Can We Admit That What We’re Seeing Is More Than . . . ‘Weather?’
Posted: March 5, 2012 Filed under: Capitalism 3.0, Climate Change, Environment, Environmentalists, ethics, globalization, Rick Santorum, Rush Limbaugh | Tags: global warming, tornadoes, weather 16 CommentsThese are some images from my neck of the woods from this past weekend’s round of ‘weather.’
Now granted, I’m not a native of the southeast—South Jersey girl here. But the locals tell me that vertical winds are a hellva lot different than tornado touchdowns, particularly when you’re living in hill country, in the shadow of the Smoky Mountains. Locally, this time we were fortunate—some downed branches and yard mess. The major damage was to the east and south of us. Last year? Not so much. 
In fact, last year’s April storm front in the southeast produced 280+ tornadoes in 3 days. Historic, the headlines screamed.
If this were merely a local event, we could chalk it up to bad luck and Mother Nature in a cranky mood. But consider that earth-orbiting satellites have been gathering scientific data not previously available, giving us the ‘big picture’, data on a global scale. The following evidence has been accumulated:
- Sea levels are, in fact, rising, the rate of the last decade nearly double that of the last century.
- Global temperatures are on the rise, increasing since the 1970s with the 10 hottest recorded temperatures within the last 12 years.
- The oceans have been warming since 1969, measureable temperatures increasing in the top surfaces [2300 ft] and the acidification of the oceans has increased by 30% since the start of the Industrial Revolution.
- Glaciers are retreating, the Arctic sea ice is shrinking and the ice sheets of Greenland [36-60 cubic miles per year between 2002-2006] and the Antarctic [36 cubic miles per year between 2002-2005] have declined.
According to NASA data, there are certain facts beyond dispute:
The heat-trapping nature of carbon dioxide and other gases was demonstrated in the mid-19th century. Their ability to affect the transfer of infrared energy through the atmosphere is the scientific basis of many JPL-designed instruments, such as AIRS. Increased levels of greenhouse gases must cause the Earth to warm in response.
Ice cores drawn from Greenland, Antarctica, and tropical mountain glaciers show that the Earth’s climate responds to changes in solar output, in the Earth’s orbit, and in greenhouse gas levels. They also show that in the past, large changes in climate have happened very quickly, geologically-speaking: in tens of years, not in millions or even thousands.
We can take the facts and data of NASA, their orbiting satellites and sensors or we can fall back on the word of say . . . a Rick Santorum, who has proven himself such an expert on other subjects. According to Santorum in a speech in Colorado:
[Climate change is] an absolute travesty of scientific research that was motivated by those who, in my opinion, saw this as an opportunity to create a panic and a crisis for government to be able to step in and even more greatly control your life. … I for one never bought the hoax. I for one understand just from science that there are one hundred factors that influence the climate. To suggest that one minor factor of which man’s contribution is a minor factor in the minor factor is the determining ingredient in the sauce that affects the entire global warming and cooling is just absurd on its face. And yet we have politicians running to the ramparts — unfortunately politicians who happen to be running for the Republican nomination for president — who bought into man-made global warming and bought into cap-and-trade.
We can argue the merits of cap and trade but I find it comical that Santorum is running around talking about Satan on one hand—a Santorum absolute–while denying climate change on the other. This is a ‘don’t trust your lying eyes’ moment. And certainly don’t trust science. He continued with:
We were put on this Earth as creatures of God to have dominion over the Earth, to use it wisely and steward it wisely, but for our benefit not for the Earth’s benefit … We are the intelligent beings that know how to manage things and through that course of science and discovery if we can be better stewards of this environment, then we should not let the vagaries of nature destroy what we have helped create.
Huh? I’m not sure what this rambling statement is intended to mean, other than we shouldn’t let nature clue us in that we’re skating on the edge, pushing the health of the planet and its inhabitants to the max. Full steam ahead with those extractions, boys!
Of course, Santorum is not alone in this type of denial. Rush Limbaugh, who has had his fair share of attention in the last few days [not of the good kind], had this to say after declaring climate change a ‘hoax’:
I happen to believe in God. I believe in a loving, brilliant – I know that this – there is no way, I don’t want to sound simpleton here, but there is not – it is not possible that we would be created by a creator in such a way that we would destroy by virtue of our created existence our own planet and environment. It just doesn’t compute and yet that’s what these people are trying to tell us. [Premiere Radio Networks, The Rush Limbaugh Show, 2/2/11
All righty then! God, a loving brilliant God, would not allow us to destroy ourselves. Scrap all that science and data, the fat man speaketh.
