Snowpocalypse 2010 – Attack of the Snow
I live in Washington DC and this weekend we were blasted by over 24″ of snow. I just got finished digging out our Honda Fit and surrounding sidewalk. Good workout. The streets are mostly covered with a good layer of snow and ice and will probably freeze over again tonight. Not much is open, not many cars are out, being snowed in causes stir craziness but today is SuperBowl Sunday so who cares. The bigger question is, does it really mean anything as far as Global Warming goes?
I know I know, global warming again. Gah. To those who believe Global Warming is here and going to make life hell, they say it doesn’t matter. Climate change is not the weather and the weather is not climate change. Ok, fair enough, still, two massive snow storms in one season, both over 17″, is something I have not seen in 37 years in DC.
When does climate change begin to effect weather if it isn’t doing so now? According to several reports, the only place it’s currently warming is 2000 meters deep in the oceans. And it is true that the oceans are the first to see changes in heat, as they absorb the heat. But really, 2000 meters deep, where no one lives, that’s what all the fuss is about?
I get very concerned with how global warming effects governments, spending, and general trends in how to stop it. Carbon credits are really a waste of time. Hackers have found ways to steal millions in this ridiculous system. Hybrid vehicles going to save us all? Think again, the amount of damage to the environment to build those batteries is significant.
I’m not saying we shouldn’t do anything. And it is true that adding carbon to the atmosphere will have an effect on the climate. But is that effect going to be an unlivable earth in 100 years? Probably not. Forests are growing at an alarming rate, why? They eat carbon, that’s why. Sure they are not going to be able to eat all of the carbon that we put up there but it’s going to be far from some type of global dilemma.
Best course of action? We’re already doing it. In California they are close, very close, to the creation of fusion energy. That’s the power the drives the sun. It’s clean and has a lot of power. Many scientists are proposing artificial trees to eat up some of the carbon as well. And it is that that I think will eventually put this matter to rest.
So, bottom line, don’t worry so much about it. Sure, drive less, save money on gas, don’t get a gas guzzler. But do those things because it’s the responsible way to live, not because the earth will be 100 degrees hotter in 100 years. Are we making the earth hotter? Sure, but at a rate of 1 degree every 100 years.
Enjoy the snow, don’t buy into the doomsday feeling of global warming, and your kids will be just fine. Just remember, we’ve only got 30 or so years left before the Singularity Event. When that happens our computer overlords will tell us how to save the environment. Hopefully they tell us how to beat the common cold too. I feel one coming on!
