Blogroll Me! How This Old Brit Sees It ...: The Real Revelations re: Hurricanes Like Katrina & Rita ...

23 September 2005

The Real Revelations re: Hurricanes Like Katrina & Rita ...



As hurricane Rita roles remorselessly toward Texas, This Old Brit asks that one thing about today's blog entry be understood, straight from the start.

The overwhelming majority of the world's civilised citizens, sincerely send their sympathy in advance to all those regular Americans, soon set to suffer from the coming storm, in some way or another.

Make no mistake though - there will be a misguided minority of mindless bigots who will almost certainly, somehow seek to show that any ensuing misery is simply some sort of summary justice.

Whilst wanting, whole heartedly, to distance themselves from such creeps as are sure to surface shouting sickening slogans like 'Nya, nya, told ya so' and 'What ya gonna do now, start a war with the weather' -- the eminently more enlightened amongst us will, none the less, have to be heard.

Wake up, America -- or worse will be on it's way.

So many signs have, for so long, been there for all to see. Global warming is already wreaking havoc across the greater part of the planet. The irrefutable and ever increasing evidence that's already emerged is inarguable. It's a fact of life - whether on not certain factions still steadfastly refuse to face it.

The polar caps are, and have been for years, melting. By the year, the month, the week, the day and indeed, even by the very hour. One can either believe it or deny it, but one can not escape it.

Unheard of heatwaves throughout Europe continue to kill more & more people each passing year. Record breaking and rapidly rising high temperatures are repeatedly being recorded. That too, is an irrefutable fact.

Vast swathes of the Indian sub continent and Asia, along with ever increasing areas of Europe are now regularly flooded - including many regions of the UK. And that's not fantasy, friends, that's yet one more fact.

This Old Brit knows it -- because he sees it -- for himself.

The forever more ferocious forest fires, now witnessed on a regular basis, in places as far apart as Portugal - part of the Iberian peninsular - and Australia at the other end of the globe, bear witness to worse things yet to come.

And come they will.

Unless, that is, those holding the power to prevent the planet's life-supporting-system's irreversable decline, decide to impliment immediately the urgently required appropriate action.

America's hurricanes draw their energy from the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico - that's a proven scientific fact. And as the earth's temperature rises relentlessly, so does that of the sea.

Inevitably, the extra energy available for feeding hurricanes' forces, proliferates proportionaly. Period.

By far the greatest contributing factor to this super-stupifying state of affairs, is the ever increasing emission of carbon dioxide into our life supporting atmosphere. Again, it's an unarguable part of science's repeatedly proven formula. Not to mention so many sensible folk's self evident, personal observations and experiences.

The United States of America is, and has been for many years, the undisputed, world champion polluter when it comes to carbon dioxide emissions.

The incumbent, indifferent ignoramus inhabiting Washington's once so well respected White House -- accompanied by his current, criminal-cabal-crew, continues encouraging all his country's diverse communities to ignore the inescapable.

Put plainly, in layman's language - serial denials 'R them.

So please, wake up America, while you're still able. Don't let a lousy lot of lying leaders change your cherished American Dream, into a nightmare.

May God bless, help and save every decent, honest American. They deserve so much better than Bushco.

And may he take care of Texans at this traumatic time, too.

Here endeth the lesson.

17 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

No one is glad to see people suffer in the hurricane but if the Federal government is tied down time and money wise dealing with this they are less able to wage their war on the world.

lenny

9:47 pm  
Blogger Richard said...

lenny,

Like some sort of silver lining, eh?

But, gawd, what a price for the poor ordinary/regular people to pay.

10:52 pm  
Blogger St!ff M!ttens said...

Yeah, if hurricanes were more precise and ninja-like, we might have something. ;-}

Richard, Just a small nit to pick. I won't argue (nor should any reasonable person) that human activity (mainly from large industrialized nations - the US being the worst) is negatively affecting the biosphere and that global warming is one consequence of those activities. However, a causal relationship between global warming and increased hurricane activity isn't clearly demonstrable at his point. Here's a good resource:

http://www.realclimate.org/

That being said, I do tend to agree with pretty much everything else in your post. It just really sucks that the people who pay the highest price are those who have contributed the least amount to the problem. But that's how it's always been with civilization, hasn't it? Jefferson said that it was the right of the people to alter or abolish their gov't if need be. I tend to think we're past the window of opportunity for altering it.

