Now scientists are saying tides could rise as much as 26 inches by 2050 and 6 feet by the end of the century, all due to Global Warming. The scientists come out with all kinds of fantastic figures about damage done to cities and coasts. All of which will now be fodder for global warming skeptics freshly fueled by the email scandal two weeks back. If we experience half the climate changes, tidal increases and meteorological chaos expected by these same scientists, we're not going to recognize this planet. We can pollute anything we want right now because nothing man can do will equal the devastation to world species that such ecological upheaval will wreak on wildlife. Let's hope like heck Global Warming theory is dead wrong.

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11.25.09

In keeping with the bad science theme of today's NBN we found yet another article about Antarctica losing yet more ice. It got us to thinking: how can there possibly be any argument over global warming if there is all this concrete evidence around. So, on a whim we looked at the images of polar ice sheets on Google Earth from 2009 and as early back as the file photos go for the north and south poles. (Look for that little clock on the top menu bar of Google Earth for these archival images.) The images were, as near as we can tell, identical going back decades. So much for global warming. A second attempt did seem to show some of the ice sheets receding, but not by the 20 percent that's been claimed.

These two images represent NBN's own little global warming experiment. The Arctic image above is from Google Earth circa 2000.  The image below is the exact same area and elevation circa 2009. If you take a real close look you see the white stuff has receded considerably in the second image. However, it's a real reach to say that's global warming and not some other weather variable present at the time the pictures were taken. We can't even rule out seasonal snow cover. However, we think it unlikely because this area is some 50 miles across. That's a lot of ice melt for one season. We can say that you should try the same experiment and make up your own mind.

As for global warming, consider a conversation with a former federal fire marshall who welcomed global warming skeptics out to some of the midwest forests he's dedicated his life to protecting. Woodlands there, he says, are tinder dry because of global warming. Then there's the tide. Anyone fortunate enough to have lived on the water and watched those tides over the past 40 years knows they are reaching a lot higher and receding a lot less than they used to. Those tides are also suspect in a mysterious environmental malady called sudden marsh dieback which appears to be on the rise. Still, the evidence is all anecdotal. What's worrisome is that there is so much of it. Proving global warming theory isn't going to be easy. Problem is, when it does get easy, we're screwed. Read on if you want some more anecdotal evidence.

11.09.09

Has it been long enough since NBN last railed about political inaction on global warming? Good, because here's further proof that nothing is going to happen on this front until it's too late, if it isn't too late already. House Republicans are refusing to discuss the Cap and Trade bill at the same time that we have another report that Mt. Kilimanjaro's fabled ice cap has all but disappeared .

The Republicans are right in some respects. Hast can make huge waste in such matters. And as the Times article indicates, global warming is not thought to be the sole reasons for the ice melt on Kilimanjaro. But contrast this Times image above with this picture reportedly taken in 2002. Then consider the preponderance of science supporting global warming. Wouldn't it make more sense to at least engage in the discussions rather than boycott them altogether. Here's a painfully poignant piece Al Gore did in Newsweek that does a much better job of explaining the nuiance here. What will we tell our children if global warming theory turns out as bad as is being forcast right now. Sorry, kids, we screwed up. Don't forget your life preserver. 

11.06.09

This just in from the no-kidding file. A federal study suggests that the US may not have enough money to protect the nation's low-lying shorelines in the expectation that tides will rise between 7 and 24 inches in the next century, as predicted by most global warming theorist. Sound the alarm, Maryland's Ocean City condos, shown here, are in danger of inundation. First of all, if this flood is a century away, why are we even discussing this when someone else can worry about it. However, take a moment and Google “global warming” and “accelerate.” This little jewel is sitting on top. We're going to see those sea-level increases in our life time. Honey, we're selling the condo. Now!

10.28.09

Australia may soon be better known for its Outback than beaches. A study out suggests rising tides may force Aussies to flee inland for fear they end up underwater. Yet another story about rising tides. Only this one stands out for its suggestion of official response. Unlike this story about the UN abandoning hope for any real government action this year on global warming. What was it, two days ago we wrote in these pages that government won't start doing anything about global warming until people start dying. We do hate to be right on these things. Being wrong would would be so much nicer.

