One of the Hard-Right, a.k.a. Alt-Right/Ult-Right points of view, a view that has been drilled into their feathery little heads for many years, is that global warming, a.k.a. climate change, a.k.a. the greenhouse effect, etc., is a myth. There's a reason that some SIGs (Special Interest Groups) want people to believe that, and there's a reason that it's so easy to sell to the Hard Right. I'll deal with the second part first.
It's easy to sell to the Hard Right Sheeple (HRS) because the "Liberals" (you know, the 85% of the country that ISN'T Hard Right) have the opposite point of view. The HRS views the rest of the world as bleeding hearts, Sheeple, Kool-Aid drinkers, and elderly flower children, a.k.a. Hippies. Of course, the HRS are the actual "sheeple," but that's the subject of another column. Most of the HRS who grew up in the Sixties and Sevenites don't remember that they, too, were probably Hippies and Flower Children --- until they got a bit of money and property, upon which they incorrectly concluded that it was wise to be Republican, because Republicans would better-protect their assets. That's not the case, and it would stray way off course to explain why; perhaps I will on another day. The fact that the "Dems" all believed in Global Warming was enough of a selling-point to convince the Hard Right that it was a myth. If the Liberals believed that the Sun rose in the east, and a SIG had motivation to convince the HRS otherwise, the HRS would now believe that the Sun actually rose in the West and that it appeared to rise in the east because of the Earth's rotation. It's not hard to fool those folks, because they tend to accept everything their favorite talking head or blogger says at face value.
The SIGs that want people to believe that Global Warming is a myth are those who stand to profit, or at least not incur expenses, from legislation that attempts to deal with global warming. Some SIGs would include:
1) The oil companies. Obviously, if people switch from oil to such as electric-powered cars, electricity generated by wind, solar, hydrogen, etc., the oil companies are going to be either out of business or forced to scale back considerably.
2) The coal companies. The same goes for these folks.
3) Big Business. Yep, the ones who run the country and make most of the rules don't want Climate Control regulations, either, because it would mean a large investment in either changing over from coal/fuel based production to more renewable forms of energy, or upgrading their existing systems to belch less pollution into the air and water.
There was a huge fight over water pollution for lakes and rivers in the 1960's and 1970's. At one point Lake Erie, the shallowest of the Great Lakes, was so polluted that there was no life in it whatsoever, except for some hardy algae. The Mississippi and many other rivers were so polluted that the smell was noticeable from far away. The sensible people finally won out and got legislation passed to force companies to change their methods of waste disposal, but they had to fight Big Business's lobbyists for almost two decades to get it done.
Now the same situation exists regarding air pollution and its direct effect on Global Warming. The three groups above represent a lot of large companies, and their attitude is "patch the cart up so it lasts the rest of my life," and hang it all for future generations. So they are pressuring Congress and soon-to-be President Trump to get us out of the Paris Agreement, so we can go back to spewing pollutants into the air and warming the Earth. The problem with this is that if we pull out, so will China, and then so will many other countries. Since China and the United States do much of the polluting, it means that the greenhouse gases will continue to fill the atmosphere.
Now the HRS Deniers will be quick to point out that the Earth's climate has frequently changed throughout its history. They point to the Little Ice Age, the Medieval Warm Period, and other cycles, and that the Earth was once in a major Ice Age and may be headed for another. What they conveniently ignore is that the first two were probably caused by volcanic action and cyclic solar patterns, and that the latter evolved over several million years, not in the 40 or so years that have caused the current problem.
The fact is that since global climate record-keeping started in 1880, 15 of the 16 warmest years on record are the 15 consecutive years from 2001 to 2015. The other year, tied for 6th among the all-time warmest, was 1998. Three of the four warmest since 1880 are in 2013 (4th), 2014 (2nd), and 2015 (1st), with 2010 being the other. In other words, it's getting warmer and warmer, and while this has been going on for the past 50 or so years, it's accelerated in the past 15. Natural Climate Change doesn't happen that quickly. This is man-made, and it's the result of our endless tossing of fossil fuel fumes into the air.
Now before the Hard Right Deniers come a calling with "What about this year? It must be getting cooler. Hahahaha!", let me set them straight: 2016 is on pace to be the warmest year on record ever, which means that it will be the THIRD CONSECUTIVE YEAR that the record was eclipsed, and that 16 of the 17 warmest years on record will be the 16 most recent years (again, the other being in 1998: maybe the Hard Right Deniers can concoct a story about 1999 and 2000 being a "Mini Ice Age").
The Arctic ice cap has been declining by about 12% per decade since the 1970's and is about half of what it was in 1972. Other ice sheets have had similar losses. The HRS Deniers will say "Who cares? We lose a few polar bears." The problem with diminishing polar ice is that it augments global warming. Polar ice reflects sunlight, meaning that it doesn't get into the ocean at those points. If the ice isn't there, the suns energy goes directly into the ocean's surface, warming it. The extra warmth is carried to the rest of the ocean, warming it, which in turn warms the air, which in turn increases air temperatures. In fact, sea temperatures have been rising steadily since 1972. The previous spike was from 1940 to 1945, which is no coincidence: that was the time period of World War 2, when factories throughout the world, mostly coal-powered, were producing the weaponry for the war at a record pace, many in operation 24 hours a day.
