UN Global Warming report is out

papasmurfbell · May 15, 2014

The problem is it isn't cool.

papasmurfbell · May 15, 2014

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/05/14/these-stunning-photos-show-what-iconic-u-s-locations-look-like-after-12-feet-of-sea-level-rise/

It certainly will make things more interesting seeing them swim the bases.

5_14_14_Lamm_Statue-of-Liberty-12-feet.j

I wonder how long lady liberty will stand with wet feet.

Spen · May 15, 2014

The problem is it isn't cool.

LOL, I know. Its still an interesting site with some cool features.

papasmurfbell · May 15, 2014

http://www.pressdisplay.com/pressdisplay/viewer.aspx

CLIMATE COSTS ALREADY HIT HOME
Devastating droughts in the Southwest, ruinous floods in New York City, killer wildfires in Colorado, intense heat waves in the Plains: These are some of the disasters today that are being exacerbated by global warming, and will continue to worsen in coming decades, says a massive federal climate report released Tuesday at the White House.
Climate change is affecting where and how Americans live and work, as well as their health. Evidence is mounting that burning fossil fuels has made extreme weather such as heat waves and heavy precipitation much more likely in the USA, according to the National Climate Assessment ( NCA), the largest, most comprehensive U. S.- focused climate change report ever produced.
President Obama reinforced the message Tuesday in interviews with meteorologists from national and local television outlets. “This is not some distant problem of the future,” he told Today show meteorologist Al Roker. “This is a problem that is affecting Americans right now. Whether it means increased flooding, greater vulnerability to drought, more severe wildfires — all these things are having an impact on Americans as we speak.” Others echoed the sentiments.
“If people took the time to read the report, they would see that it is not necessarily about polar bears, whales or butterflies,” said meteorologist Marshall Shepherd of the University of Georgia. “I care about all of those, but the NCA is about our kids, dinner table issues, and our well being.”
“Climate change is here and now, and not in some distant time or place,” agreed Texas Tech University climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe, one of the authors of the 800- page report. “The choices we’re making today will have a significant impact on our future.”
The assessment, prepared by 300 of the USA’s top scientists and other experts, provides “the loudest and clearest alarm bell to date” for immediate and aggressive climate action, said John Holdren, President Obama’s science adviser.
“Corn producers in Iowa, oyster growers in Washington state and maple syrup producers in Vermont are all observing climate- related changes that are outside of recent experience,” the U. S. report stated. “So, too, are coastal planners in Florida, water managers in the arid Southwest, city dwellers from Phoenix to New York and native peoples on tribal lands from Louisiana to Alaska.”
While scientists continue to refine projections of the future climate, observations unequivocally show that the climate is changing and that the warming of the past 50 years is primarily due to human- induced emissions of heattrapping gases such as carbon dioxide and methane.
Specifically, the report warns that the three most significant threats from climate change in the USA are sea- level rise along the coasts, droughts and fires in the Southwest and extreme precipitation events across the USA.
“There are a lot of troubling findings here, but one of the most striking regards sea- level rise,” said Patrick Sullivan of the Center for Biological Diversity. “The report says we could see as much as four feet of sea- level rise this century, with regional variations. That will pose major storm surge and flood threats to major coastal communities like New York, Boston, and Houston.”
The report was quickly labeled as “alarmist” by some in Congress and industry groups. But representatives from oil companies such as Conoco-Phillips and Chevron and environmental groups such as the Nature Conservancy endorsed the assessment’s findings.
“Chevron recognizes and shares the concerns of governments and the public about climate change,” said Chevron spokesman Justin Higgs.
The Obama administration is expanding its climate initiative, launched last year, with rules to limit carbon emissions from power plants. In June, the Environmental Protection Agency is expected to finalize limits, proposed last year, on new plants.
The agency also plans to set standards for existing ones, which could prompt the closure of some coal- fired facilities. Several GOP members of Congress have described the rules as Obama’s “war on coal.”
Indeed, some Republican senators immediately assailed the report. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said Obama was likely to “use the platform to renew his call for a national energy tax. And I’m sure he’ll get loud cheers from liberal elites — from the kind of people who leave a giant carbon footprint and then lecture everybody else about low- flow toilets.”
The American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity was also not impressed with the assessment, saying that the White House had again resorted to unsubstantiated scare tactics and hyperbole instead of engaging in a serious discussion about the costs and long- term economic consequences posed by rash federal regulations.
A vast majority of climate scientists — generally pegged at 97% — concur with the basics of the science behind climate change, though some still find flaws in the details.
One study last week, for instance, in the peer- reviewed journal Nature Climate Change found that the impacts of extreme heat due to climate change might be exaggerated.
Another meteorologist not a part of the assessment, Bryan Wood of Assurant Specialty Property Insurance, tweeted Tuesday that “one thing I don’t like about the NCA website: They speak in absolutes on some things the actual report has low confidence on.”
However, the voices of doubters were few and far between on Tuesday. “From drought and flooding risks, to food insecurity and increased risk of disease, small towns and large states, the agricultural and energy sectors, and businesses from Wall Street to Main Street are feeling the consequences today,” said American Geophysical Union executive director Christine McEntee.

cravnravn · May 16, 2014

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/05/13/this-is-what-the-united-states-looks-like-after-a-10-foot-sea-level-rise/
Looks like a blast.

