"The most consistent and smartest thinking and writing about progressive politics isn't happening in Sacramento, but being churned out day after day on sites and by organizations like Calitics, Orange County Progressive, and the California Budget Project." - CalBuzz
Now I know the corporate media haven't been talking about it lately, but just because they're not talking about it doesn't mean it's not happening. Rather, it's quite dangerous that it's falling under the radar. Believe it or not, the climate crisis is getting worse.
Late last week, we found out that Senate Environment & Public Works (EPW) Committee Chair Barbara Boxer (D-CA) wants to delay her committee's vote on the Senate climate & energy bill and move it to September. And furthermore, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) supports this move as he'll have more time to round up votes. However, we don't really know if this is good news or bad news.
The delay bodes ill for passing a climate bill this year. It shows leaders are not confident they would have enough votes to pass the bill and want as much time as possible to rally support. Boxer also noted that many key senators with a role in crafting climate policy are also leading the debate over health care, another major congressional priority for this year.
[...] Several environmental groups have written in to say that they think today's announcement is good news for climate legislation.
"We don't think that this is a problem at all," said Josh Dorner, spokesman for Sierra Club. "In fact, we think it's a good thing. It's a huge organizing opportunity, both here in D.C. and in the field. It also shows they are taking the time to make some meaningful, positive changes to the bill."
Environmental Defense Fund was equally optimistic. "From our perspective, this is the right decision," said Tony Kreindler, media director for climate at EDF. "It gives senators more time to review and understand the historic bill just passed by the House. It signals a serious intent to seek agreements on key issues going forward. And it gives Boxer and her colleagues on both sides of the aisle more time to reach those agreements. After all, the chairman has the ability to move forward today if the goal were simply to push any bill through."
Honestly, I don't mind the delay that much... So long as this delay results in a stronger bill with more votes in time for the international climate change summit in Copenhagen this December. Let me explain my thoughts some more down below.
New Orleans may sink into the sea by 2100. Much of Florida may also be underwater by then. Drought will likely become the norm out West, meaning California could no longer provide the food we depend upon. Las Vegas may become downright inhabitable.
No, I'm not fabricating any of this. These will be the consequences of inaction if we continue to delay implementing the solutions we need to solve the coming climate crisis. But for some reason, may of our supposedly wise lawmakers in Capitol Hill are either willfully ignorant of the facts or downright lying about our future.
In case you forgot, HR 2454, also known as the "American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009", is coming up for a final vote tonight. This is the "global warming bill" that everyone's anticipating. Honestly, it's not perfect. It doesn't go as far in combating the climate crisis as it should.
Still, it's better than nothing and Rep. Henry Waxman (D-West LA) has allowed some great improvements to the bill. So on that note, here's a note from CDP Chair John Burton urging passage.
Dear OCProgressive.com Reader,
The House is about to vote in the next hour on our clean energy future!!
Can you please take 2 minutes to make a quick call to Congress to tell them to support the bill?
The American Clean Energy and Security Act is a visionary step toward developing a clean energy economy, promoting energy security, and preserving our planet.
Call the capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and urge your representative to vote YES.
Compared with the period from 1960 through 1979, temperatures in the Southwest are expected to rise 4 to 10 degrees by the end of the century.
The chance for longer-lasting heat waves could force the region's residents to use more air conditioning, which would increase the risk of blackouts as electricity supplies become depleted.
The report also warned that the region, already suffering an extended drought as evidenced by declines in Colorado River flow and spring snowpack, should be prepared to face large reductions in spring precipitation by the end of the century. With that, combined with temperature increases and rapid population growth, the Southwest can expect increased competition for water.
The rising temperatures will also lead to more wildfires, and the loss of wetlands will cause more flooding along rivers. Also, ski resort areas will have less snow, cutting recreational opportunities.
While all of this sounds like a doomsday movie script, it is being presented to the public in all seriousness by many of the country's top scientists.
The Las Vegas Sun mentioned this brutal reality today in a hard-hitting editorial on the need for real action on the climate crisis. The whole world is threatened, but we're especially at risk here in The American Southwest. We already have little water, but climate change may end up taking away the little water we have left.
So what can we do? We need to change. We need to rethink the way we interact with this planet.
Her facts of course. Shocking isn't it, Laura Ingraham edited some Al Gore testimony to push her agenda on Climate Change during her fill in for Bill O'Reilly. Like he needs someone to help him lie?
Ingraham is attempting to make it look like Al Gore is proud that he's profiting from investments he's made in green technology and completely takes out the part where he talks about donating all the proceeds from such investments to charity as well as proceeds from Inconvenient Truth and his books.
Here's the unedited clip and the edited clip at Media Matters.
That's the question that Lester R. Brown asks in his fascinating piece for Scientific American, Could Food Shortages Bring Down Civilization?. And it's a valid question, especially since those of us in America who have a vast abundance of over processed and cheap food could never even consider this a problem.
For many years I have studied global agricultural, population, environmental and economic trends and their interactions. The combined effects of those trends and the political tensions they generate point to the breakdown of governments and societies. Yet I, too, have resisted the idea that food shortages could bring down not only individual governments but also our global civilization.
I can no longer ignore that risk. Our continuing failure to deal with the environmental declines that are undermining the world food economy-most important, falling water tables, eroding soils and rising temperatures-forces me to conclude that such a collapse is possible.
OK, this is for the people who are getting their talking points from the Republican anti-science crowd.
Weather is not climate.
That's why we have different words to distinguish between the two concepts.
If it's snowing in March in Washington, that's "weather", and one random weather event does not justify the ongoing right wing demonization of Al Gore. As my friend A Siegel says at Get Energy Smart Now,
Sometimes the climate crisis will bring us fun things like a snow day in March in DC, and sometimes it will bring us deathly heat waves across entire continents.
The one thing that we know we can count on if we don't get a handle on it: it will definitely bring an unpredictability to our weather that will wreak havoc on our economy, our public health systems, and the way we live our daily lives."
Why is Dana Rohrabacher on the House Committee on Science and Techhology, when he continues to make comments like this? Our nation's top climate scientist is participating in a demonstration at the Capitol Coal power plant, and Dana always is there for a quick, colorful quote.
Meanwhile, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., urged Hansen to rethink his plans.
"If he wants to have a demonstration concerning global warming, coming to the Capitol is not a right choice," Rohrabacher told FOXNews.com. "The bottom line is if Hansen wants to protest global warming, he should go to the National Cathedral and take it up with God rather than going to Capitol Hill."
While the Register pays blowhards to recycle the latest crap from the climate change deniers, their reporters also manage to cover the news.
I quickly took a screen shot when I found the highlighted picture on the Register's website pointing to an article by Pat Brennan about the effect of climate change on Southern California birds.
I know, it's crazy isn't it, talk radio giving out misinformation, how could anyone be shocked?
John and Ken spent some time yesterday afternoon talking about the impossible juxtaposition of "Global Warming" and the string of very extreme cold spells all over the Country. It must mean Global Warming is a hoax! It's not real!
Of course, John and Ken are not scientists and I'm not going to argue whether "Global Warming" is man made or a natural flux in our weather system, but that this characterization of "Global Warming" is just ignorant.
