[✔️] August 14, 2023- Global Warming News Digest | Many reports from Hawaii fires, Economists discuss, Peter Zeihan opinion, Multi-day grid energy, Global Boiling, Highway to Hell, 2008 John McCain

[Richard Pauli]

/*August 14*//*, 2023*/

/[ BBC report  ] /
*Maui fire: At least 93 people killed in Hawaii wildfires*
BBC News
Aug 13, 2023  #Lahaina #Maui #BBCNews
At least 93 people have been confirmed killed in the Maui fire that 
razed the historic town of Lahaina.
It is the most deadly US fire in a century, with the Hawaii Governor 
warning that the number of victims could rise "significantly".
Hundreds remain unaccounted for while hundreds of others fill shelters 
across Maui after fleeing the flames.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcfirMecDx0

- -

/[ Powerful images from TV news - 10 min ]/
*Hawaii wildfires deadliest in the US in over 100 years*
Channel 4 News
Aug 13, 2023
The Governor of Hawaii has warned the number of people who have died in 
the wildfires will rise, making this the deadliest fire in the US for 
more than a hundred years.

Sniffer dogs are deployed to locate bodies in the wreckage but so far 
have only covered three percent of the search area - and tension is 
mounting among local residents who are demanding to know why enough 
wasn't done to sound the alarm so more people could get out in time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RdUXnbXG1I

- -

/[ NBC News report - hot news style ]/
*Maui wildfires now deadliest in modern U.S. history*
NBC News
Aug 13, 2023  #Maui #Wildfire #Hawaii
The wildfires that broke out on the island of Maui are confirmed to be 
the deadliest in the United States in more than 100 years. As FEMA and 
the governor surveyed the damage, search teams continued to scour the 
ruins of historic Lahaina on Sunday. NBC News’ Tom Llamas has the latest.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-DmOjcenq4

- -

/[ escape by motorcycle ]/
*Lahaina residents share photos of devastation caused by massive wildfire*
KCAL News
Aug 13, 2023
KCAL News' Jeff Nguyen provides continued coverage from Lahaina, where 
recovery efforts continued on Sunday after a massive wildfire torched 
the community, leaving nearly 100 people dead and more than 2,000 
buildings destroyed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqRwKCpDqB8

- -

/[  Personal account "Everybody's dead" ]/
*Hawaii Wildfires: People with missing family give DNA samples to 
identify victims*
Sky News
Aug 13, 2023  #hawaiiwildfires #lahaina #skynews
Dozens have been confirmed dead after wildfires in Hawaii. Authorities 
are urging people with missing family members to give DNA samples to 
help authorities identify victims.
The death toll makes the disaster the deadliest wildfire the US has seen 
in the past century.
Sky's US correspondent Martha Kelner has spoken with survivors of 
wildfires with one Lahaina resident telling her seeing his friend dead 
on the ground 'like a piece of charcoal.'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUe7EsKW8SA



/[ video -- four economists in academic panic about climate  ]/
*Unlearning Economics: Jon Erickson, Josh Farley, Steve Keen, Kate 
Raworth | Reality Roundtable #3*
Nate Hagens
Aug 13, 2023
On this Reality Roundtable, Nate is joined by Jon Erickson, Josh Farley, 
Steve Keen, and Kate Raworth - all of whom are leading thinkers and 
educators in the field of heterodox economics. In this lively 
discussion, each guest begins by sharing one fundamental aspect of what 
conventional economic theory gets wrong and how it could be improved in 
our education system. What basic assumptions about humans have led to a 
misunderstanding of the average person’s decision making? What areas has 
(mainstream) economic theory turned a blindspot to as the foundation of 
our economic systems? Who is finding the models and systems that 
economists have created useful - and how does economics as a discipline 
need to change in the face of a lower energy future? In short, what we 
teach our 18-22 year olds around the world matters - a great deal.
https://youtu.be/EC11UQD9q3w