Beginning to see a pattern here? We can believe in myth—Satan’s going to getcha and/or a benevolent, personal God-creator, who would never allow Man to be stupid enough to destroy His/Her creation. No problem then. Keep spewing those toxins into the air, don’t worry about contaminating our water supply and . . . heat? What heat?
Despite the relentless war on climate data in particular and science in general, it turns out the public is beginning to catch on to all the corporate-friendly tap dancing. After a dip in public sentiment about Climate Change and the mass investment in misinformation, Americans are using their powers of observation and taking heed to the mounting evidence. According to the Brookings Institute National Survey, Fall 2011, a strong majority [62%] of the American public now believes that global warming is real and poses a threat to global security. Observation to local effects of warming temperatures and world-wide reports of floods, droughts, freakishly warm temperatures, melting ice sheets, ocean acidification and the effects on wildlife and fauna are slowly turning opinion.
We cannot wait for a benevolent God-spirit to save us. We’ll need to do that for ourselves, sooner rather than later. Because we won’t get a second chance. As Naomi Klien recently stated any real shift towards climate sustainability means a shift in the entire free-market ethos that depends on continual growth, massive extraction and profit-making over people.
. . . you can’t do it all with carbon markets and offsetting. You have to really seriously regulate corporations and invest in the public sector. And we need to build public transport systems and light rail and affordable housing along transit lines to lower emissions. The market is not going to step up to this challenge. We must do more: rebuild levees and bridges and the public sphere, because we saw in Katrina what happens when weak infrastructure clashes with heavy weather—it’s catastrophe. These climate deniers aren’t crazy—their worldview is under threat. If you take climate change seriously, you do have to throw out the free-market playbook.
In the end, so many of these pressing issues are related to a flawed economic and political model—the current corporate state. It will be up to us to reimagine a new system or as Peter Barnes suggested in ‘Capitalism 3.0,’ it’s time to upgrade.
Because there’s no place to run or hide. Earth is the only home we have. Reclaiming the commons isn’t optional; it’s a must. And personally? I’m just not into wicked tornadoes.
UPDATE: The Red Cross is now asking for donations for storm ravaged areas in the Southeast. Contact your local offices for information. Or go here.
peej
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peggysue22
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Sky Dancing 
Well we’ve got a population that believes everything is true in the Bible (including the demand by their god to rape captured women). The creation myth is absolute truth to a huge percentage of the population. The whole damned bible is a myth — and it was copied from older myths.
Unfortunately the arrogant jerks at the University of East Anglia, UK — decided not to play with the climate deniers and put their plans in email which was probably hacked by some of the 1% (owner of mega news outlets). There are games one can play with statistics (legitimately) to make the date come out cleaner.
As Peggysue points out the real evidence is out there that human are indeed influencing Global Warming. Hell the perfect example is Easter Island — human impact — over population — stripping the island of all trees.
The climate change deniers are funded by the mega corporations who have vested interest in the status quo. These jerks think that their money will protect them and they can merely keep doing what has been making them very rich.
Schools aren’t teaching critical thinking or logic — it is all about passing the next round of government imposed tests.
I join Peggysue — what exactly will it take to wake up the mythology believers that humans are a major reason for Global warming. Hurricanes will get worse and Tornadoes will get worse — rain will stop in some areas.
A USA Today front page story from a few days ago — Mosquitoes up by 78% in the last few years. Perhaps a whole lot a mosquito bites in formally mosquito free places will make people uncomfortable enough to question the deniers … . . .. or folks like Santorium will tell us that his god hates gays and is sending a message.
I grew up largely in North Central Texas in what was called tornado alley. Every spring we would have them somewhere around us but only in the spring time. Now they may happen any time of the year and that’s just not the natural environment of my youth.
Climate change is definitely real and I believe humans are playing a part in it. We’re either causing it, speeding it up, or worsening it but, no matter which, we need to do all we can to alleviate it.
Amen ralph. I grew up north of you in south central KS, the middle of tornado alley, and things changing. We would have years where there were a few more tornados than others, or years when 1, MAYBE 2 big tornados would hit. But never anything like this. I think I read a story where a family got hit by two tornados in just under a month. Humans are changing things, and the change is not gradual…..
