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<font size="+1"><i>May 21, 2018</i></font><br>
<br>
[CBS News YouTube video 6 mins]<br>
<b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kfYrf-CCFw">Adapt or
Die: How Much is our Climate Changing?</a></b><br>
CBS News - May 20, 2018<br>
Sea levels and temperatures are rising across the globe. El Ninos
are happening more frequently and April was the coldest one in 20
years. But is there any silver lining to our rapidly changing
climate? Meteorologist Jeff Berardelli joins CBSN to discuss how
much of a change we are seeing...<br>
CBSN is the first digital streaming news network that will allow
Internet-connected consumers to watch live, anchored news coverage
on their connected TV and other devices. At launch, the network is
available 24/7 and makes all of the resources of CBS News available
directly on digital platforms with live, anchored coverage 15 hours
each weekday. CBSN. Always On. <br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kfYrf-CCFw">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kfYrf-CCFw</a><br>
<br>
<br>
[New Zealand science]<br>
<b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/357810/report-links-health-to-climate-change">Report
links health to climate change</a></b><br>
20 May 2018<br>
Climate change could massively impact the health sector, according
to a new report.<br>
The report by the <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.esr.cri.nz/assets/Uploads/Climate-Change-and-Env-Health-FINAL-20180517.pdf">Environment
and Science Research Institute</a> (ESR) outlined the possible
effects on human health, as a result of extreme weather, air
pollution and UV radiation.<br>
- - - - -<br>
The report, commissioned by the Ministry of Health, reviewed
international and domestic research to consider what health effects
may present over the next 50 to 100 years.<br>
It is the first of its kind in New Zealand.<br>
The report broke down the effects of climate change and looked at
what health effects could then arise.<br>
Dr Nokes said extreme weather and rising temperatures could bring
drought causing wildfires and water contamination or shortage.<br>
Storms and heavy rain could also affect water quality and flooding -
particularly affecting the health of those living in low-lying
coastal areas.<br>
- - - - <br>
Dr Nokes said the link between climate change and health was not
discussed enough.<br>
"It's surprising that the connection hasn't been made more, because
we all live in the environment and changes to that environment are
potentially going to have effects on us.<br>
"It's fairly certain that the more we start looking at the overall
impacts or expected effects of climate change we're going to need to
understand what those effects will be for humans trying to exist in
this changing environment."<br>
The Ministry of Health was working with ESR to develop a plan.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/357810/report-links-health-to-climate-change">https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/357810/report-links-health-to-climate-change</a><br>
- - - - <br>
[PDF file report 175 pages]<br>
<b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.esr.cri.nz/assets/Uploads/Climate-Change-and-Env-Health-FINAL-20180517.pdf">Climate
Change and Environmental Health</a></b><br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.esr.cri.nz/assets/Uploads/Climate-Change-and-Env-Health-FINAL-20180517.pdf">https://www.esr.cri.nz/assets/Uploads/Climate-Change-and-Env-Health-FINAL-20180517.pdf</a><br>
<br>
<br>
[change always happens]<br>
<b><a
href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/adapt-or-die-cbsn-originals/">Adapt
or die: Can evolution outrun climate change?</a></b><br>
"It's been stated that the Galapagos is the natural laboratory for
evolution. And we're saying that it's a natural laboratory for
studying climate change and evolutionary responses to climate
change," Witman told CBS News' Adam Yamaguchi.<br>
He said evolutionary changes that once unfolded over hundreds of
thousands of years are now happening before our eyes.<br>
"It's a major new perspective in evolutionary biology and ecology,
because it's forcing ecologists like me to think about adaptation
and natural selection on the period of ten years or so," he said.<br>