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10.16.09

Dammit, more bad news about global warming. According to this piece the summer arctic ice will disappear in about 10 years. This is great news for shipping, the piece points out. But its scary as heck for myriad natural forces worldwide whose balance depends on there being a huge chunk of ice up north, otherwise known as the North Pole. At NBN, we can't help but get the feeling we're playing Russian roulette with the planet. Read the story in ONews today about Sen. Kerry promising to promote offshore drilling in return for a Cap and Trade bill that's been watered down so far the original authors deem it ineffectual. Take a moment and read the story above about the arctic ice. Of particular note is the little time-lapse graphic. Check it out. Just to put things in perspective, here's an earlier piece that says the summer Arctic will be ice free in 2030.

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9.16.09

Once again we dip into our it's-better-than-nothing file to bring you more bad news on global warming. This AFP piece says 18 doctor's groups are calling upon the world's governments to take decisive action against global warming or face world health threats of biblical proportions. The River Nile may not bleed, but there's no reason to think that every other manor of malady won't be visited on the planet from global warming. We've already got the storms and fire that painter John Martins depicted in this haunting image. Moses hasn't shown up yet, but give Obama a shout if you see him. Perhaps most telling is this quote from the doctors-group statement: "There is a real danger that politicians will be indecisive, especially in such turbulent economic times as these.”

That's got to be the understatement of the century. As suggested before in this section on 9.04.09, we're probably already too late to deflect the worst of global warming's impact. How are we going to refreeze 20 percent of the polar ice caps? The challenges we face with global warming are just that: global. That means Austrlia and Alaska. Yet we have folks complaining bitterly over a carbon credit cap-and-trade proposal which the scientists who conceived the ideal are now saying doesn't go far enough. We might as well put these two guys in charge of global warming. If you're not bummed out already, Google: global warming and "too late" Now, just to cheer you up, we have this video.It sums everything up nicely.

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9.04.09

Yet another story saying science doesn't really know what we're in for with global warming. And another. In fact, Google News for “Global Warming” produced dozens of pages of stories on the subject in the last 24 hours alone. The overwhelming majority of those forecasting some uncertain cataclysm and quoting someone saying we have to act now! So, NBN set about getting the other side of the story. We're getting a little too scared of this unspecified disaster looming. We want some good global warming news. We're getting a little tired of looking at pictures like this every day.

Working our way down the list of stories in Google New for global warming, the first anti-global warming story we came upon was this pro-and-con from the Kansas City Star. It has Chemical Engineering News writer Rudy Baum citing the U.S. Global Change Research Program “that warming of the climate is unequivocal” Then it has San Francisco writer Diana Cotter citing unnamed scientific sources as being upset over Baum's article. “It’s become a mantra on the left,” she says, adding: “Manmade Global Climate Change!” “We must HALT it!” “We’re DOOMED!” quoting no one in particular.

Next up is this piece quoting the newly elected mayor of Doncaster (England) describing global warming as a “scam.” He wants to encourage car use because, “like it or not, we live in the age of the automobile.” He also thinks we should stop building windmills because they block the sun. Don't believe it? Read the link.

About 10 stories down there's this piece from The Business Insider about Verizon getting heat for sponsoring an “anti-global warming” rally in Virginia hosted by coal company Massey Energy. Two stories farther down we have a discussion on the correlation between reduced sunspot activity and reduced temperatures on earth. The article notes sun spots are at historic lows adding: “What is the significance of all this? To say I have no idea is quite an understatement.”

Right below that a Pennsylvania green group accuses oil and energy companies of putting together psuedo-informational rallies, like the one above in West Virginia to “fool local citizens.”

