[TheClimate.Vote] September 18, 2020 - Daily Global Warming News Digest
Richard Pauli
richard at theclimate.vote
Fri Sep 18 12:20:26 EDT 2020
/*September 18, 2020*/
[attention indication]
*Google searches for climate refugee up 92% in past week*
https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=now%207-d&q=climate%20refugee
[clips from the Atlantic]
*Why Republicans Still Don't Care About Climate Change*
Extreme-weather events represent an irresistible force for action. But
an immovable object is in the way.
RONALD BROWNSTEIN - Sept 17, 2020
Mary Nichols has been part of the struggle to prevent catastrophic
climate change for about as long as anyone in American life. For years,
she's directed California's pathbreaking efforts to reduce carbon
emissions as the chair of the California Air Resources Board--a position
she held first in the 1970s before taking it up again in 2007. Nichols
has also served at the federal level, working as the chief regulator for
air pollution at the Environmental Protection Agency under President
Bill Clinton in the 1990s. And yet even Nichols has never seen anything
that crystallizes the dangers of climate change more clearly than the
historic outbreak of wildfires scorching California and other western
states this year.
"Yes, absolutely," she told me earlier this week, when I asked her
whether this year's fires are the most tangible danger to California
that she's seen from climate change. "It's not suddenly going to reverse
itself … to years when there's no fire season, or it's not going to
happen until October. The changes are going to be real, and they are
going to be long-lasting."
Carol Browner served as the EPA administrator for both of Clinton's
presidential terms and later worked as President Barack Obama's first
White House adviser on climate. When she looks at the confluence of
extreme-weather events battering the United States in recent years--not
only the wildfires, but also the Gulf Coast hurricanes, Midwest
flooding, and the Southwest's extreme heat--Browner likewise sees stark
evidence that climate change is disrupting American life earlier and
more powerfully than almost anyone expected when the debate over these
issues seriously began about three decades ago.
"What we have now is the absolute environmental demonstration or
evidence of just how dramatic the impact of climate change is going to
be. This is not going to stop," Browner told me. "There is going to be
something next year, and the year after, if we don't get on it."
Environmental scientists and policy experts around the country agree
that the massive wildfires are just the latest indicator that climate
change has thrust the U.S., and the world, into a dangerous new era. But
it's far from certain that the growing recognition of that threat can
break the stalemate over climate policy in Washington. The accumulating
evidence about climate change's destructive power represents an
irresistible force for action. But it's colliding with an immovable
object: the unbreakable resistance to any response among both Republican
voters and elected officials.
- -
Anthony Leiserowitz, the director of the Yale climate program, says that
in the past, even those Americans concerned about climate change tended
to see it as a remote problem. "It was distant in time, [in] that the
impacts won't be felt for a generation or more," he told me. And it was
"distant in space"--"this is about polar bears and maybe some developing
countries, but not the United States … not my friends, not my family,
not me."
Seen through that lens, he said, climate "just blended in the background
with 1,000 other issues out there … so we can deal with it later. That's
where more of the country was in 2007 and 2008. Now we skip forward to
today, that's not true anymore because of the [weather] events we've
been talking about."..
- -
Even if Republicans remain obdurate, unified Democratic control of
Congress and the White House is more likely to produce climate action
than the last Democratic trifecta in 2009 and 2010, most experts I spoke
with said. At that point, the House Democratic Caucus still contained a
large number of southern and rural "blue dog" members who resisted
cap-and-trade climate legislation the chamber passed in 2009.
(Forty-four Democrats voted no.) Now the House Democratic Caucus is
overwhelmingly centered on urban and suburban districts where acting on
climate is popular. As Karpinski said: "If you look at 2018, the key
reason why Nancy Pelosi is now the speaker [is because] it's mostly
suburban and some of the semi-urban districts. It's a combination of
young people, communities of color, and suburban women. They are the
most supportive of this issue and want action."
If Biden wins and Democrats gain the Senate majority, he could drive a
big part of his climate agenda through a coronavirus-relief stimulus
package; his plan includes massive spending to promote renewable power,
electric cars, and energy-efficiency upgrades for homes and businesses.
Obama did the same thing in the stimulus package he signed to counter
the Great Recession, tucking in huge investments in clean energy (that
Biden as vice president was assigned to oversee).