Hillary 2012
Hi Rock, Where I grew up was kind of in the middle of nowhere so tornadoes would usually just touch down in pastures but they were still scary. When I was about 10, a tornado tore up a big oak tree which stood about 15 feet from our house as it roared by while I was scared as could be inside. That’s closer than I want to get to one ever again!
Tornado alley is the I-35 corridor, so the bulk of them, like you said, would touch down in wide open spaces. OCCASIONALLY, they would go through a populated area, and even more rarely would a really big one hit a city. But our experiences are the same. I used to be a pharmacy tech and we delivered LTC drugs to facilities in Western KS. One particular night (April 14th was the date), we were making a delivery and we were trying to get everything done before a big storm hit. Of course we didn’t, and when the storm hit, the leading edge was a tornado producer. A tornado (later identified as an F4) touched down about 50miles behind us and started chasing us down the highway. Scared wasnt the word since that strecth of highway had no overpasses to hide under. I must have been going at least 100mph, mostly out of fear!!! That was the closet I ever came. Incidentally, that twister petered out after about 60 miles and did no real damage to any buildings or structures.
Hillary 2012
indeed
The East Anglia mess was a debacle and used to pump up the global warming denial push. And you’re right, I think, it was arrogance, caught and magnified at the worst possible moment. It’s one of those ‘what were they thinking’ times.
But the science is the science and the data is there. I’m not of the super doomsday or quasi-earthmother-religious crowd but to sit back and pretend nothing is happening, that business as usual is A-okay is suicidal. It particularly irks me when these right-wing pols start with all the religious crap to service and support corporate greed. Maybe we’re going to have to see ruined crops and severe water shortages before some of these political mouthpieces get a clue. I hope that’s not the case because average people will suffer the consequences, again.
Right, too–the mosquito population is up as are a lot of other insects because of elevated temps and relatively mild winters in the US. That’s not going to help our crop production and could easily spread disease. Our health and that of the planet is all connected. The Network writ large.
Is it true that cows produce more “gas” than cars?
Simple answer, no and I grew up on a farm/ranch with them.
PeggySue,
This is the weirdest thing I have seen in a long time.
Does make one wonder what is up, once you see similar ones in other countries. Minx posted a very strange picture of the storm from the tornado area.
That is plenty bizarre! Do they have any idea what causes a formation like that? That halo cloud over Moscow a few years back has been explained as a heat signature cloud, probably from a cloaked airplane of some sort, taking off at a tremendous speed. It was obviously not an ‘optical illusion,’ the official explanation at the time.
Freaky stuff! We can only guess what’s flying over our heads anymore.
That freaky picture from Susie Madrak turned outto be a volcano in Chile – someone was pullng her leg.
I don’t know, I’m not all that bright, but it seems to me that if icecaps the size of Rhode Island are breaking off in the Arctic then this is not a “good thing”.
It just stands to reason that this will have some major effect on the globe at large but let’s just avert our eyes and pretend it’s not happening.
We experienced one snowfall in October that occurred before all the leaves had dropped off the trees which led to 8 days without power, millions in damage, and the loss of thousands of trees.
Then no snow until last week, the first day of March, which left a mere 5 inches in parts of NE.
June 1st of last year saw tornados ripping through parts of NE which left devastation in its wake.
A mini earthquake took place in July.
August brought us a major hurricane that swept across the region again leaving a trail of devastation and costing millions of dollars along with it.
Last year, from December 26th through March 15th we saw nothing but snow, snow, snow. You could barely see around corners for the height the plows incurred from constant clean up.
We are used to changing weather here in NE but the past 12 months have been brutal since each devastation took place in each season.
A person would be wrong to think that what is happening across the globe is not a result of climate change and the oceans rising.
We were warned.
Wasn’t that earthquake in Virginia probably linked to natural gas fracking? That is happening everywhere and makes me just as mad as climate change denial.
Rush Limbaugh – the gift that keeps on and on – guess he wouldn’t believe this either:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toba_catastrophe_theory
The supervolcano eruption of Toba 60K+ years ago nearly exterminated the human race. But God wouldn’t have done that, rght?
Whew and Santorum….he thinks being a good steward is ignoring the most brilliant scientists we have.
Oh! Forgot – I live in the county next to Paulding where a tornado touched down Friday night. Destroyed dozens of homes, the county airport, and damaged many other homes and a school. Thankfully it lifted off the ground as it sailed over the highly-populated suburbs of north Atlanta. We are getting more and more of these events here. It used to be somewhat rare for the Atlanta metro area.