Things digress from there: Leonardo DiCaprio has a global warming film out some folks are not too happy about and there was another story about the problems with Obama's cap and trade bill. But, you get the point. Stories supporting global warming theory far outweigh those challenging it, both in logic and in number. But those stories supporting global warming theory also have a lot more uncertainty about the consequences. They forecast possible gloom and doom, where as if we start taking serious corrective action against the problem the people attending the rally in Pennsylvania will face certain gloom and doom.

In fact, it's likely the folks in West Virginia an Pennsylvania don't need to be fooled. They want to believe global warming is a myth. Coal burning power plants are one of the largest contributors, after cars, to global warming. Coal also puts a lot of food on the table in Appalachia. The article about about the Pennsylvania group mentions an energy industry-backed group called Energy Citizens. (Not to be confused with Joe Kennedy II's group Citizens Energy.) Energy Citizen's organizers circulated this memo released by Greenpeace. It mentions corporate efforts to organize and execute these energy rallies. Greenpeace makes it sound like some sort of diabolical conspiracy. There is nothing wrong with folks defending their right to make a living. It's built into The Constitution.

Anti-global warming folks have a vested interests in their opponents being wrong. That doesn't make them bad people. In fact lets hope they're right. Because if they're wrong all those stories about some unspecified disaster suggest one thing for certain: the global warming train has already left the station. To paraphrase James Lovelock, if global warming theory is right, then in 10 or 20 years years we're going to be too busy beating back the rising tide to worry about Osama Bin Laden and his folks.

This is not to say we burn all the coal we want, we have to end carbon emissions. But it's too late for radical surgery. We should start thinking about fighting global warming as painlessly as possible. Being radical is only going to make people angry. There are other environmental issues we can be more passionate about where our passion will have some payoff. As far as global warming, we might as well all be friends as we watch the tide come in. James Lovelock cut his philosophical teeth with an obscure theory called Gaia. More recently he been talking about global warming, and if you think all the prognostications in the press are alarming read what this guy has to say.

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8.31.09

Folks in Copenhagen will be shutting off their lights for an hour at 7 pm Dec. 16. If news of this earth-shaking event escaped you, it's an extension of Earth Hour March 28 when a few million people in 88 cities across the globe shut off their lights in support of climate change. Never heard of Earth Hour? It was on Larry King. You can't question the motives of these folks, but their methods could stand scrutiny. Populist sentiment comes and goes, like the solar bra. Buy a solar panel or erect a windmill and it generates power for a lot longer than the Earth Hour. Its hard to say what's the right course here. Some powerful movements like Earth Hour have affected long term changes. However Earth Hour probably took an enormous amount of effort, for what? Sounds a little like NBN.

Here's the upside of global warming. A fellow in New Hampshire just set the state record for blackfish. Blackfish, as the release notes, is a more southern species. Have to wonder if the unusually warm water this summer might have been from global warming or just a shift in the Gulf Stream. Probably both. Some 30 years ago you could find tropical fish in Long Island's Shinnecock Inlet, and that's a far way from the Bahamas. What do you want to bet there are more of them there now?

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8.24.09

It's hard to say if this is bad news or good news, but it falls under global warming so here it is. The knee-jerk reaction is to say the warm water north of Cape Cod this year discussed in the piece is due to global warming. Normally, when you turn the corner of Cape Cod heading north, it seems like the water gets awfully cold. When you pass Cape Ann it can get down-right frigid, even in August. The problem is the Gulf Stream greatly influences the warmth of the Gulf of Maine. Even day-by-day the water temperatures off Plum Island in the northeast corner of Massachusetts can vary by five to 10 degrees. Is it foolish to measure global warming by local water temperatures? Particularly when the global ice caps and mountain glaciers provide such an accurate and tangible picture of the problem? The article cites scientists saying, the warm water this year is due to el Nino.

8.21.09
This should, perhaps, be filed under old news. A March Gallop poll finds most think the threat of global warming is exaggerated. How do you exaggerate the end of the world? While that may sound like an exaggeration, let's look at it from a different perspective.