But to secure Senate approval for measures that directly limit carbon
emissions, Democrats would almost certainly have to end the filibuster,
which empowers what I've called the "brown blockade" of Senate
Republicans who represent the fossil-fuel-producing states. (Unable to
overcome a filibuster, the Senate never considered the cap-and-trade
climate bill the House passed in 2009.) And even if Democrats do end the
filibuster, serious climate legislation could face a tight squeeze to
reach a simple majority, with Joe Manchin, from coal-producing West
Virginia, and possibly other Democratic senators having to take a very
tough vote.
All of those outcomes are impossible to predict. But what's clear is
that the tension will grow between a sluggish political system locked in
a partisan standoff and a climate system that is poised to generate
disruption at an accelerating pace. "This is not some 'new normal' that
we can plan around … it's a system that continues to spiral out of
control," says Vijay Limaye, an environmental epidemiologist at the
Natural Resources Defense Council. "There definitely is a signal in
these record-setting months that … we are heading into a new era when we
will see records set, and they will fall just as quickly … It's hard for
people to wrap their heads around now, but as bad as things have been
this year, unquestionably, they will get worse."
Nichols, the veteran climate regulator, is just as stark in her warning:
Even today's extreme weather may soon seem like the (relative) calm
before the storm. "The rate of change is accelerating, so it is
absolutely possible that we'll see more visible signs of bigger storms,"
as well as higher temperatures and sea-level rise, she said. "All of
those things could happen much faster."
She explained that the famous apocalyptic scene from the movie The Day
After Tomorrow still isn't likely to happen, where big waves wash over
the skyscrapers of New York City. "But bigger storms and more damage and
loss of property and loss of life as a result absolutely is likely going
to continue--not just in a gradual slope, but at a rate of acceleration
that is greater than was predicted before," she said.
The biggest message of the California wildfires may be that not only the
terms but the tense of the climate debate is changing. Climate change
has evolved from something that will threaten America to something that
is doing so today. "The people who used to talk about how they were
trying to save the world for their grandchildren need to start thinking
about their children and even themselves," Nichols said.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/09/california-wildfires-and-politics-climate-change/616380/
[BBC video report]
*Why forest fires in Siberia, Russia threaten us all*
Wildfires in Siberia have been releasing record amounts of greenhouse
gases, scientists say, contributing to global warming. The fires,
fuelled by abnormally high temperatures, have been burning as far north
as the Arctic Circle.
BBC Moscow correspondent Steve Rosenberg travelled to the remote Yakutia
region, in northeastern Russia, to gauge the effects of climate change,
both on local communities and on the planet.
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/science-environment-54126762
[CBS 60 Minutes - on interview]
*H.R. McMaster Says Terrorism, Climate Change Among Top Threats To U.S.
In '60 Minutes' Interview With Scott Pelley*
September 17, 2020...
- -
Pelley's interview with McMaster will provide details about the former
National Security Advisor's battle with President Trump over pulling
troops out of Afghanistan, his thoughts on climate change and the war
against cyber security threats...
- -
"McMaster is a fascinating character. He was a Lieutenant General, a
three star general and spent 33 years in the U.S. Army. When Donald
Trump asked him to be National Security Advisor, this was in 2017 and he
was Trump's second National Security Advisor. He's a bit of an
iconoclast and that's the way he was as National Security Advisor. The
first thing he did when he went in as National Security Advisor is
change the president's mind about Afghanistan. The president wanted out
of Afghanistan and McMaster thought it was important that we maintain
troops there. One of the things that we talk about in the story is how
the president made this commitment to McMaster, made this commitment in
public and then reneged a little over a year later."
In his "60 Minutes interview," McMaster will address things he things
were terrific about the Trump administration and other things he thought
were tragic. Pelley's conversation with McMaster will highlight
McMaster's thoughts on the President Trump's relationship with China and
terrorism in the United States.
"He [McMaster] believes that the threat of terrorism here in the United
States is far greater today than it was on 9/11," said Pelley. "One of
the things you might not expect the National Security Advisor to talk
about is climate change. McMaster believes it is an enormous threat to
the security of the world and to the security of the United States. He
talks about things like water scarcity and food scarcity in the world
and how that is going to be an enormously disruptive thing as countries
compete around the world for dwindling resources. President Trump is of
course famous for calling climate change a hoax, but McMaster says it is
not a hoax, the evidence is in and climate change will be one of the
most significant threats to U.S. national security going forward."
