Day: December 17, 2013

Climate Change Debate

One last note on this…my day of climate change……

There is a debate, believe it or not, going on about the issue of climate change or if you care global warming…..the problem to my thinking is that the debate is seldom cared on at the same time.  Yes we have conflicting points of view and they are very vocal in their positions….the real problem is that the debate is never done face to face.  Instead the discussion is done in 30 second sound bites or 3-5 minute segments on the media we call news…….and then it is usually not the opposing sides but rather one side or the other making their points and NO one challenges their findings, instead the moderator just feeds the position taken, basically soft ball questions….nothing in opposition.

We all have our opinion on the subject……me?  I think man would f*ck up a wet dream……but then it is my opinion and we know what they say about opinions, don’t we?  There is scholarly research done on both sides of the argument……however there are those that are paid by business and industry to come up with a position paper and they use mercenary scientists that will do whatever it takes to earn a buck.

Let me illustrate for you……we will look at a simple statement of what conservs feel and those of liberals…….

Liberal
Global warming is caused by an increased production of carbon dioxide through the burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil and natural gas).  The U.S. is a major contributor to global warming because it produces 25% of the world’s carbon dioxide.  Proposed laws to reduce carbon emissions in the U.S. are urgently needed and should be enacted immediately to save the planet.  Many reputable scientists support this theory.
Conservative
Change in global temperature is natural over long periods of time.  Science has not shown that humans can affect permanent change to the earth’s temperature.  Proposed laws to reduce carbon emissions will do nothing to help the environment and will cause significant price increases for all.  Many reputable scientists support this theory.
There you go…….if you want to debate the subject……pick a side and then build your case around that belief……….
There will Never be a deciding debate on this issue until the players stop acting like cowards and debate one another face to face…..and there will NEVER be a solution one way or the other until the voter learns to listen and understand all sides of an issue……basically, what I am saying is that we will NEVER have a solution of this issue in my life time…….Americans just do not have it in them.  And that is the truly sad part of this situation.

House Bills Give Free Reign to the Oil and Gas Industry – Undermine Public Participation | Center for Effective Government

We know all the hype…..drill baby drill…..or millions of jobs will be created by Keystone……fracking is a safe alternative…..on and on.  But ask yourself what, if anything did the Congress do this last session in conjunction with environmental issues?

House Bills Give Free Reign to the Oil and Gas Industry – Undermine Public Participation | Center for Effective Government.

When Hell Freezes!

Continuing my posts on climate change, my topic of the day……..I have heard the Middle East called many things…but the one that always gets me is….It is Hell on earth……and then I think about the old saying….”when Hell freezes over”……..

News from the Middle East just brought some of that BS to the headlines…..

(Newser) – Cairo saw a rare and wonderful sight today: Snow. Much of the Middle East has been blanketed by the white stuff in recent days thanks to a region-wide cold snap and winter storm. According to local news reports, Cairo hasn’t gotten snow in more than a century, the LA Times reports. Talk of the weather lit up social media—you can see a nice collection of tweeted images at the Huffington Post—with some joking that it was the mystical work of Gen. Abdel Fattah Sisi. “It’s the first time in my life that I have seen it like this,” one resident told the AFP.

But the snow is causing major problems elsewhere in the region. Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon and Jordan are being hammered by weather they weren’t designed to withstand, sending agencies rushing to distribute blankets and tarps, al-Jazeera reports. Jerusalem, meanwhile, has been hit with three feet of snow, knocking out power and closing roads—and officials today warned that the worst was yet to come. “We are expecting a second storm triple the size of the one we’ve seen now,” one municipality spokesman said, according to the Jerusalem Post.

May not sound like a big deal if you live in Buffalo….but believe me….when there is 3 feet of snow in Jerusalem……it is a big deal.  And more on the way.

Is it possible that this could become the new “normal” for this region……if so, why?  When I was in the Middle East I had been cold but I did not see snow with the exception of a minor flurry when I was working in Aleppo…….this just seems way too odd to be a normal…….thoughts?

7000 Times More Potent!

This week with our hard working Congress in recess until the new year (that was sarcasm in case you missed it) I have decided to focus on the issues.  Issues that we will hear about hourly next year, I after all it is an election year and the BS artists will be out in force.

Today’s topic will be climate change……I know we all do not agree on what is going on with our climate….but reputable research into the effects of CO2 on the environment is overwhelming and it will depend on how it is spun as to whether it is pro or con……that in itself is a sad indictment to our mental capacities……

AS dangerous as CO2 is there is something worse…far worse….and it has been pumped into the atmosphere for decades………

(Newser) – Canadian researchers have detected another greenhouse gas—and its global warming potential is extreme. Over the course of a century, “a single molecule of PFTBA has the equivalent climate impact as 7,100 molecules of CO2,” says a lead author of the study that identified perfluorotributylamine. “We claim that PFTBA has the highest radiative efficiency of any molecule detected in the atmosphere to date,” Angela Hong adds. Electrical items, including transistors and capacitors, have used PFTBA since the middle of the last century, the Guardian reports, though its impact on climate was only now established.

And like certain other industrial chemicals, “it is not being regulated by any type of climate policy,” says Hong. The study’s silver lining: The researchers found that compared to carbon dioxide, there’s relatively little of the stuff in the atmosphere: 0.18 parts per trillion around Toronto, where the study was conducted, versus 400 parts per million of CO2. But while trees and oceans act as carbon sinks, researchers say no one knows how to rid the atmosphere of the chemical, AFP notes, which could stick around for as long as 500 years. “We have to make sure it doesn’t grow and become a very large contributor to global warming,” an expert tells the Guardian.

Sorry but time has long past for the bullshit……and I am sure that this will be a well contested issue come elections…….and I would bet that there will be NO debate among the pros and the cons except in 30 minute statements on competing media outlets…..as Nero fiddled while Rome burned….our politicians are snoozing while the planet is set ablaze in the coming future……I am so proud to be a human it is most unbearable……once again…SARCASM!