Here is a great article that tries to dissect how much oil we can still burn without exceeding the magical two degree increase in global temperatures. If this article were to be taken as a prescription for preventing the two-degree jump, we should trade our cars in tomorrow. (Two degrees Celsius spells the end of the world according to the UN.) To attempt these end-of-the-world sorts of calculation in the face of so much uncertainty regarding the rate—some might even say existence—of global warming, could be seen as powerful fuel for the exaggeration argument. Particularly, when dire consequence could be forecast, and extremely expensive, possibly unnecessary, responses prescribed, based on such shaky math.

However, forgetting the math for a moment and relying on common sense, you can as easily argue it's just as silly trying to say if global warming can be exaggerated. It's like playing Russian Roulette. There's probably not a bullet in the chamber when you first pick up the gun, but the longer you play the more likely there is. And we've been playing since the industrial revolution hit England and moved over to America. Then came America's love affair with the automobile which compounded the problem geometrically. Now, throw China and India into the mix, bringing nearly six times the US population with them, all just as in love with the auto as I was with my 1964 ½ Mustang. Forget the calculations, intuition alone should tell you the planet can't handle all the pollution. So, how can we possibly exaggerate the threat of Global Warming? How can anybody possibly play Russian Roulette? It's a lot easier when you know the bullet won't be there in your lifetime.

8.12.09

We've got good news in Bad News today

Looks like the 2009 hurricane season won't be as bad as originally forcast. Here's another article, along the same line. NOAA says July was cooler than average. Kind of makes you wonder about global warming and the hot, violent weather it's supposed to produce. It also makes you wonder about drawing conclusions from one season's weather when years worth of research suggest global warming is happening. Here's a scary NYTimes piece to illustrate that point. There's also an interesting map on this link. Here's another piece worth reading on the subject from the NYTimes. The map above is all we've got going on tropical storm-wise as of 8.12.09

8.10.09

Here's a slightly dense piece on global warming which says the president's Cap and Trade initiative to curb greenhouse gases is missing the mark. Instead of making polluters pay for their pollution, as the president wanted, Congress is giving them a licenses to pollute.

There is an interesting point the piece misses. Prior to this legislation, there was no license needed at all. The polluters polluted with impunity. Now at least they need official permission, which they are getting for free, when the president wanted to auction those licenses off. It's sad to see, once again, special interest, not popular interest, setting the national agenda. Still, it's a small step in the right direction. After all the specials interests are appeased maybe then we can start auctioning these permits off. This is

Here's another discouraging story about the Nobel winning panel of scientists getting few nations to pay attention to the dire warnings that won them the prize.

8.5.09

Here's another story forecasting more rapid sea level increases from global warming. What's particularly important here is this sentence: “The uncertainties around different methods to achieve accurate predictions are highly contentious because the response of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets to warming is not well understood.” This is spooky stuff wrapped into a slightly confusing sentence. Read another way: “We don't know how fast the world's ice is melting so we can't predict how quickly three billion homes will be underwater.”Three billion! The only thing that can be said with certainty about this uncertainty is the ice is melting faster and faster. Read a few of the pieces on the sidebar of the link above.

July 24, 2009,

More bad news on the global warming front. Apparently, the hotter the planet gets the smaller the fish get.

July 22, 2009 This just in from the good folks over at NOAA. The world’s ocean surface temperature was the warmest on record for June, breaking the previous high mark set in 2005. It's unpleasant to provide constant reminders that the monster under the bed is real. It's just as important that more folks become aware. We can no longer put off the hard decisions.

July 7, 2009 Thanks for checking out our new Global Warming page. With the number of global warming stories published every day we could write a book every day. So this page is dedicated to stories dealing just with the rate of GW. Every day more stories are dumped on this desk saying GW is happening much faster than previously thought.

The wildcard here is the melting of the polar icecaps. This process has a reinforcing effect that speeds up global warming. This, more than any other aspect of GW, has to be watched very carefully. Image what happens when you put two brand new ice cubes into a drink. The smaller they get the faster they melt. So it seems only sensible to devote an entire page on this website to this truly scary topic. Let's hope there's not much news here. Today's piece is an excellent introductory to the subject.