[TheClimate.Vote] Feb 24, 2017 - Daily Global Warming News for All -
Richard Pauli
richard at theclimate.vote
Fri Feb 24 08:13:48 EST 2017
/February 24, 2017 Considering climate change ethical conundrums /
http://news.stanford.edu/2017/02/23/moral-element-climate-change/
Stanford researcher examines moral significance of actions causing
*climate change*
<http://news.stanford.edu/2017/02/23/moral-element-climate-change/>
Stanford University News -9 hours ago
"We often have debates in*climate change*about how to trade off benefits
and burdens without adequately considering what constitutes benefits and
burdens - and whether all burdens are of the same kind," said Debra
Satz, a professor of philosophy and ...
Through his research, he aims to create a framework that governments
could use to evaluate the moral implications of their energy,
transportation and other climate change policies in order to
consider when it is morally justified for them to emit greenhouse
gases...
"We often have debates in climate change about how to trade off
benefits and burdens without adequately considering what constitutes
benefits and burdens – and whether all burdens are of the same
kind," said Debra Satz, a professor of philosophy and senior
associate dean for the humanities and arts. "Blake's approach
introduces an important dimension – not all burdens to people count
as harms."..
For example, a wealthy company losing a small portion of its assets
is less harmful than a person losing his or her subsistence – even
if the dollar amount of the company's loss is greater than the
individual's loss, said Satz, who is also Francis' advisor...
"This research is poised to make a significant contribution to our
obligations to others in the context of the differential
consequences of climate change," she said. "It's political
philosophy at its best – illuminating, deep and action-guiding."...
..."Americans aren't paying the true price of gasoline," Francis
said. "And I think there is something very worrying about the fact
that because of government subsidies we are not paying that true
cost. But it's complicated because we know that keeping gas prices
low is really good for the poor and the middle class."...
In addition to examining specific cases, Francis is studying climate
change policies and their evolution on the national and
international level to determine the current moral assessment the
public has about actions that lead to global warming. He is also
researching the rules of organizations, such as the World Bank and
the World Health Organization, regarding climate change, the
restrictions they put on projects they help finance and how those
policies were decided...
The information and insight Francis gains will be used to help
create the moral framework so that nations can choose wisely when it
comes to climate change policy. But that framework will require a
long time and an effort from experts of all disciplines...
"Ultimately, it's a big interdisciplinary task that philosophers by
themselves won't be able to accomplish," Francis said. "But I think
there is a big chunk of it having to do with what counts as a harm,
how to trade off benefits and harms and when emitting is wrong that
I could have a say in."
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/02/should-you-enjoy-the-warm-winters-of-climate-change/517512/
Is It Okay to Enjoy the Warm Winters of*Climate Change*?
<https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/02/should-you-enjoy-the-warm-winters-of-climate-change/517512/>
The Atlantic -4 hours ago
The weather is nice, but it reminds us of the problems to come.
Most people handle this weather as the gift it is: an opportunity to
get outside, run or bike or play catch, and get an early jump on the
spring. But for the two-thirds of Americans who are at least fairly
worried about global warming, the weather can also prompt anxiety
and unease. As one woman told the Chicago Tribune: "It's scary,
that's my first thing. Because in all my life I've never seen a
February this warm." Or as one viral tweet put it: "Me enjoying this
weather but knowing our Earth is danger"
Katherine Hayhoe, an atmospheric scientist at Texas Tech University,
told me that people shouldn't hesitate to enjoy unseasonably warm
days, whether or not they are caused by climate change...
"It's a good example of how all of the symptoms of a changing
climate are not negative. And if there is something good, then
enjoying it doesn't make [climate change] any better or worse than
it would be otherwise," she said...
Rather, the warm days might prepare people to notice other shifts in
how they experience the weather. "As it gets warmer, the negative
impacts outweigh the positive impacts," she said. "This will first
look like hotter summers, pests moving northward, and our
air-conditioning and water bill going up. Having these unusual days
that we really notice, it makes us more aware of how other things
are changing, too."