6:47 am  
Blogger markfromireland said...

Sadly i have to agree. The thing that I find genuinely frightening is the nihilism and amorality of those in power in the US - I'd love to think that the situation will improve. But I can't. Then I look here at Europe - Blair who reminds me more and more of Chamberlain and the governments here on the continent (I live now in Denmark) who remind me more and more of the immediately pre-war governments.

2:40 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Richard, well said as always. And if you believe in Karma, as I do, through hard concrete evidence, this Karmic adjustment to the Gulf situations is almost ironic. The needless deaths of the helpless and innocent in both Gulfs makes me heartsick and helplessly angry against those incompetent, greedy and rapacious boobs in the White House.
http://www.wisewebwoman.blogspot.com

6:21 pm  
Blogger JulieDee said...

It's no secret that I'm normally a fan of the Cato Institute... but on this subject we we part company, especially when their expert on the subject, Patrick Michaels, senior fellow in environmental studies at the Cato Institute says something as out right stupid as:

"The Global Warming Blame Game

“In recorded history, two storms as powerful as Hurricanes Rita and Katrina have never hit the United States in one season. A coincidence, perhaps, but scientists say ocean temperature could be big factor,” MSNBC.com reports. “It’s global warming that many experts say results partly from humans releasing greenhouse gases -- possibly creating even more violent storms in the future.”
“While many people attempt to connect this season’s unusually strong hurricane activity in the Gulf of Mexico with global warming, this is simply not the case,” argues Patrick Michaels, senior fellow in environmental studies at the Cato Institute. “Severe hurricanes, from Category 3 through 5 on the Saffir-Simpson scale, require water temperatures greater than 82 degrees Fahrenheit. However, beyond 82 degrees, there is no statistical relationship whatsoever between hurricane intensity and sea surface temperature, based upon an analysis of the 49 Category 3 or higher storms that occurred between 1982 and 2003. Because of its location, the Gulf of Mexico reaches or exceeds this critical temperature every year, regardless of planetary temperature.”
You can read their full justification in Meltdown: The Predictable Distortion of Global Warming by Scientists, Politicians, and the Media, for a small price I might add.

Talk about your meaningless double talk! Nor is this the only place that I break with that august libertarian think tank. Another place is their defense of PRICE GOUGING! Yuppers! You read it right! Their resident economist actually said so!

"Price gouging -- like spinach -- may be unappealing at first bite but it's good for everyone in the long run," writes Jerry Taylor, director of Cato's natural resource studies, and Peter Van Doren, editor of Regulation magazine, in "Let 'Em Gouge: A Defense of Price Gouging." "Gougers are sending an important signal to market actors that something is scarce and that profits are available to those who produce or sell that something. Gouging thus sets off an economic chain reaction that ultimately remedies the shortages that led to the gouging in the first place. Without such signals, we'd never know how to efficiently invest our resources. Moreover, we'd have no idea what to conserve. It's no exaggeration to state that, without such price signals, our economy would look like Cuba's.

"There's a catch, however. If the government artificially restricts supply, those price signals will fall on deaf ears. Local zoning ordinances, for instance, often prevent real estate developers from answering the call from desperate home-buyers. They also frequently prevent new service stations from popping up to challenge the local micro-monopoly. Blame not the price gouger. Blame the government that won't let the price gouger do his job.


There IS such a thing as TOO free a market!!!

7:49 pm  
Blogger Richard said...

st!ff,

Brit scientists are also split re: the 'proven'unproven' direct connect between more severe hurricanes & more rapid warming. Some say it's certain & some say severity is cyclical. But they don't seem to arguing that there is some connection. Rightly or wrongly, I go along with the 'certains'.

On your other points, I go along with you 100%. Those with the least to begin with, are those always losing most and are usually the first to suffer losses.

Unfortunately, it does look like the window of opportunity is close to closed -- I have to say that -- I can't face up the fact that it's already completely closed, and I hope to God I'm right.

9:08 pm  
Blogger Richard said...

Welcome Mark,

Heh - Meaning, Bush being 'their' modern Adolf, I take it? 'Cos I believe that too.

BTW, is there obvious climate change in evidence in Denmark too? And if so, it would be very interesting to hear about it.