/
/

/[ Predicting the future of our predicament ]/
*Peter Zeihan: Russia's Pipeline Powerplay against the West*
The Economic Show
Aug 12, 2023  #peterzeihan #russia #ukraine
The global shortage of gas and fertilizer, controlled by Russia, will 
lead to food shortages and price increases, with Ukraine transitioning 
from an exporter to an importer, while the US remains relatively safe 
due to self-sourced nitrogen and secure food exports.
1. 🌍 Due to Russia's control over gas and fertilizer supplies, there is 
a global shortage of these resources, leading to a multi-year food 
shortage, with Ukraine transitioning from a major exporter to a net 
importer for at least a decade, while the US is relatively safe due to 
its self-sourced nitrogen and secure food exports.
2. 😱 Food shortages and price increases are expected in Ukraine and the 
Middle East due to the potential disruption of Russia's primary export 
market and the destruction of a crucial bridge.
3. 💡 It will take at least five years to establish replacement systems 
for globalization.
4. 💡 The planet's carrying capacity has been exceeded, and without 
industrial inputs like fertilizers, famine will occur, with the Middle 
East being the hardest hit, followed by China, sub-Saharan Africa, and 
India/Pakistan, who can mitigate the crisis through oil and natural gas 
exports and labor-intensive agriculture.
5. 💡 India's economic decisions have hindered modernization, but its 
functioning remains unchanged; globally, the geography of agriculture is 
shifting due to changes in energy sources, particularly in Europe and 
its former colonies.
6. 💡 American presidents, including Biden, Trump, and Obama, have shown 
a populist trend, and if the US can maintain low oil prices while other 
countries face higher prices, it will fundamentally change America's 
role as a military and economic power.
7. 💡 Russia will attempt to use pipelines to gain leverage over key 
NATO countries, offering energy security in exchange for political favors.
8. 💡 Countries like China and Russia considering settling oil in 
different currencies and building their own block is not a serious 
threat to the US dollar as a reserve currency, as the ideal global 
currency requires a country with a deep financial pool that doesn't care 
about currency fluctuations and doesn't trade much, and the United 
States meets these criteria.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Mw2Tu40wNQ



/[ Just Have a Think - video ]/
*Cheap, multi-day grid energy. FINALLY!*
Just Have a Think
Aug 13, 2023
Electricity grids all over the world are decarbonising at an 
accelerating pace as fossil fuels are being outperformed by renewables. 
One of the keys elements of that transformation will be energy storage 
that can be discharged over a period of several days so that power can 
always be guaranteed when there's not so much sun or wind around. 
Iron-air batteries look like they may be the perfect solution. Now a US 
company called FORM Energy is on the cusp of installing its first 10MW / 
1 gigawatt hour iron-air energy storage facility.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXouVvzj5nQ


/[   from Modern Diplomacy  ]/
*The Era of Global Boiling*
August 13, 2023
By Faiza Haider
On July 28th, 2023, UN secretary general Antonio Guterres issued a clear 
warning on the prevailing climate concern. Guterres said, “The era of 
global warming has ended. The era of global boiling has arrived. The air 
is unbreathable, the heat is unbearable, and the level of fossil fuel 
profits and climate inaction is unacceptable”.

As countries throughout the world are facing severe climate changes, 
forcing Guterres to make these disturbing comments. The 21st century is 
now also being called the era of global boiling, because of the 
disturbing and extraordinary environmental crises faced by every country 
in the world. A gradual increase in Earth’s average temperature is 
called global warming, but now this global warming has entered a state 
of emergency for our planet. Human-induced climate change, especially 
the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation, has pushed our planet to 
the brink of catastrophe. Changes in weather patterns, rise in sea level 
and melting of glaciers are some of the consequences the global boiling 
world is facing these days.