- - - - -<br>
Chaves and his students track minute changes, year to year, in the
shapes and sizes of the finches' beaks as the flocks adapt to the
varieties of food available. Those with inadequate beaks don't
survive. And because the finches breed two or three generations
every year, "in so little time, you can see evolution in action," he
said.<br>
These rapid adaptations may give it an advantage for survival in a
changing world. In 2017, researchers discovered that an entirely new
species had been formed when a wayward bird mated with another finch
species and produced offspring. Chaves expects to see more of that
happening globally as various species migrate.<br>
But it won't always work. "Many species will not be able to make
it," he said, echoing the concerns Jimenez expressed for the
penguins and Witman for the coral ecosystem. "For many species in
which you have this limitation of time, you might be too late."<br>
It may be the ultimate test of the survival of the fittest, and many
species -- even our own -- could lose out.<br>
"I think the issue right now that we have is that the changes are
happening in such a short period of time. The same amount of change
that you've seen happening in a couple of millions of years has
happened in the last 40 years," Chaves said. "From our perspective
of humans, we have understand that it's our responsibility that
these changes are happening because [of] our own mishandling of the
planet."<br>
It's no longer enough for animals to evolve. They have to adapt now,
adapt fast -- or die.<br>
<font size="-1"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/adapt-or-die-cbsn-originals/">https://www.cbsnews.com/news/adapt-or-die-cbsn-originals/</a></font><br>
<br>
<br>
[NewScientist says worse than RCP8.5]<br>
<b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2168847-worst-case-climate-change-scenario-is-even-worse-than-we-thought/">Worst-case
climate change scenario is even worse than we thought</a></b><br>
By <span class="author">Michael Le Page</span><br>
The phrase "worse than we thought" is a cliche when it comes to
climate change. <a
href="https://www.newscientist.com/round-up/worse-climate/">There
are lots of studies suggesting we're in for more warming and worse
consequences than thought, and few saying it won't be as bad</a>.
But guess what: it's worse than we thought.<br>
A study of the future global economy has concluded that the standard
worst-case scenario used by climate scientists is actually not the
worst case.<br>
How much the climate will change depends on <a
href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2168780-we-messed-up-our-figures-on-how-much-carbon-dioxide-is-too-much/">how
much greenhouse gas we emit</a>, which in turn depends on the
choices we make as a society - including how the global economy
behaves. To handle this, climatologists use four scenarios called
RCPs, each of which describes a different possible future.<br>
<div id="video-mid-article" class="mpu"
data-google-query-id="CNOQ8Mjok9sCFfQAfQod_Q4IDg">
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</div>
The RCP8.5 scenario is the worst for the climate. It assumes rapid,
unfettered economic growth and <a
href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2152929-bad-news-carbon-emissions-have-suddenly-started-rising-again/">rampant
burning of fossil fuels</a>.<br>
It now seems RCP8.5 may have underestimated the emissions that would
result if we follow the economic path it describes.<br>
More money, more emissions<br>
"Our estimates indicate that, due to higher than assumed economic
growth rates, there is a greater than 35 per cent probability that
year 2100 emissions concentrations will exceed those given by
RCP8.5," says <a href="http://www.peterchristensen.net/">Peter
Christensen</a> of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.<br>
In one sense, it is not quite that bad. RCP8.5 assumes no action is
taken to limit warming, which is unlikely. "We've already locked in
a certain amount of climate policy," says <a
href="https://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=EW93x94AAAAJ&hl=en">Glen
Peters</a> of the Center for International Climate Research in
Norway.<br>
But the worrying implication is that emissions could be much higher
than expected even if climate action continues and is ramped up.