But a study published last year in Nature should make advocates
pause. It found that, for the vast majority of Americans, the
weather became more favorable and pleasant from 1974 to 2013. Over
all, winters have gotten generally warmer and more pleasant for
"virtually all Americans," while summers have not yet become
scorching and oppressively humid.
http://investorplace.com/2017/02/exxon-mobil-corporation-xom-stock-tied-trump/
Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM) Stock Is Tied Hip-and-Thigh to Trump
<http://investorplace.com/2017/02/exxon-mobil-corporation-xom-stock-tied-trump/>
Investorplace.com -13 hours ago
No stock you can buy today is more closely tied to the fate of the
Trump Administration than Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM).
"It is hard to imagine a better scenario" for Exxon than a Trump
administration, writes Martin Tiller of Oilprice. If Tiller is
right, XOM stock is a bargain at below $83 per share, its opening
price on Feb. 15...
The company is also moving ahead globally, benefiting from the end
of a rule that made companies disclose foreign bribes.
Exxon is a big player in Iraq, and Tillerson may be the only person
alive who can make that work, getting around the Administration's
travel ban and Trump's comments that the U.S. should have seized the
country's oil in 2003 when it had the chance.
http://www.ecori.org/climate-change/2017/2/22/reckoning-with-parenting-in-the-time-of-climate-change
Reckoning Parenting, Raising Kids in Time of*Climate Change*
<http://www.ecori.org/climate-change/2017/2/22/reckoning-with-parenting-in-the-time-of-climate-change>
ecoRI news -1 hour ago
The size and scope of climate change is mind bogging. While its
impact is already being felt locally and globally, our warming
planet is expected to inflict vastly greater damage on the built and
natural environment for decades and centuries to come..
...Already, climate refugees are taking flight as parts of the
planet become uninhabitable. Prolonged conflicts, like the war in
Syria, are partly blamed on intense weather events such as drought,
flooding and forest fires...
For some, contemplating this current and future dystopia — combined
with reluctant leaders to confront it — induces a great deal of
anxiety. The prospects are especially daunting for anyone weighing
life-changing decisions, such as parenting. In particular, the
dilemma is very real for many 20- and 30-somethings who grew up only
knowing the threat of climate change...
This trepidation is akin to the distress and uncertainty Baby
Boomers endured from the threat of nuclear annihilation during the
Cold War, according to the co-founder of a project that confronts
parenting in the era of climate change...
"History is full of examples of people wondering if the world is
safe for their children," said Meghan Kallman, a Pawtucket, R.I.,
resident and co-founder of Conceivable Future, a project centered on
the principal of reproductive justice...
Kallman and Josephine Ferorelli created Conceivable Future as a
platform for anyone conflicted about raising children in world that
is growing more perilous. Both have a wide range of experience and
expertise to draw from. Kallman is a Brown University-trained
sociologist. She teaches sociology at Brown and at the state prison,
the Adult Correctional Institutions...
In November, Kallman was elected to the Pawtucket City Council. She
said her know-how as a sociologist and community organizer helped
her connect with voters and empathize with constituents since she's
been elected...
The election of President Donald Trump has intensified the need for
civil disobedience, according to both Kallman and Ferorelli. Trump
opposes reproductive rights; he's a climate-change denier; a staunch
advocate for the fossil-fuel extraction industry. Kallman and
Ferorelli say the uncertainty posed by Trump has heightened the
anxiety about climate change and led to an increase in people
reaching out to Conceivable Future for help...
"Trump is a wild card. He's done a lot of things to suggest the
world is going to be less safe for everybody's children," Kallman
said...
Soon after launching their website, Kallman and Ferorelli discovered
the benefit of the video testimonial. The confessions allow people
to articulate their feelings and put them on a path to resolve or at
least improve the moral quandary posed by climate change and
parenting...
The video "does very important work in humanizing the climate
crisis," Ferorelli said. "The testimony is about saying to the
world, 'This is my truth and I'm going to share it with people.'"..
https://www.desmogblog.com/2017/02/22/uk-climate-deniers-take-anti-science-message-trump-administration-cpac-2017
*UK Climate Deniers Take Anti-Science Message to Trump Administration at
CPAC 2017
<https://www.desmogblog.com/2017/02/22/uk-climate-deniers-take-anti-science-message-trump-administration-cpac-2017>*
By Mat Hope • Wednesday, February 22, 2017 - 06:09
Two fringe British climate science deniers are heading to Maryland
to see Donald Trump and his tea party pals this week, taking their
Brexit-inflected anti-science agenda with them...