*The transition from Global Warming to Global Boiling*

The second half of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st 
century is the time when the transition from global warming to global 
boiling speeded. Greenhouse gases (Carbon Dioxide, Methane, Nitrous 
Oxide, Fluorinated Gases), reached their record levels after the spread 
of industrialization across the globe. The primary drivers of global 
boiling are the burning of fossil fuels for the production of energy for 
different purposes, for example, transportation, etc. Other than this, 
deforestation also plays a very significant contribution to this 
phenomenon. Human activities have destroyed natural carbon sinks such as 
forests and wetlands; those ecosystems play a vital role in absorbing 
CO2 from the Earth’s atmosphere.

Due to global boiling, several alarming consequences have become 
evident. Heatwaves, hurricanes, floods, and droughts, are becoming more 
frequent and intense, impacting vulnerable communities worldwide. Raise 
in sea levels threatens coastal regions, displacing millions and 
endangering critical ecosystems around the world.

*The hottest day in the world*

The hottest day is, “going to be when global warming, El Niño, and the 
annual cycle all line up together. Which is the next couple months,” 
said Myles Allen, a professor of geosystem science at Oxford University, 
told The Washington Post.

On four consecutive days, from July 3rd–6th, 2023, the daily global mean 
surface air temperature record was broken. Since then, every day has 
been warmer than the previous record of 16.80°C, which was established 
on August 13th, 2016. The temperatures reported on July 5th and 7th, 
2023 were within 0.01°C of this on the hottest day, July 6th, 2023, when 
the worldwide average temperature reached 17.08°C. This indicates that 
the first three weeks of the month were the warmest three-week span on 
record. Temperatures briefly breached the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C limit 
above pre-industrial levels during the first and third weeks.

*The Disastrous Impact on Ecosystems and Biodiversity*

Earth’s biodiversity and ecosystem faced destructive impacts because of 
global boiling. Due to habitat loss, altered migration patterns, and 
changes in environmental patterns, several species of both plants and 
animals became extinct. Human societies that rely on these ecosystems 
for supplies and services are impacted by the loss of biodiversity, 
which also threatens the delicate balance of the natural environment.

*International Cooperation and Policy Initiatives*

Exceptional levels of international cooperation are needed to address 
the worldwide boiling issue. A significant step in this regard was taken 
in 2015 with the adoption of the Paris Agreement. With attempts to keep 
it below 1.5 degrees Celsius, the Paris Agreement intends to keep global 
warming well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. 
Countries must establish and meet challenging emission reduction goals 
to do this. In addition, states must finance efforts at climate 
adaptation and mitigation as well as assist underdeveloped nations in 
their transition to sustainable development. To counteract global 
warming, cooperation between governmental bodies, nonprofits, and the 
corporate sector is crucial.

*The Urgent Need for Action*

The current state of global heating gives a clear reminder of how 
urgently we need to address the climate problem. Inaction will have 
terrible repercussions, and there isn’t much time left to lessen the 
worst effects of global boiling. To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, 
shift to renewable energy sources, and protect and restore natural 
carbon sinks like forests and wetlands. The world community must come 
together to take bold and ambitious action. A more sustainable future 
can be attained by encouraging energy efficiency, investing in 
sustainable technologies, and supporting environmentally friendly 
regulations. Individual actions are essential because collectively, 
every attempt to reduce carbon footprints strengthens the international 
response required to combat the period of global warming. To prevent 
global warming, cooperation between governmental bodies, nonprofits, and 
the corporate sector is crucial.

https://moderndiplomacy.eu/2023/08/13/the-era-of-global-boiling/



/[ from Foreign Policy  ]/
*On the Highway to Climate Hell*
The world's infrastructure was built for a climate that no longer exists.
By Christina Lu and Brawley Benson
AUGUST 11, 2023
Countries have spent decades building critical infrastructure that is 
now buckling under extreme heat, wildfires, and floods, laying bare just 
how unprepared the world’s energy and transportation systems are to 
withstand the volatility of climate change.