The HRS Deniers will be quick to point out that the Antarctic hasn't been affected by Global Warming (they should add "yet" to that statement, and lots of luck getting them to do that). The Antarctic plays by a different set of physics, partly due to an Antarctic ozone hole which has slowed down warming, partly due to the fact that most of the ice in the Antarctic is much thicker than that in the Arctic and thus doesn't completely melt (and will then be able to reflect the sun's rays year-around), the Antarctic Circumpolar Current which keeps warmer water out, and various polar fronts. There is plenty of information about these things on the internet, and you're welcome to go read them.
The bottom line is that simple statistics and facts show that Global Warming is NOT a myth, and that continuing to ignore it will have a catastrophic effect on the world. It's an added bonus if saying so winds up the Hard Right Deniers.
3) Big Business. Yep, the ones who run the country and make most of the rules don't want Climate Control regulations, either, because it would mean a large investment in either changing over from coal/fuel based production to more renewable forms of energy, or upgrading their existing systems to belch less pollution into the air and water.
There was a huge fight over water pollution for lakes and rivers in the 1960's and 1970's. At one point Lake Erie, the shallowest of the Great Lakes, was so polluted that there was no life in it whatsoever, except for some hardy algae. The Mississippi and many other rivers were so polluted that the smell was noticeable from far away. The sensible people finally won out and got legislation passed to force companies to change their methods of waste disposal, but they had to fight Big Business's lobbyists for almost two decades to get it done.
Now the same situation exists regarding air pollution and its direct effect on Global Warming. The three groups above represent a lot of large companies, and their attitude is "patch the cart up so it lasts the rest of my life," and hang it all for future generations. So they are pressuring Congress and soon-to-be President Trump to get us out of the Paris Agreement, so we can go back to spewing pollutants into the air and warming the Earth. The problem with this is that if we pull out, so will China, and then so will many other countries. Since China and the United States do much of the polluting, it means that the greenhouse gases will continue to fill the atmosphere.
Now the HRS Deniers will be quick to point out that the Earth's climate has frequently changed throughout its history. They point to the Little Ice Age, the Medieval Warm Period, and other cycles, and that the Earth was once in a major Ice Age and may be headed for another. What they conveniently ignore is that the first two were probably caused by volcanic action and cyclic solar patterns, and that the latter evolved over several million years, not in the 40 or so years that have caused the current problem.
The fact is that since global climate record-keeping started in 1880, 15 of the 16 warmest years on record are the 15 consecutive years from 2001 to 2015. The other year, tied for 6th among the all-time warmest, was 1998. Three of the four warmest since 1880 are in 2013 (4th), 2014 (2nd), and 2015 (1st), with 2010 being the other. In other words, it's getting warmer and warmer, and while this has been going on for the past 50 or so years, it's accelerated in the past 15. Natural Climate Change doesn't happen that quickly. This is man-made, and it's the result of our endless tossing of fossil fuel fumes into the air.
Now before the Hard Right Deniers come a calling with "What about this year? It must be getting cooler. Hahahaha!", let me set them straight: 2016 is on pace to be the warmest year on record ever, which means that it will be the THIRD CONSECUTIVE YEAR that the record was eclipsed, and that 16 of the 17 warmest years on record will be the 16 most recent years (again, the other being in 1998: maybe the Hard Right Deniers can concoct a story about 1999 and 2000 being a "Mini Ice Age").
The Arctic ice cap has been declining by about 12% per decade since the 1970's and is about half of what it was in 1972. Other ice sheets have had similar losses. The HRS Deniers will say "Who cares? We lose a few polar bears." The problem with diminishing polar ice is that it augments global warming. Polar ice reflects sunlight, meaning that it doesn't get into the ocean at those points. If the ice isn't there, the suns energy goes directly into the ocean's surface, warming it. The extra warmth is carried to the rest of the ocean, warming it, which in turn warms the air, which in turn increases air temperatures. In fact, sea temperatures have been rising steadily since 1972. The previous spike was from 1940 to 1945, which is no coincidence: that was the time period of World War 2, when factories throughout the world, mostly coal-powered, were producing the weaponry for the war at a record pace, many in operation 24 hours a day.
The HRS Deniers will be quick to point out that the Antarctic hasn't been affected by Global Warming (they should add "yet" to that statement, and lots of luck getting them to do that). The Antarctic plays by a different set of physics, partly due to an Antarctic ozone hole which has slowed down warming, partly due to the fact that most of the ice in the Antarctic is much thicker than that in the Arctic and thus doesn't completely melt (and will then be able to reflect the sun's rays year-around), the Antarctic Circumpolar Current which keeps warmer water out, and various polar fronts. There is plenty of information about these things on the internet, and you're welcome to go read them.
The bottom line is that simple statistics and facts show that Global Warming is NOT a myth, and that continuing to ignore it will have a catastrophic effect on the world. It's an added bonus if saying so winds up the Hard Right Deniers.
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