Pretzledent George W. Bush whose been stumping for America to, are you
>>ready
>>for this, return to coal!
>>
>>Earlier this year, he declared: "Do you realize we've got about 250 years
>>of
>>coal here in America? It seems like to me a wise investment is to figure
>>out
>>how to use that coal in a way that heats your homes and fuels your
>>businesses, and at the same time, protects the environment."
>>
>>Okay, that's delusional but...what else is new?
>>
>>Screw stem cell research, let's start taking on that golden oldie - "Black
>>Lung" disease.
>>
>>Now, I'm not going to go into Al Gore territory because, frankly, I'm too
>>short, but let's look at what's gone on in just the last week in terms of
>>Mother Nature giving human beings a massive wedgie.
>>
>>Scientists worldwide are watching temperatures rise, the land turn dry and
>>vast forests go up in flames. In the Siberian Taiga and Canadian Rockies,
>>in
>>southern California and Australia, researchers are finding growing
>>evidence
>>tying an upsurge in wildfires to climate change, an impact long predicted
>>by
>>global-warming forecasters.
>>
>>A team at California's Scripps Institution, in a headline-making report
>>this
>>month, found that warmer temperatures, causing earlier snow runoff and
>>consequently drier summer conditions, were the key factor in an explosion
>>of
>>big wildfires in the U.S. West over three decades, including fires that
>>devastated areas, last week, near Los Angeles.
>>
>>Researchers previously reached similar conclusions in Canada, where fire
>>is
>>destroying an average 6.4 million acres a year, compared with 2.5 million
>>in
>>the early 1970s. And an upcoming U.S.-Russian-Canadian scientific paper
>>points to links between warming and wildfires in Siberia, where 2006
>>already
>>qualifies as an extreme fire season, the sixth in the past eight years.
>>Far
>>to the south in drought-stricken Australia, meanwhile, 2005 was the
>>hottest
>>year on record, and the dangerous brushfire season is growing longer.
>>
>>(Note from Chairman Shrub: "Before I talk about the solutions, I do want
>>people to understand that if you are concerned about the endangered
>>species,
>>then you need to be concerned about catastrophic fire. Fires destroy the
>>animals which, obviously, live amidst the raging fire. If you're concerned
>>about old growth, large stands of timber, then you better be worried about
>>the conditions that create devastating fires. The worst thing that can
>>happen to old stands of timber is these fires. They destroy the big trees.
>>They're so explosive in nature that hardly any tree can survive. We saw
>>that
>>with our own eyes, choppering in here. Thinning underbrush makes sense,
>>makes sense to save our species, it makes sense -- of animals -- it makes
>>sense to save the big stands of trees."
>>
>>If you can understand what he just said, please e-mail me. I'm not sure
>>that
>>our species, lurking under the underbrush, includes whales. Moron.)
>>
>>Meanwhile, in reality....
>>
>>"Temperature increases are intimately linked with increases in area burned
>>in Canada, and I would expect the same worldwide," said Mike Flannigan, a
>>veteran Canadian Forest Service researcher.
>>
>>Warming in high northern latitudes is expected to generate more lightning,
>>igniting more forest fires, notes a report by Amber J. Soja of the U.S.
>>National Institute of Aerospace, Tchebakova and other U.S., Russian and
>>Canadian scientists.
>>
>>(Note from Chairman Shrub: "In terms of the CO2 issue... we will not do
>>anything that harms our economy. Because, first things first, are the
>>people
>>who live in America." Thanks, Shrub. You're whiffing, here. CO2?
>>Streeee-ike
>>one. Economy Ooooooh. Got 'em on a fast ball. What's next? World peace?)
>>
>>Who likes to play ecological dominoes? Apparently, world governments do.
>>Let's watch, shall we?
>>
>>In Alaska, fishermen netted more than 500 tons of squid bycatch in a week,
>>Josh Keaton, a resource management specialist with the National Oceanic
>>and
>>Atmospheric Association, said Friday. The amount was about four times what
>>might be expected. It's not known exactly why so many squid are showing up
>>in the area this summer. Um. Can you say "hot water?"
>>
>>Off the coast of San Francisco, at the Farallon National Wildlife Refuge,
>>two species of birds will have no living hatchlings this year because two
>>species of fish have died off because of warm water intruding on the
>>spawning cycle. Oopsie.
>>
>>"How many years in a row do you see this before you start raising your
>>eyebrows?" said Frank Schwing, an oceanographer with the National Oceanic
>>and Atmospheric Administration in Pacific Grove.