"The results will also affect estimates of emissions pathways under
a variety of policy scenarios," says Christensen.<br>
While some claim the link between economic growth and greenhouse
emissions has been broken - or "decoupled" - it's only been
weakened. Carbon emissions <a
href="https://twitter.com/Peters_Glen/status/993750403018829825">have
risen in the European Union over the past four years as economic
growth has picked up</a>, Peters points out. In 2017, EU emissions
rose 1.8 per cent. Journal reference: <i>PNAS</i>, <a
href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1713628115">DOI:
10.1073/pnas.1713628115</a><br>
<font size="-1"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2168847-worst-case-climate-change-scenario-is-even-worse-than-we-thought/">https://www.newscientist.com/article/2168847-worst-case-climate-change-scenario-is-even-worse-than-we-thought/</a></font><br>
<br>
<br>
[money talking]<br>
<b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/may/20/shell-faces-shareholder-challenge-over-climate-change-approach-paris-climate-deal">Shell
faces shareholder challenge over climate change approach</a></b><br>
Investors back resolution calling on oil giant to set tougher carbon
targets in line with Paris climate deal<br>
<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/royaldutchshell"
data-link-name="auto-linked-tag" data-component="auto-linked-tag"
class="u-underline">Royal Dutch Shell</a> faces a shareholder
challenge over climate change this week, as investors insist oil and
gas firms should offer more transparency and action on carbon
emissions.<br>
A growing number of pension funds have backed a resolution at
Shell's AGM on Tuesday that calls on the company to set tougher
carbon targets that are in line with the <a
href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/dec/12/paris-climate-deal-key-points"
data-link-name="in body link" class="u-underline">goals of the
Paris climate deal</a>.<br>
The proposal has been backed by the Church of England, the Dutch
pension fund Aegon and, most recently, Nest, the workplace pension
scheme set up by the UK government, which has 7m pound sterling
invested in Shell.<br>
Mark van Baal, the founder of <a href="https://follow-this.org/"
data-link-name="in body link" class="u-underline">Follow This</a>,
a Dutch campaign group that brought the resolution, said: "Investors
have a choice: vote for Shell's 'whatever world' or vote for the
world of the Church of England, a world in which all companies set
targets to limit climate change to well below 2C."<br>
<aside class="element element-rich-link element-rich-link--tag
element--thumbnail element-rich-link--upgraded"
data-component="rich-link-tag" data-link-name="rich-link-tag">
<div class="rich-link tone-news--item rich-link--pillar-news">
<div class="rich-link__container"> The resolution has been
highlighted by 60 large investors managing more $10.4tn
(7.72tn) in assets, though they stopped short of publicly
backing it...<br>
<font size="-1">more at: <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/may/20/shell-faces-shareholder-challenge-over-climate-change-approach-paris-climate-deal">https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/may/20/shell-faces-shareholder-challenge-over-climate-change-approach-paris-climate-deal</a></font><br>
</div>
</div>
</aside>
<br>
<br>
[41C is 105F]<br>
<b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://tribune.com.pk/story/1715029/1-karachi-morphs-giant-baking-oven/?amp=1">Karachi
morphs into a giant baking oven</a></b><br>
Fahim Hussain <br>
ISLAMABAD/ KARACHI: A heatwave blasting through Karachi and southern
parts of the country for the last four days smashed the 44 degrees
Celsius mark, sending people to scramble for shelter in the fasting
month of Ramazan.<br>
The increased loadshedding and numerous power outages added to the
misery of the people, forcing them to take to the streets to vent
their anger. A pregnant woman died in Hyderabad while protesting
against persistent load-shedding.<br>
Sunday's temperature surpassed previous day's reading at 41 degrees
C, meteorologists said.<br>
The sweltering heatwave in the city and elsewhere in Sindh is likely
to extend its unwelcome stay by four to five days, they said.<br>
The heatwave is expected to peak between Monday and Wednesday,
drastically pushing the temperatures even higher, Dr Ghulam Rasool,
director-general at the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD),
said...<br>
Interior parts of Sindh can expect temperatures reaching up to 50
degrees C [122F] as a renewed heatwave envelopes the province, he
warned.<br>
The official attributed the soaring temperatures to a halt in sea
breeze which allowed the heatwave - that rode into the city on
Saturday - to continue for four days.<br>
Meanwhile, deadly heatwaves are going to be country's much bigger
socio-economic and health problem in the coming decades,
particularly in densely populated urban areas of the country.<br>
The global warming-induced extreme weather events are becoming more
frequent and occurring over a much greater portion of the country.<br>
Climate change ministry spokesperson Mohammad Saleem said, "But
devastating fallouts of heatwaves on humans can be largely mitigated
through timely and effective responsive measures."...<br>
- - - - <br>
"With every 1 degree C rise in temperatures, the capacity of the air
to hold moisture goes up by 7 per cent. People with no access to air
conditioning or a cool breeze become, however, at high risk," he
added...<br>
- - - - <br>
Saleem said that according to the study's findings based on data of
about 783 heatwave incidents in 164 cities from 36 countries
indicate that about 30% of the world's population (and about 13% of
the land area) experiences at least 20 days per year on which the
deadly threshold is reached...<br>