Lots more visual aids and write up in the link. Also see what a city near you will look like.
http://www.climatecentral.org/wgts/10ft/CitiesList-10ft-SLR.html

Look on the bright side, instead of a 19 mile drive to the beach from my house, it looks like my drive will be cut in half. It looks a win win for my great great great great grand children.

papasmurfbell · May 16, 2014

Especially if they grow gills.

deeshopper · May 16, 2014

Especially if they grow gills.

:thumbup:

I thought the same thing.

papasmurfbell · May 16, 2014

I thought the same thing.

http://thecolbertreport.cc.com/videos/k6jlhl/the-word---f--k-it

We weren't the only ones.

papasmurfbell · May 16, 2014

dc. · May 19, 2014

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/19/us/science-standards-divide-a-state-built-on-coal-and-oil.html?hp&_r=0

States are rejecting new national science standards because they teach climate change ... namely conservative states and especially those who make lots of money in coal/oil industries.

"They treat climate change like settled science" ... from an Oklahoma Rep...

That's because it is.

papasmurfbell · May 19, 2014

http://www.hulu.com/watch/630892#i0,p7,d0

So it looks like we are doing what evolution and tectonic actions did once.

papasmurfbell · May 22, 2014

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/21/cnn-climate-change-coverage-jeff-zucker_n_5364275.html

CNN chief Jeff Zucker has an explanation for why his network doesn't cover climate change that much: the audience isn't interested.
Capital New York watched New York Times reporter Bill Carter quiz Zucker on Monday at an event for the Deadline Club. Carter pointed out that the network has received quite a bit of criticism for its climate coverage, which has often been found to be either paltry or problematic.
Zucker candidly said that climate change "deserves more attention," but that he was merely following the ratings.
"We haven't figured out how to engage the audience in that story in a meaningful way," he said. "When we do do those stories, there does tend to be a tremendous amount of lack of interest on the audience's part."

So Americans are so stupid that CNN can't cover anything important.

dc. · May 22, 2014

Heard today that the House of Reps passed their defense funding bill... And explicitly included an amendment that prohibits the defense dept or any sub group from spending any money on climate change research. One because it would hurt the economy to abandon coal (?) And two because 90% of the CO2 in the world is naturally produced so we can't be behind it anyway.

papasmurfbell · May 24, 2014

"One of the ways you control what people think is by creating the illusion that there's a debate going on, but making sure that that debate stays within very narrow margins. Namely, you have to make sure that both sides in the debate accept certain assumptions, and those assumptions turn out to be the propaganda system. As long as everyone accepts the propaganda system, then you can have a debate."
Noam Chomsky

thundercleetz · May 24, 2014

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/solar-roadways

papasmurfbell · May 24, 2014

I basically saw this concept yrs ago in Pop Mechanics or something. They also had getting energy from sewage that produces methane which BC will be doing soon out in Dundalk. Also I saw where they could get electricity from urine via a chemical reaction.

papasmurfbell · May 24, 2014

http://www.thestreet.com/story/12712489/1/the-10-dumbest-states-in-america.html?puc=yahoo&cm_ven=YAHOO

The 10 Dumbest States in America

8 of the 10 are red states. No wonder the GOP hates education.

thundercleetz · May 25, 2014

http://www.thestreet.com/story/12712489/1/the-10-dumbest-states-in-america.html?puc=yahoo&cm_ven=YAHOO
8 of the 10 are red states. No wonder the GOP hates education.

I went to undergrad in Louisiana. Incoming students who went to HS in LA would say they had 5.0s or something crazy like that in HS. Weren't that smart.

Btw I was talking to a friend last night who works in climate research. He said we're basically screwed. Said we should have started to do something about the environment back in the 80s. Also at this point said we can only hope to slow things down. He thinks the government knows a lot more than they are telling us and things are probably a lot worse.

He was pretty optimistic about America and using technology to protect our major developments (obviously extreme weather patterns) however he thought it was inevitable that Bangladesh is going to be underwater and Africa is going to completely dry up, among other things.