Trump's golden elevator buddy and UKIP MEP, Nigel Farage, and
far-right Breitbart London commentator, James Delingpole, are both
due to appear at the American Conservative Union's annual
Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), starting today...
CPAC claims to be the "birthplace of modern conservatism", and aims
to "break through the resistance of Washington's powerful elites"
via four-days of talks and activist training. In recent years it has
been seen as a breeding ground for Tea Party ideas and activism...
The conference will offer Farage and Delingpole an opportunity to
network with other members of a US-UK climate science denial network
linked to Brexit and Trump, previously mapped by DeSmog UK.
https://www.desmogblog.com/2017/02/22/uk-climate-deniers-take-anti-science-message-trump-administration-cpac-2017
Special Relationship: The US-UK Climate Science Denier Network
<https://www.desmogblog.com/2017/02/22/uk-climate-deniers-take-anti-science-message-trump-administration-cpac-2017>
https://littlesis.org/maps/1866-special-relationship-the-us-uk-climate-science-denier-network
view this map on LittleSis <view%20this%20map%20on%20LittleSis>
https://phys.org/news/2017-02-likelihood-dangerous-climate-thresholds.html
*(text + video) Computer model predicts the likelihood of crossing
several dangerous climate change thresholds
<https://phys.org/news/2017-02-likelihood-dangerous-climate-thresholds.html>*
Phys.Org-Feb 22, 2017
A new computer model of accumulated carbon emissions predicts the
likelihood of crossing several dangerous climate change thresholds.
These include global temperature rise sufficient to lose the
Greenland Ice Sheet and generate seven meters of long-term sea level
rise, or tropical region warming to a level that is deadly to humans
and other mammals....
These include /global/ temperature rise sufficient to lose the
Greenland Ice ... and generate seven meters of long-term sea level
rise, or tropical region /warming/ to ...
A unique part of the study is that it's timing-agnostic. "Basically,
think of the climate system as a 'carbon bathtub,'" said Fyke. "What
this study mainly does is assess how full the bathtub might get. It
could get to the same level at different times. For example, the tap
could go full-out for 20 years, or a drip for 100 years, but the end
result—net warming—is essentially the same, and only depends on the
level the 'carbon bathtub' gets to, before we turn off the tap
completely."
The issues with green house gases are extraordinary and complex and
the consequences of rising green houses gases will have global
impacts. "Of course, our results are model dependent and, as with
any model, could certainly change as the model design or input
parameters evolve," said Fyke. "However, demonstration of a
risk-based assessment of climate change due to cumulative emissions
is important, because such assessments are needed by policy-makers
and planners involved in large-scale climate change mitigation and
adaptation efforts."
http://www.readingeagle.com/life/article/commentary-john-olivers-plan-to-reach-donald-trump
*Commentary: John Oliver's plan to reach Donald Trump
<http://www.readingeagle.com/life/article/commentary-john-olivers-plan-to-reach-donald-trump>*
Reading Eagle-8 hours ago
The cowboy didn't just explain /global warming/. He also enlightened
viewers - and one in particular - that killing a terrorist's family
is a violation of the Geneva ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xecEV4dSAXE
Trump vs. Truth: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xecEV4dSAXE>
Donald Trump spreads a lot of false information thanks to his daily
consumption of morning cable news. If only we could sneak some facts
into the president's media diet.
http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/opinion/article_8494fbf4-f919-11e6-8621-17ddf3e0fa05.html
*Guest column: Trump and Putin's dangerous embrace of fossil fuels
<http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/opinion/article_8494fbf4-f919-11e6-8621-17ddf3e0fa05.html>*
The Advocate-
Trump's plans, including coal and more pipelines, put /global
warming/ on steroids. It's threatening enough that the industrial
revolution, powered by fossil fuel ...
Trump's plans, including coal and more pipelines, put global warming
on steroids. It's threatening enough that the industrial revolution,
powered by fossil fuel combustion, spewed far more CO2 into the
atmosphere than the Earth could absorb, strengthening the greenhouse
effect, which acts like a blanket, warming the planet beneath. While
still ice-covered, the Arctic Ocean once cooled the planet by
reflecting summer sunlight. As more water becomes ice-free, the sun
heats those areas instead. Warmer water causes more melting, thus
strengthening the warming force, like a runaway train. Humans
amplify this effect by accessing more and more fossil fuels the more
the Arctic melts, thereby putting ever more greenhouse gases into
the atmosphere. ...