9:13 pm  
Blogger Richard said...

wisewebwoman, welcome also.

Ironic indeed, 'Gulf-wise'.

And 100% agreed re sick & angry. One [small] fortunate faction making more & more money via more & more misery being inflicted on the [much larger] unfortunate faction.

Eventually, Karma MUST come home to roost - or it will definitely be the end of ALL of us, I fear.

9:22 pm  
Blogger Richard said...

julie,

Thanks for the links. Like I said to st!ff - I'm with the 'certains'.

Re Same old same old, eh? Playing the old 'blame game' bluff. How anyone can say, straight faced that global warming is NOT a [major] contributing factor - I don't understand at all.

Regarding "TOO" free marketing - again I agree.

Before he was stabbed in the back by mad Maggie Thatcher [with a little help from some union zealots, our then conservative Prime Minister - the just recently deceased Ted Heath - although a genuine capitalist - warned evryone about the "unnaceptable" face of capitalism. Too true there is.

I've never been against an honest profit from an honest bit of business - but the rampant, absolutely imoral greed & actual criminality that now masquerades as 'just takin' care of business - is nothing less than another, bloody crime against humanity.

These monsters are virtually feeding & growing ever fatter - as they devour the virtual flesh from our very bones.

9:37 pm  
Blogger St!ff M!ttens said...

"the rampant, absolutely imoral greed & actual criminality that now masquerades as 'just takin' care of business"

At this point it is just takin' care of business. This is the problem of implementing a mechanism that defines growth as it's only indicator of health, within a finite system such as the Earth. Eventually the mechanism must overextend its fuel supply--run out of room in which to grow. If you were to write a piece of music that was characterized by a continuous crescendo, how long could the symphony last? At what point would the music become unbearably loud? I think we're very close to that point. Unless someone comes up with a brilliant and radical rethink of the mechanism of civilization soon, the chaos will just keep amplifying. We're already running back and forth trying to keep all the wobbling plates spinning at the end of the sticks, but we also keep adding more sticks and more plates. It's like some enormous, nightmarish Lucy and Ethel routine. The chocolates keep coming down the conveyor belt faster and faster. We have embarked upon the long emergency and the desperation is rising. We are at the urine-drinking stage.

10:35 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Surpise.. Surprise.. Blair's Kyoto U-Turn:

Blair suggested he no longer had faith in global agreements as a way of reversing rising greenhouse gas emissions. Instead he appeared to place his faith in science, technology and the free market — a position that President George W Bush adopted when he repudiated the Kyoto treaty in 2001

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,176-1796800,00.html

2:58 am  
Blogger JulieDee said...

S'right Richard! There's free market and free market! As humanity learned eons ago, WAY before Babylon and the ancient empires, there HAVE to be rules and limits on business and the market otherwise it's chaos out there and the whole house of cards comes tumbling down.

That's something that the ultra right nut cases and this faction of the Libertarians can't seem to ever understand. Thus far they have not been allowed to get beyond this point since the Great Depression. And yet when you ask them "What the hell is wrong with you? What were you thinking?" their response is always "If we could have gone just a little bit further it would have worked! You pansy assed libs were just too chicken to let it go all the way!" All the way to WHAT?

5:24 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

As I sd to my
friend, because I am
always talking,--John, I

sd, which was not his
name, the darkness sur-
rounds us, what

can we do against
it, or else, shall we &
why not, buy a goddamn big car,

drive, he sd, for
christ's sake, look
out where yr going.


-R Creeley

4:15 pm  
Blogger Richard said...

anonymous,

I'm sickened more than surprised by Blair - because, unfortunately nothing the bum does, surprises me any more.

st!ff and julie,

Words like hell, hand basket, etc, spring to mind.

goboy,

That one's gone straight over my head, I'm afraid. Was R Creeley some sort of poet? I'll have to look him up.

7:43 pm  
Blogger JulieDee said...

Thanks Richard... it's not hard to hit a target that big though.

Oh and goboy is just another of Noel's weirdo stalkers. He hit my forums last month.

5:30 pm  
Blogger Richard said...

juliedee,
Thanks for the 'weirdo' heads up. Heh. Maybe we should all feel flattered at being considered so worthy as to merit so much of his/her time, trouble & energy. Eh ?

7:32 pm  

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