>>
>>(Note from Chairman Shrub regarding endangered animals:
>>
>>Shrub: "...we were just on a ranch with -- owned by a lady who knows it's
>>important to protect the environment by taking care of the land. And as a
>>result of her taking care of the land, worrying about bird habitats, we
>>happened to see a lot of birds today.... I think 2004 is going to be a
>>great
>>year. And in the spirit of great years, I'll answer a few questions."
>>
>>Reporter: "How was the hunt?"
>>
>>Shrub: "It was good fun. You know, when you hunt quail, you get a lot of
>>exercise. As you know, I like exercise. And so my Dad and I, and Ms.
>>Negley,
>>whose ranch we were on, walked a lot of territory, watched the dogs work,
>>and knocked down some birds."
>>
>>Reporter: "How many?"
>>
>>Shrub: "I think I shot five. The limit in Texas, I believe, is 15. I'm not
>>that good a shot, but it was a lot of fun."
>>
>>In other words, if you k'en keep 'em alive for me to kill 'em? That's good
>>environmentalism. Duuuuuuuuuh.)
>>
>>Back to the new warming trend. It's not only heating the water, it's
>>screwing up both air and ocean currents and turning the usually reliable
>>jet
>>stream into something resembling a "Slinky on crack" marathon.
>>
>>The result? Hot stuff!
>>
>>Last week, a massive heat wave slammed Europe, hitting particularly hard
>>in
>>France, where the government issued warnings on radio and television after
>>the number of reported deaths attributable to the heat reached 22.
>>
>>Temperatures hit 100 degrees in the Rhone valley.
>>
>>In France, several days of dry heat and high temperatures -- which reached
>>97 degrees in Paris on Wednesday and 102 degrees in Bordeaux a day
>>earlier -- recalled a heat wave in 2003, when 15,000 people died from
>>dehydration and heat-related disorders and twice that amount throughout
>>Europe.
>>
>>In Paris, heat-busters included four giant humidifiers placed around the
>>Eifel Tower, one at each foot, that sprayed passers-by with water vapor as
>>they tried to escape the sun's punishing rays.
>>
>>Britain faced the hottest day ever recorded in July on Wednesday as a heat
>>wave swept much of Europe - the temps were so hot some road surfaces
>>melted.
>>
>>Construction workers in northwest England dumped crushed rocks on highways
>>because the liquefying pavement was sticking to vehicles, Cumbria's county
>>council said.
>>
>>England usually has 70 degree temps this time of year and, because many of
>>its buildings are old, isn't big on air conditioning. Many people sought
>>shelter indoors as the mercury rose. The temperature at Wisley in Surrey,
>>south of London, peaked at 97.7 Fahrenheit -- the hottest temperature ever
>>recorded in Britain in July.
>>
>>At the historic Royal Courts of Justice, judges were allowed to remove
>>their
>>traditional wigs for court proceedings. The guards in front of the palace
>>had their time on duty cut by half. London's Underground has no air
>>conditioning and the Evening Standard newspaper measured temperatures in
>>the
>>train system at 117 degrees.
>>
>>Two people died in Spain as temperatures climbed above 104 degrees, while
>>officials in France said as many as nine people who died recently were
>>believed to be victims of the heat.
>>
>>In China, a tropical storm killed 530 people.
>>
>>In Indonesia, a tidal wave killed nearly 700.
>>
>>Back in the US of A? Ahhhh. We were hot, hot, hot. And crazy, baby. In the
>>St. Louis area, alone, over a half-million people lost electricity because
>>of savage, heat-driven thunderstorms.
>>
>>It hit 118 degrees Friday in Phoenix, making it the hottest day since 1995
>>and one of the 11 hottest since 1895, when temperature records were first
>>kept in the city.
>>
>>Heat waves left much of the country sweltering last week, with
>>temperatures
>>soaring into the upper 90s and higher from coast to coast. Heat-related
>>deaths were reported in Oklahoma, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, California,
>>Pennsylvania, Arkansas, New York, New Jersey, Indiana, South Dakota and
>>Tennessee.
>>
>>Oklahoma City was so hot Friday that a portion of Interstate 44 buckled,
>>forcing the temporary closure of two lanes.
>>
>>The National Weather Service said winds estimated at up to 65 m.p.h.
>>slammed
>>parts of the mid-West. With no warning.
>>
>>(Note from Chairman Shrub: "In my judgment, we need to set aside whether
>>or
>>not greenhouse gases have been caused by mankind or because of natural
>>effects, and focus on the technologies that will enable us to live better
>>lives and at the same time, protect the environment." Nice.)