These vulnerabilities have been on full display in recent weeks as 
record-breaking temperatures broil the world, straining power grids, 
threatening water supplies, and warping roads. July was the hottest 
month ever recorded—according to the Copernicus Climate Change 
Service—with intense heat searing Europe, North Africa, Antarctica, and 
South America, where it is currently winter. Even the world’s oceans 
haven’t been spared, with all-time high surface temperatures in the 
Mediterranean and North Atlantic decimating coral reef systems and 
threatening marine life.

If regions aren’t being scorched, there’s a good chance that they are 
underwater. China was drenched by its heaviest downpours in 140 years, 
which triggered massive floods that killed dozens of people and 
destroyed crop fields. In Slovenia and Canada, surging floodwaters have 
battered communities and submerged villages; glacial flooding in Alaska 
has carried entire homes away. Cities in Spain have been flooded worse 
than Noah and his brood, while southern Sweden is grappling with its 
heaviest rains in more than 160 years.

“It’s just an unbelievable summer,” said Peter Gleick, a climate 
scientist and senior fellow at the Pacific Institute. “It’s the kind of 
extreme weather that we climate scientists have been warning about for 
decades—it just now seems to be happening everywhere, all at once.”

Climate change, driven by human activity, makes extreme heat and 
precipitation more frequent and intense—fueling the floods, heat waves, 
and wildfires that have been wreaking havoc around the world. The 
fallout has spotlighted how the infrastructure systems underpinning 
global development weren’t constructed to withstand this increasingly 
extreme climate reality, and what investment has been carried out has 
been less than helpful.

China’s massive Belt and Road infrastructure plan has built more coal 
plants across Eurasia, among other things. Germany shuttered its nuclear 
power stations, not its coal plants. Florida actually banned state 
officials from investing public money in green endeavors. The Biden 
administration’s big clean-energy package angered allies and sparked 
concerns of a trade war. Meanwhile, Ford sold an F-series pickup truck 
every minute of last year.

“We have entire cities and transportation hubs that were all built for 
climate that no longer exists,” said Katharine Hayhoe, the Chief 
Scientist at the Nature Conservancy. “That’s why we’re seeing terrible 
things happen.”

China’s most recent bout of flooding, for example, exposed key gaps in 
its drainage infrastructure. Across Europe, where home air-conditioning 
units aren’t the norm, extreme heat has throttled communities, strained 
power grids, and sparked government health warnings—particularly after 
the continent’s heat wave last year killed an estimated 61,000 people. 
In Phoenix, Arizona, one flight was canceled because the plane’s 
internal temperature became unbearably hot, prompting three passengers 
to faint from heat exhaustion.

Yet even as these threats become more pronounced, experts say countries 
are still struggling to turn away from fossil fuels and build resilience 
into their infrastructure systems. In March, an Intergovernmental Panel 
on Climate Change (IPCC) report warned that the world was on track to 
barrel past a key threshold in the next decade—warming 1.5 degrees 
Celsius above pre-industrial levels—unless industrial governments 
rapidly cut greenhouse gas and CO2 emissions. “Changes in climate are 
coming more rapidly than expected,” Jim Skea, the head of the IPCC, said 
this month.

“The real challenge is that so far, we’re nowhere near addressing 
climate change with the seriousness that is required to really move the 
needle,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA. “If we don’t 
actually do the hard work of deeply addressing this, then it will 
continue to get worse. We will see more years like this one, and then 
eventually years that are significantly worse than this one,” he added.

There are some bright spots: The Netherlands, for example, has spent the 
last few hundred years building dikes and is now spearheading efforts to 
build further resilience into its infrastructure amid rising sea levels. 
More than half of the country’s territory lies below sea level, and the 
Dutch government has worked to develop a robust water management scheme 
and implement novel flood control strategies.