Pelley says one of the biggest challenges of covering the Trump
administration is getting people to talk to him and the 60 Minutes team
on camera. The CBS News veteran has seen fear prevent current and former
White House employees from speaking out and telling the truth.
"Many agencies in previous administrations would tell you what they
found," said Pelley. "In this administration, it's more typical I find
that the agency will go to the White House and say what should we say.
That's not the way democratic societies work. It's not the way the truth
is told to the people who actually hold the power in this country."
Watch "60 Minutes" Sunday, September 20 at 7 p.m. EST.
https://newyork.cbslocal.com/2020/09/17/scott-pelley-hr-mcmaster-60-minutes/
[Youth activism classic music video - from April]
*No One Is Disposable*
Apr 25, 2020
Youth Vs Apocalypse
The music video for Youth Vs Apocalypse's first single "No One Is
Disposable" is out NOW!!!! Thanks to everyone that has worked so hard
through this entire process. Go to bit.ly/streamNOID to stream on ALL
PLATFORMS!!! #NoOneIsDisposable #GreenNewDeal #GND #peoplesbailout
#resisttrumpocalypse #solidarityforsurvival featuring
Coco Peila, Dulce C. Arias, RyanNicole, Lizbeth Ibarra, Katerina Gaines,
Sarah Goody
Produced by G3RM
Video by Frank Antonio López
The song is now available on ALL PLATFORMS so click the link to stream:
https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/youthvsapocalypse/no-one-is-disposable-feat-dulce-ryan-nicole--coco-peila
see the video - https://youtu.be/q9905wtDb_U
[From the Lancet Planetary Health:]
*Climate anxiety in young people: a call to action*
Judy Wu
Gaelen Snell
Hasina Samji
September 09, 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(20)30223-0
Climate change poses a major threat to human health. Emerging studies
are elucidating the physical health effects of climate change, such as
increased rates of heat-related illnesses and infectious diseases and
exacerbation of cardiopulmonary conditions; however, research is scarce
on the psychological effects, particularly in young people (defined by
WHO as individuals aged 10–24 years) and youth (15–24 years) who might
be disproportionately affected. The climate crisis could precipitate new
psychological conditions and worsen existing mental illnesses among
young people experiencing climate anxiety, yet pervasive data gaps
preclude our ability to act. Natural disasters precipitated by climate
change including hurricanes, heatwaves, wildfires, and floods can lead
to direct psychological effects, such as increased rates of depression,
anxiety, post-traumatic stress, and other mental health disorders.3
However, psychological effects of climate change unrelated to a climate
event are less well characterised. Referred to as eco-anxiety, climate
distress, climate change anxiety, or climate anxiety, these terms
describe anxiety related to the global climate crisis and the threat of
environmental disaster. Symptoms associated with climate anxiety include
panic attacks, insomnia, and obsessive thinking. Feelings of climate
distress might also compound other daily stressors to negatively affect
overall mental health, potentially leading to increases in
stress-related problems such as substance use disorders, anxiety
disorders, and depression. With little available data, the prevalence of
climate anxiety cannot be quantified, although there are indications
that young people are adversely affected.
For instance, global youth-led climate strikes, federal lawsuits
demanding government action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and
advocacy by young climate activists such as Greta Thunberg and Isra
Hirsi show that youth are anxious about their collective futures. In
2019, in March alone, an estimated 1·6 million school-aged protestors in
125 countries demanded action be taken to combat climate change. Direct
effects of the climate crisis on youth are already apparent: the global
concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide is the highest it has been
in 3 million years, sea levels are continuously rising, and global
temperatures are the hottest ever recorded. To compensate, the lifetime
carbon dioxide emissions (or carbon budget) of the average young person
today will need to be eight times less than that of their grandparents
to restrict global warming to 1·5C, as the limit set out by the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in 2018.
Youth might be more likely than adults to experience ill-effects
associated with climate anxiety. They are at a crucial point in their
physical and psychological development, when enhanced vulnerability to
the effects of stress and everyday anxiety elevate their risk of
developing depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders.
Additionally, chronic stress during youth might result in permanent
alterations in brain structure and the emergence of psychopathologies
later in life. As such, the stress of a climate crisis during a crucial
developmental period, coupled with an increased likelihood of
encountering repeated stressors related to climate change throughout
life, will conceivably increase the incidence of mental illness over the
life course. However, few attempts have been made to investigate the
short-term and long-term effects of climate anxiety on the mental health
of youth.
