I think we’ve got a problem
Dave Grandlund蘑菇视频 cartoon in Wednesday蘑菇视频 edition of the 蘑菇视频 where he depicted a movie theater showing the two movies playing as 鈥淲est Coast Fires鈥� and 鈥淕ulf Coast Hurricanes.鈥� I guess he could have added a third feature film titled 鈥淐OVID Killer,鈥� as the suffering continues from all three of these events.
It seems that death and destruction are all around us and the prospects for relief are nowhere in sight. More hurricanes are brewing in the warm ocean waters and the fires just keep on incinerating whole towns in our Western states and the virus has surpassed 200,000 deaths in addition to the millions suffering through recovery.
Both hurricane Sally and Laura intensified rapidly in the very warm waters just before they made landfall. Ocean waters are much warmer than normal and so too are our atmospheric temperatures. NOAA and the weather scientists tell us that this summer is going into the record books as another hot one. August was the second hottest ever and across the globe we are looking at the third hottest, respectively. August temperatures across Mother Earth were 2.14 degrees above normal and while this may not sound like a lot, it is when you consider the size of the planet and the amount of water on it. It is also interesting to note that the Southern hemisphere has experienced their third warmest winter in 141 years.
As I write this, our own area is experiencing smoky skies from the Western fires. Cooler weather over the weekend should chase away the smoke though. At one point, the fires were spreading at a rate of 2,000 acres per hour keeping some 20,000 firefighters scrambling to stay safe and attempt to bring these fires under some control. Lives are being lost and scores are missing. Seeing the pictures each day, it is hard to believe anyone could survive these infernos. This is only the beginning of fire season and fortunately we are at least at the peak of the hurricane season. Who knows where the virus will go as it, like the wildfires, seems hard to contain.
Does anyone think we could have done better? We denied the virus. We deny climate change. Some have said both were a hoax and would go away. We make fun of our scientists even after countless studies and research have shown both the virus and climate change are real and are going to be with us for some time.
In its simplest form, a warmer atmosphere makes for warmer oceans and this increased heat gives us more energy to fuel and grow more and stronger storms. This is not a theory, but a fact and it plays out in our increased storms and fires. Yes it will get cooler as fall settles in, but the fires, storms and the virus are not over. We must put trust in our scientists and science itself. Scientists are not politicians. They are just people trying to do their jobs to make Mother Earth a safer place for our children and grandchildren. Perhaps we should listen to them.