It gets worse. Methane, a far more potent greenhouse gas than CO2,
belches from melting arctic permafrost and warming oceans — and from
rice fields and cattle — throwing on more blankets. ...
Geopolitical and climate threats are terrifying enough. Combine them
with two ambitious men scorning limits to power, and they're
downright terrifying. What we should be doing for our survival, but
aren't, is strengthening science, government protections of the
environment, a free and independent press, sustainable energy and
its infrastructure; we should also be implementing a carbon fee to
incentivize innovation, and sustainable energy production that
creates far safer jobs — and way more of them — than fossil fuels.
Meanwhile, Trump and Putin are advocating a planetary fire-sale (pun
intended), using the proceeds to advance vast wealth and political
hegemony for the privileged few. It's high time to investigate and
resist, regardless of one's ideology or politics. Nature makes no
such distinctions, and neither will our kids and grandkids,
agonizing over their stark choices on a deteriorating planet.
http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/2017/02/21/conflicts-of-interest-could-possibly-trump-climate-change-denial/
*Conflicts of interest could, possibly, trump climate change denial
<http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/2017/02/21/conflicts-of-interest-could-possibly-trump-climate-change-denial/>*
As a government executive, Trump wants to move quickly to roll back
regulations that would slow down climate change. He is preparing
executive orders to rewrite regulations on greenhouse-gas emissions
from power plants and end a moratorium on leasing coal mines on
federal lands. He signed legislation last week that rolled back
regulations on how coal mines dispose of waste. And his new
administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Scott
Pruitt, has been at the vanguard of lawsuits challenging EPA's
pollution regulations...
It's fairly obvious that Trump has not considered the climate-change
risk to his real estate holdings in Florida and elsewhere, even
though 13 of his 17 golf resorts and associated real estate
developments and four additional hotels are on or near the ocean.
But perhaps he should. At least his peers are starting to do so...
Two thirds of real estate developers in South Florida surveyed in
2016 by the Miami Herald were concerned about climate change and
sea-level rise, a 10 percent increase from the 2015 survey despite
an exceptionally weak hurricane season between the two surveys. And
then, after the 2016 survey, the 2016 hurricane season featured
several strong storms that pummeled Central Florida—including
Orlando, where he held a campaign-style rally over the weekend...
Even though they may be worried about sea-level rise, however, many
developers will not change their business practices until government
regulations compel them to, according to one developer I spoke with.
The real estate industry, he told me, is like any other sector in
that it depends on the government to set up a level playing field in
which they compete...
Trump is, of course, in the rare position of establishing
regulations that impact his businesses. He can certainly push for
weaker rules that allow more flood-prone developments to be built.
And he has already shown an eagerness to weaken regulations that
restrict greenhouse gas emissions...
But what will happen when the 2017 hurricane season hits? And, if
2017 is a dud like 2015—which forecasters are starting to predict
already—what about 2018? Or 2019 or 2020? Can a major hurricane
cause major damage to Mar-a-Lago and then, amidst the resulting
media storm, finally turn on the switch that compels Trump to
protect his real estate holdings?
http://poststar.com/opinion/commentary/u-s-energy-policy-is-virtually-a-love-letter-to/article_96e64abb-1f47-5064-82ff-19bd8ea3c8db.html
/*This Day in Climate History February 24, 2002
<http://poststar.com/opinion/commentary/u-s-energy-policy-is-virtually-a-love-letter-to/article_96e64abb-1f47-5064-82ff-19bd8ea3c8db.html>
- from D.R. Tucker*
/Washington Post columnist Mary McGrory observes:
*U.S. energy policy is virtually a love letter to oil interests *
"In George Bush's Texas, for instance, in a program signed into law by
him, 800 megawatts of wind energy have been installed. Low-tech
windmills generate electrical power for some 200,000 homes.
Environmentalists say that there is enough wind and solar energy to be
caught in Kansas and North Dakota to meet the region's electrical power
needs. To hear them talk, you would think that the country could keep
itself warm in winter and cool in summer if we just accepted the
resources lying all around us.
"What they say sounds good, but not to Wall Street and the buddies of
the two oilmen who run the country: the president and the vice
president. That's why the White House doesn't want us to know who the
administration talked to before it fashioned the love letter to the oil,
coal and nuclear interests that it calls an energy policy."
/
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