“The Netherlands are incredibly vulnerable to sea level rise,” Hayhoe 
said. “Their water plan is very advanced because they understand the 
threat, and they’re taking action to ensure that as sea level rises, 
that they will still have their infrastructure, their homes, places to 
live, places to grow food.”

Like the Dutch, many governments are increasingly focusing on adapting 
their infrastructure systems, from incorporating climate modeling into 
water management to developing heat mitigation strategies. But unless 
countries take more concerted efforts to both slash carbon emissions and 
ramp up adaptation measures, experts warn that more suffering lies ahead.

Adaptation “efforts have not been anywhere near to the level to match 
the threat,” said Alice Hill, a former senior director for resilience 
policy under the Obama administration currently at the Council on 
Foreign Relations. “We just haven’t made the kind of necessary 
investments to protect ourselves and our communities from these extreme 
events—and with that kind of destruction comes a lot of grief, loss of 
life, and then economic loss.”

Part of the problem is that retrofitting decades-old infrastructure can 
come at a steep price. A 2013 study of the world’s 136 largest coastal 
cities, for instance, found that it would cost $350 million annually in 
each city to improve defenses against flooding fueled by climate change. 
While that number pales in comparison to the price of inaction—which by 
some estimates can run up to hundreds of billions or trillions of 
dollars—it can be a difficult economic and political tradeoff for many 
governments.

“We’re talking huge price tags, and we’re also talking something that 
has not been done systemically before,” Hayhoe said. “We’ve never had to 
cope with changes this fast in the entire history of human civilization, 
and so we’re asking people, cities, states, governments, organizations, 
businesses to do something they’ve never had to do before.”

Physical preparedness is also only one part of the adaptation equation, 
said Stéphane Hallegatte, a senior climate advisor at the World Bank who 
was one of the authors of the 2013 study. Beyond infrastructure, a 
robust response also means developing social systems to help vulnerable 
communities on the front lines of the climate crisis.

“Adaptation is not only infrastructure,” Hallegatte said. “Adaptation is 
also insurance, social protection systems—also helping people [have] 
access to financial tools to borrow when they’re affected.”

Hayhoe likened the urgency of combating climate change to a longtime 
smoker who needs to quit. Although they may have impaired breathing and 
spots on their lungs, she said, they are still alive—and every day matters.

“So when’s the best time to stop? As soon as possible. How much? As much 
as possible,” she said. “Why? Because the sooner we stop, the better off 
we will be.”

Christina Lu is a reporter at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @christinafei

Brawley Benson is an intern at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @BrawleyEric
https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/08/11/climate-change-critical-infrastructure-heat-flood-energy-transportation-housing/ 




/[ The news archive - looking back at an honest Republican - "Climate 
Change is real" ]/
/*August 14, 2008 */
August 14, 2008: GOP presidential candidate John McCain discusses his 
views on energy and climate change in Aspen, Colorado.
2008 Republican Presidential candidate John McCain discusses his 
positions on renewable energy and climate change.

Republican Presidential Nominee John McCain discusses the world economy 
with Aspen Institute president and CEO Walter Isaacson.

John Sidney McCain III, is the Republican senior U.S. Senator from 
Arizona. He is currently the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian 
Affairs, and serves on the Armed Services, and Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation Committees. He was a presidential candidate in the 2000 
election, but was defeated by George W. Bush for the Republican 
nomination. McCain formally announced his candidacy for the 2008 
presidential election on April 25, 2007.

Walter Isaacson is the President and CEO of the Aspen Institute. He has 
been the Chairman and CEO of CNN and the Managing Editor of Time 
Magazine. He is the author of Benjamin Franklin: An American Life (2003) 
and of Kissinger: A Biography (1992) and is the coauthor of The Wise 
Men: Six Friends and the World They Made (1986). His biography of Albert 
Einstein -  Einstein: His Life and Universe - was released in April 2007.

http://youtu.be/BqqZzY0fjC0


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