<font size="-1">More at: <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://tribune.com.pk/story/1715029/1-karachi-morphs-giant-baking-oven/?amp=1">https://tribune.com.pk/story/1715029/1-karachi-morphs-giant-baking-oven/?amp=1</a></font><br>
<br>
<br>
[Candidates]<br>
<b><a href="http://www.314action.org/endorsed-candidates-1/">314
Action is proud to endorse these scientists and other STEM
leaders who will fight to protect science and stand up to
climate deniers.</a></b><br>
<font size="-1"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="http://www.314action.org/endorsed-candidates-1/">http://www.314action.org/endorsed-candidates-1/</a></font><br>
<br>
<br>
[who protects what]<br>
<b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/western-wildfires/wildfire-prone-states-wealthy-pay-have-private-firefighters-protect-their-n869061">Wealthy's
use of private firefighters ignites debate in wildfire country</a></b><br>
"I could care less who owns the house," one firefighter said. "I
just want to save as many people as possible."<br>
by Chiara Sottile / May.04.2018 <br>
As wildfires burn from Maine to Michigan, and California slowly
recovers from last year's devastating - and costly - wildfire
season, a debate has ignited over the use of private firefighting
teams deployed by insurance companies and used to protect homes
belonging largely to the wealthy.<br>
The insurance companies offering this additional service are often
for policyholders with properties valued at more than $1 million -
and for homeowners with these insurance plans, having this extra
protection can be the difference between their home surviving the
fire and burning to the ground.<br>
Fred Giuffrida and his wife, Pamela Joyner, were home at their hilly
16-acre Sonoma ranch late last Oct. 8 when, looking out from the
family room window, Joyner saw an ominous pink glow in the distance.
It was a gusty night in wine country, so she went outside to get a
better look. She smelled smoke.<br>
"Twenty minutes later, the whole hill was ablaze," Giuffrida told
NBC News.<br>
"There's only one way off the hill, so we said, 'We can't afford to
stick around here,'" Giuffrida recalled in a phone interview. After
banging on the door to alert a neighbor, they fled their home in the
early morning hours of Oct. 9, not knowing what they would find when
they returned.<br>
Image: WDS firefighters apply water in their effort to completely
extinguish the fire near Giuffrida's home in October 2017.<br>
Fred Giuffrida credits his Sonoma home surviving the October fires
to firefighters from Wildfire Defense Services, dispatched by his
insurance company. Here, WDS firefighters apply water in their
effort to completely extinguish the fire near Giuffrida's home in
October 2017.Courtesy WDS<br>
- - - - <br>
That night, and for the next several nights, multiple wildfires
ignited across wine country. All told, the "October Fire Siege"
would destroy more than 245,000 acres - the most destructive in the
state's history. By month's end, 43 people had lost their lives,
100,000 residents had been forced to evacuate, and an estimated
8,900 structures had been destroyed, according to the California
Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire...<br>
<font size="-1">more at: <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/western-wildfires/wildfire-prone-states-wealthy-pay-have-private-firefighters-protect-their-n869061">https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/western-wildfires/wildfire-prone-states-wealthy-pay-have-private-firefighters-protect-their-n869061</a></font><br>
<br>
<br>
[Opinion]<br>
<b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/geoengineering-climate-change_us_5ae07919e4b061c0bfa3e794">The
Dangerous Belief That Extreme Technology Will Fix Climate Change</a></b><br>
It boils down to a failure to question capitalism, civilization, and
the notion of progress.<br>
Aleszu Bajak<br>
- -- - <br>
But the problem with the way geoengineering is discussed today,
lamented John Ehrenfeld, former director of the MIT Program on
Technology, Business, and Environment, is that it doesn't address
the societal issues that got us in this mess in the first place. <br>
"It's a failure to accept complexity of the system, and the system
includes people," Ehrenfeld told me recently over coffee. For
decades, Ehrenfeld, who is now retired, researched and promoted the
concept of sustainability. But to Ehrenfeld, after all the climate
conferences, all the stakeholder roundtables, all the debates on
market-driven solutions, the questions and answers being debated
never questioned capitalism, civilization, and the notion of
progress.<br>
Tackling a problem as deeply ingrained as global warming, Ehrenfeld
said, will require humanity to face an existential question that
geoengineering alone cannot address: Are we willing to sacrifice
growth to ensure the survival of our species?<br>
"Absent decoupling growth from progress," Ehrenfeld said, "we won't
address the core of the problem."<br>
<font size="-1">more at: <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/geoengineering-climate-change_us_5ae07919e4b061c0bfa3e794">https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/geoengineering-climate-change_us_5ae07919e4b061c0bfa3e794</a></font><br>
<br>
<br>
[Of course]<br>
<b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.popsci.com/extreme-temperature-fluctuations-heart-attack">Heart
attacks seem more common after extreme temperature changes</a></b><br>
Unseasonably warm afternoons might not do us much good.<br>
By Marlene Cimons Nexus Media March 2, 2018<br>
Extreme weather tied to heart health.<br>
Temperatures along the East Coast began fluctuating wildly last
month, from winter-like cold one day - which is normal for
February - to summer-like hot the next day - which is anything but.
