The Second 'Thousand-Year' Storm In Two Years

Try telling the people of Ellicott City, Maryland, that climate change is a hoax.



The Washington Post, in a detailed analysis of this flood, has this to say about the role climate change played:

Climate change did not “cause” this thunderstorm complex.

However, climate change has probably altered the larger environment in which these small thunderstorms are embedded. Notably, the water vapor content of the atmosphere, as a whole, has increased and scientific studies have shown a statistically meaningful uptick in the frequency of extreme rain events over the eastern United States. Statistically, over the long term, these types of extreme floods are probably becoming more common, in areas that are normally rainy as a result of global warming.

Emerging patterns are undeniable, revealing climate-change deniers for the antediluvian fools they truly are.

Will We Ignore The Evidence Until The End?

Yesterday, Southern Ontario saw some pretty wild weather, with winds reaching 110 km per hour. Power outages were widespread, trees were felled at an alarming rate, Pearson Airport had to shut down, and at least two people lost their lives. I have not yet checked my roof for damage.

Meanwhile, in New Brunswick, flooding continues.

I do wonder, as these events become increasingly frequent, and it dawns on even the dimmest among us that we are screwed, how people will react. Will some continue to party like there is no tomorrow? (In that, their predictive capacity will likely be proven right.) Will others fall on their knees, seeking a deus ex machina deliverance from their tribulations? Will some get angry and ask why no one did anything to prevent this? Or will some look in the mirror and see a rueful but knowing image staring back at them?

I fear that far too soon, we will know the answers.

Weather Porn

Since few seem willing to confront root causes, I guess that's what these stories of weather disasters are becoming.

Scenes From The Apocalypse

Just another day in the life of our warming planet:

UPDATE: Yet Another '100-Year Event'

This one was in the traditionally water-challenged area of Phoenix, Arizona.



For additional commentary on our worsening climate, check out The Mound's post.

UPDATE: I have not yet had an opportunity to watch this film, but the trailer suggests it will make compelling and informative viewing:



The complete film can be accessed here.

The Power And The Glory

The power is nature's, and the glory is the human capacity for noble, courageous action, as you will see. Two bad that in the collective human psyche, we can't have more of the latter and less of a thirst for the former.

May This Day Never Come

I pray we never get to the day when scenes like the following become so commonplace that we regard them with only the passing interest we might today express in a rocket launch, and not the shock, awe and humbling that they undoubtedly merit:

Is Shortsightedness Our Tragic Flaw?

Rubber dinghies rescuing flooded train passengers. Cars submerged to their roofs. Raging river torrents. This could easily be a snapshot from India during monsoon season, but no, that was the situation in Toronto last evening as the city received more rain in a short period of time than had been experienced over 50 years ago during Hurricane Hazel.

Even the most obdurate, assuming they haven't completely surrendered their cognitive abilities to ideology, must realize we are in deep climatological trouble. Whether we look to this year's weather events or the increasingly volatile weather over the last decade, an obvious pattern supporting the climate-change models clearly emerges. But our public response remains muted.

Nary a word from any level of government about climate change. Nary a word from any level of government about amelioration and adaptation. Nary a word from the usual suspects on how we are going to pay for these increasingly common and incredibly expensive disasters.

We need definite measures that will force us to pull our collective heads out of the sand. My wife offered me an interesting suggestion. Since tax increases per se are verboten, no matter the party, perhaps it is time to have what could be termed an 'infrastructure renewal levy' that we pay after our income taxes have been calculated. Such a levy, while it would doubtless be decried by the right as 'just another tax grab,' would be designated only for its stated purpose and could very well serve to awaken people to the reality that we all have to pay for our collective folly in ignoring all of the warnings; the resulting anger might very well force government to start confronting the reason for the levy and we can finally get on to the massive job of reducing our emission as the first but absolutely necessary step in ameliorating the even worse consequences of climate change to come.

And of course, it goes without saying, that corporations will also have to pay this levy, since sound infrastructure is crucial both to the economy and their own profits. The threat of relocation will grow increasingly hollow. No part of the world escapes this self-inflicted curse of unscathed, especially those low-tax and low-pay jurisdictions the corporations always hold over our heads.

The hour is late. We are out of options. Concrete action must begin immediately. Taking the long view is long-past due.