Category Archives: climate

The conventions and global warming: Let’s forget

Jonathan Chait points out some perfectly obvious but little noticed national jujitsu that Bill Clinton threw us for last night:  In an otherwise factual and persuasive speech, Bill Clinton made one argument so astonishingly brass I half-expected the crowd to laugh him out of the hall. It came when Clinton cited his own presidency asContinue reading “The conventions and global warming: Let’s forget”

Al Gore calls out media on Arctic ice: Editorials follow

Last week Al Gore called out the media for failing to cover the shocking decline in Arctic ice this summer, and made the point that our democracy itself is in peril when enormous stories go unreported because they might be unpalatable or difficult for the right:  The whole North polar ice cap is disappearing in Continue reading “Al Gore calls out media on Arctic ice: Editorials follow”

Salt Lake City Doctor: GOP/Romney energy policy filthy

Startlingly fresh climate change commentary from a medical doctor in Salt Lake City:  As I listened to Mitt Romney deliver his energy plan for America and read the Republican Party platform, I was struck by parallels to a book about the atrocious medical care given to President James Garfield after he was shot on JulyContinue reading “Salt Lake City Doctor: GOP/Romney energy policy filthy”

Jobs versus extinction: Romney and Calvin and Hobbes

Romney's remark on climate change last night has occasioned a great deal of commentary. Here's Kate Sheppard, reporting on the moment for Mother Jones:  "If you didn't catch Mitt Romney's acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention on Thursday night, you really missed an amazing snapshot of how he'll treat environmental issues as president: as a laughContinue reading “Jobs versus extinction: Romney and Calvin and Hobbes”

Obama and Romney on warming this week in campaign

Romney [from convention speech to be delivered]: "Obama promised to slow the rise of the oceans and heal the planet. My promise is to help you and your family."  Obama [from speech to college students]: Denying climate change won't make it stop.  According to Ben Domenech of RedState, Romney's crack is the single best lineContinue reading “Obama and Romney on warming this week in campaign”

Big Oil backs Romney campaign: USA Today

USA Today runs the SuperPac numbers:  WASHINGTON – Mitt Romney's campaign and a super PAC backing him have received more than $15 million from oil, coal and other energy interests, many of which would benefit from the energy plan Romney unveiled Thursday. At least 35 people who "bundle" donations for the Romney campaign are fromContinue reading “Big Oil backs Romney campaign: USA Today”

Study: Warming brings more precip to VC, less to NorCal

Kim Lamb Gregory for the Ventura County Star reports on a new study based on an almost unimaginably vast dataset that looks at precipitation records from around the continental U.S. over the last sixty years. It's called When It Rains It Pours: Global Warming and the Increase in Extreme Precipitation from l948-2011. Lamb writes that it findsContinue reading “Study: Warming brings more precip to VC, less to NorCal”

Charts of the week: Decline of Arctic Sea Ice

Via NatureClimate's feed, a great GIF-animated graph showing the diminshing Arctic sea ice in summer, heading towards zero in late summer perhaps as early as the 2020's. Some bloggers say even earlier.  Above chart works best if you click to enlarge. Chart below needs no enlargement. Via RealClimate. They link to a blogger from NewContinue reading “Charts of the week: Decline of Arctic Sea Ice”

21st century megadrought in the West

A new climatic projection for the western states and northern Mexico looks at drought over the past 1200 years and out to 2100. A graph from the study at Nature Geoscience tells the story best, as usual: Here's the caption, slightly edited:  Reconstructed summer PDSI [Palmer Drought Severity Index] from 800 to 2006, five-year mean.Continue reading “21st century megadrought in the West”