Measuring the magnitude of the effects of climate anxiety on youth
mental health, identifying which groups are most affected, and
partnering with youth to develop approaches to mitigate the mental
health effects is a pressing priority. Valid and reliable tools for
measuring climate anxiety should be developed and implemented, and
standardisation in the field promoted to enable comparisons among and
within populations. Few tools have been published in peer-reviewed
research and, concerningly, even fewer measure climate anxiety in young
people. Of the studies in youth, many do not focus specifically on
climate anxiety and its effects on mental health, but instead
investigate alternative outcomes such as the relationship between
climate concern and environmental actions. Thus, the development of
climate anxiety scales (like in the 2020 publication by Clayton and
Karazsia) and validation in diverse youth populations might be a first
step in addressing this knowledge gap, followed by prospective studies
in young people to improve understanding of the long-term effects on
mental health.
Mental health professionals, policy makers, and advocates need robust
evidence to mitigate the effects of climate anxiety and stress on the
short-term and long-term mental health of young people. There has never
been such a large population of young people globally, nor do we
anticipate any reversal of the impacts of climate change. Young people
are agents of change, our future leaders, and most likely to succeed in
improving planetary health. Thus, making investments to improve their
mental health and wellbeing will provide dividends now and in the future.
"The climate crisis could precipitate new psychological conditions and
worsen existing mental illnesses among young people experiencing climate
anxiety, yet pervasive data gaps preclude our ability to act"
It's open access here:
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-5196(20)30223-0/fulltext
[2 classic video statements from Naomi Klein]
*Capitalism vs. the Climate: Naomi Klein on Need for New Economic Model
to Address Ecological Crisis
*https://www.democracynow.org/2014/9/18/capitalism_vs_the_climate_naomi_klein
- - *
* *Naomi Klein on Motherhood, Geoengineering, Climate Debt & the Fossil
Fuel Divestment Movement*
Web Exclusive
https://www.democracynow.org/2014/9/18/naomi_klein_on_motherhood_geoengineering_climate
[a little bit of science lecture]
*How Tropical Cyclones, Hurricanes, Typhoons Change the Strength and
Waviness of Jet Streams: 1 of 3*
Sep 17, 2020
Paul Beckwith
My main intention in this 3 part video series is to show you how large
cyclones (hurricanes, tropical cyclones, typhoons, even medicanes)
interact with the jet streams, and can either add energy to them
(amplify them) or take energy from them, depending on their size,
extent, rotation direction, and proximity to ridges and/or troughs. The
modified jet stream (faster or slower; wavier or less wavy; streakier or
more uniform)) that results from this interaction then propagates
thousands of miles downstream and changes weather there. Specifically, I
show how the strong tropical cyclones that hit the Japan, South Korea
region amplified the ridges and troughs of the jet stream, which then
propagated downstream over many days and then caused a record breaking
weather whiplashing from record warm temperatures in parts of Colorado
to freezing temperatures and even snowfall. It is clear that the jet
stream, which guides storms, can have high amplitude ridges and troughs
that can break off the jet stream (cutoff lows, for example) generating
cyclones, and now it should be clear that cyclones can themselves modify
the jet streams by interacting with them.
Yes, the dog wags it's tail, but clearly the moving tail can also wag
the dog!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOK_TWptBZ0
- -
[referred to]
*Paul Beckwith: Post-doom with Michael Dowd*
Sep 6, 2020
thegreatstory
This conversation with climate systems scientist and abrupt climate
change expert, Paul Beckwith, was recorded August 31, 2020. To learn
more about Paul and his work see: https://paulbeckwith.net
Regenerative conversations exploring overshoot, grief, grounding and
gratitude.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rigPcFJbgsk
[Digging back into the internet news archive]
*On this day in the history of global warming - September 18, 2014 *
The New York Times reports on preparations for the People's Climate March.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/18/nyregion/busy-days-precede-climate-change-march-in-manhattan-on-sunday.html?smid=nytcore-iphone-share&smprod=nytcore-iphone
- - -
"Democracy Now!" interviews Naomi Klein about her new book "This Changes
Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate."
https://www.democracynow.org/2014/9/18/capitalism_vs_the_climate_naomi_klein
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