This is a portentous harbinger of global climate change, and an
irksome turn of events, as it forced people to switch their clothes,
thermostats, and ceiling fans from one day to another.<br>
As it turns out, such abrupt temperature swings also may be bad for
your health. Cardiology researchers in Michigan recently linked
extreme day-to-day changes in temperatures to a significant increase
in heart attacks, a finding that raises the disturbing possibility
of yet another harmful effect of our warming planet on human health.<br>
"Global warming is expected to cause extreme weather events, which
may, in turn, result in large day-to-day fluctuations in
temperature," said Hedvig Andersson, a cardiology researcher at the
University of Michigan. "Our study suggests that such fluctuations
in outdoor temperature could potentially lead to an increased number
of heart attacks and affect global cardiac health in the future."...<br>
<font size="-1">more at: <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.popsci.com/extreme-temperature-fluctuations-heart-attack">https://www.popsci.com/extreme-temperature-fluctuations-heart-attack</a></font><br>
<br>
<br>
[Sarasota comic drama]<br>
<b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.heraldtribune.com/news/20180519/local-playwright-creates-dark-comedy-about-climate-change">Local
playwright creates 'dark comedy' about climate change</a></b><br>
Jack Gilhooley's 'The Long Reunion,' which has its premiere at the
Manatee Performing Arts Center, uses the Manatee River as the
setting for a play about rising seas<br>
About two years ago, playwright Jack Gilhooley witnessed high tide
in Miami Beach and knew he found the subject for his next "dark
comedy."<br>
"We saw fish swimming down Collins Avenue," Gilhooley remembered.
"That image stuck with me. I knew there was a play there."<br>
Gilhooley, a Manatee County resident, is the author of about 100
one-act and full-length works for the stage. Audiences in Sarasota,
New York City, Canada, Scotland, Ireland and other venues have seen
his critically acclaimed dramas.<br>
His heavier themes have focused on race relations, bigamy, fascism,
the realities of war, corruption in higher education and more.<br>
So, for his latest play, the former college instructor who defines
"dark comedy" as "a social commentary about a controversial subject"
did not hesitate to take on the often disputed topic of climate
change and sea level rise.<br>
"I believe in climate change," Gilhooley said. "I'm no scientist.
I'm just a playwright. But I read a lot."<br>
Books such as John Englander's "High Tide on Main Street" and Naomi
Klein's "This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate"
convinced the dramatist that global warming is leading to more
frequent flooding and altering coastlines.<br>
His new play, "The Long Reunion," premieres Wednesday evening in the
Manatee Performing Arts Center's Kiwanis Studio Theatre, where it
runs through May 27.<br>
In 2017, he presented a draft during a workshop of new scripts in
Boca Raton, hoping to find an outlet for it on the East Coast. "I
got no takers." In that version, he used a fictional locale.<br>
When the Bradenton theater expressed interest in staging it,
Gilhooley agreed to change the setting to the Manatee River - just
steps away from where the play is to be performed.<br>
The plot concerns three graduates of Manatee High School's Class of
1993 who periodically gather at the fictional Manatee Riverview Inn
for reunions.<br>
Gilhooley has not worked with the cast members or director Mark
Woodland before but says he has "a great deal of admiration for them
and gratitude."<br>
Eldred Brown portrays Jimmy, a rock band manager who is "skeptical
about climate change." Jennifer Eddy-Kwiatowski performs as Daisy,
who has been married five times. Scott Ehrenpreis takes on the role
of Billy, "an idealist" and ex-football star who teaches at St.