>>
>>In New York, tens of thousands of people were still without power on
>>Sunday,
>>the seventh day of a mysterious electrical problem during the hottest week
>>of the year. Nearly all of Queens has no electricity and nobody knows why.
>>
>>(Note from Chairman Shrub: "We got to be wise about our energy policy. I
>>happen to believe in nukyular power. I believe nukyular power -- I know
>>nukyular power is renewable, and it protects the environment." Just ask
>>anybody who once lived near Chernobyl or Three Mile Island.)
>>
>>There was flooding in both the North and South East. Oh, yeah. The
>>Midwest,
>>too.
>>
>>In the West, temperatures soared above 100 degrees in Washington and
>>California.
>>
>>Around 55 record highs were shattered on Friday. Phoenix, Ariz. had its
>>hottest day in almost 11 years (118). Hillsboro, Ore. set an all-time
>>record
>>high of 108. San Jose, Calif. may have recorded its hottest morning low on
>>record (74). Even more amazing is that Needles, Calif. had a morning low
>>of
>>100 degrees, which was an all-time hot low temperature.
>>
>>Records were set or tied Saturday at all five of the National Weather
>>Service's recording locations in California Central Valley: 109 degrees in
>>Sacramento, 111 in Redding, and 112 in Red Bluff, Stockton and Modesto.
>>
>>Emergency workers scrambled to help heat exposure victims in downtown Los
>>Angeles, where 99-degree temperatures broke the 96-degree record set in
>>1960. Temperatures in the city's Woodland Hills section hit a record 119
>>degrees, topping the 116-degree high set in 1985.
>>
>>Records were also set throughout the San Francisco Bay area, including
>>Livermore at 115 degrees, San Rafael at 108 degrees and San Jose at 102
>>degrees, according to the weather service. San Francisco's 87 degrees
>>topped
>>an 81-degree record set in 1917. (Note: San Francisco is suppoed to be
>>FOGGY
>>alla time.)
>>
>>Pierre, South Dakota set a new all-time record high of 117 last week.
>>
>>And a new study of Louisiana's coastal erosion shows the loss of land at a
>>catastrophic rate of 25 to 35 square miles per year, equivalent to one
>>football field every 15 minutes.
>>
>>As I write this, from central California, we are experiencing hot, humid,
>>thunderstorm-ridden weather. We've broken temperature levels for the last
>>two days. It NEVER rains in California in the summer. I mean...flash flood
>>warnings? This is like my growing up in New Jersey! The world is spinning
>>on
>>it's head, thanks to leaders like George W. Bush.
>>
>>Here's a classic exchange between our homegrown Einstein and the British
>>ITV
>>reporter Trevor McDonald from last year.
>>
>>(McDonald: "Many countries are expecting international legal binding
>>agreements on cutting greenhouse gas emissions. Can they expect your
>>support
>>in doing that?"
>>
>>Shrub: "If this looks like Kyoto, the answer is no." On the other hand, if
>>people want to come together and share technologies and develop
>>technologies
>>and jointly spend -- and spend money on research and development, just
>>like
>>the United States is, to help us diversify away from fossil fuels, more
>>than
>>willing to discuss it."
>>
>>McDonald: "But they're wasting their time if they think that they'll get
>>from you an international binding agreement about mandatory curbs on
>>greenhouse gases?"
>>
>>Shrub: "I have -- I have no idea -- look, you're asking me to design a
>>treaty here with you on the set of the -- right here on the set of this --
>>on this beautiful set. I mean, that's kind of -- but I'm telling you, if
>>you're trying to get me to say, we support Kyoto, the answer is no, we
>>don't. And it's a bad deal for America. ...America is the largest investor
>>in the technologies necessary to be able to say to people, you can grow
>>your
>>economy so people's standard of living can improve, and at the same time
>>be
>>good stewards of the environment."
>>
>>McDonald: "But pollution in this country has increased amazingly since
>>1992."
>>
>>Shrub: "That is a totally inaccurate statement."
>>
>>McDonald: "It's a U.N. figure."
>>
>>Shrub: "Well, I just beg to differ with every figure you've got. The
>>environment has -- the quality of the environment has improved, in spite
>>of
>>the fact that we've grown our economy.")
>>
>>And, so, as the sun slowly sinks and sets fire to the west, and north, and
>>south and east, let us take in our Fearless Leader's grasp of global
>>warming...
>>
>>And remind him that, when it gets hot, dry shrubs are the first to go
>>kablooie.
>>
>>Maybe the next time he's out on the ranch, clearing brush? He might look
>>into a mirror.
>>
>>Source:
>>
http://mkanejeeves.com/?p=221