Stephen's Episcopal School. Brenna Griffith plays several
generations of waitresses at the riverside restaurant where the
classmates gather for their 25th, 35th, 45th, 55th and 65th
reunions.<br>
In their dialogue, the characters mention actual alumni from Manatee
High's Class of 1993, whose names are used with permission.<br>
As time progresses, they learn that "things are not what their
yearbook predicted."<br>
According to a plot summary: By their final reunion in 2058, when
they are age 82, "rising tides threaten to dump the eatery along
with the trio of geezers into the Manatee River."<br>
In that final scene, the restaurant is about to close forever and
audiences can expect "an ominous, comic ending," Gilhooley said.<br>
Gilhooley hopes the play will raise more local awareness about the
issue of sea level rise.<br>
"People figure they won't be around to see it (sea level rise) - but
their grandchildren will," Gilhooley said. "I do wish people here
were more concerned." <br>
<font size="-1"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="http://www.heraldtribune.com/news/20180519/local-playwright-creates-dark-comedy-about-climate-change">http://www.heraldtribune.com/news/20180519/local-playwright-creates-dark-comedy-about-climate-change</a></font><br>
<br>
<br>
<font size="+1"><b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.newrepublic.com/article/politics/the-crisis-comes-ashore">This
Day in Climate History - May 21, 2010</a> - from D.R. Tucker</b></font><br>
May 21, 2010: In the New Republic, Al Gore notes:<br>
<blockquote>"During the last 22 years, the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change has produced four massive studies warning the
world of the looming catastrophe that is being caused by the
massive dumping of global-warming pollution into the atmosphere.
Unfortunately, this process has been vulnerable to disruption and
paralysis by a cynical and lavishly funded disinformation
campaign. A number of large carbon polluters, whose business plans
rely on their continued ability to freely dump their gaseous waste
products into the global atmospheric commons - as if it is an open
sewer—have chosen to pursue a determined and highly organized
campaign aimed at undermining public confidence in the accuracy
and integrity of the global scientific community. They have
attacked the scientific community by financing pseudo-studies
aimed at creating public doubt about peer-reviewed science. They
have also manipulated the political and regulatory process with
outsized campaign contributions and legions of lobbyists (there
are now four anti-climate lobbyists for every single member of the
House and Senate).<br>
<br>
"This epic public contest between the broad public interest and a
small but powerful special interest has taken place during a time
when American democracy has grown sclerotic. The role of money in
our politics has exploded to a dangerous level. Our democratic
conversation is now dominated by expensive 30-second television
commercials, which consume two-thirds of the campaign budgets of
candidates in both political parties. The only reliable source of
such large sums of campaign cash is business lobbies. Most members
of the House and Senate facing competitive election contests are
forced to spend several hours each day asking special interests
for money to finance their campaigns. Instead of participating in
committee hearings, floor debates, and Burkean reflection on the
impact of the questions being considered, they spend their time as
supplicants. Though many struggle to resist the influence their
donors intend to have on their decision-making process, all too
frequently human nature takes its course.<br>
<br>
"Their constituents now spend an average of five hours per day
watching television - which is, of course, why campaigns in both
political parties spend most of their money on TV advertising.
Viewers also absorb political messages from the same special
interests that are wining and dining and contributing to their
elected officials. The largest carbon polluters have, for the last
17 years, sought to manipulate public opinion with a massive and
continuing propaganda campaign, using TV advertisements and all
other forms of mass persuasion. It is a game plan spelled out in
one of their internal documents, which was leaked to an
enterprising reporter, that stated: 'reposition global warming as
theory rather than fact.' In other words, they have mimicked the
strategy pioneered by the tobacco industry, which undermined the
scientific consensus linking the smoking of cigarettes with
diseases of the lung and heart - successfully delaying appropriate
health measures for almost 40 years after the landmark surgeon
general’s report of 1964."<br>
</blockquote>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.newrepublic.com/article/politics/the-crisis-comes-ashore">http://www.newrepublic.com/article/politics/the-crisis-comes-ashore</a>
<br>
<br>
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