The Global Warming Report Greets Summer

By Chuck Missler

The longest day of the year approaches and a fluttering of summer solstice celebrations are on the way. In the meanwhile, a report released by the Obama administration has frightened many who believe that man-made climate change is ready to upset life as we know it.

June 21st is the summer solstice, the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere. In Rhode Island, the Westerly-Pawcatuck Downtown Business Association will hold its eighth annual Summer Solstice celebration on Thursday, the 18th. There will be music and face painting, food and carnival rides. It's "a huge welcome party for the summer," according to DBA member Eileen Kenny.

The summer solstice is a big time for nature worshipers. In the woods on the 21st, Wiccans celebrate Litha with a fruit and vegetable feast, then burn incense and wait for the fairies to come out.

SOLSTICE Sunglass Boutique will celebrate the solstice by donating 10 percent of the proceeds from its June 21st sunglass sales to Al Gore's organization The Climate Project. According to Rick Talmage, chief operating officer of SOLSTICE Sunglass Boutique,

"customers can leave SOLSTICE feeling good not only about their new sunglasses, but with the knowledge that a portion of their purchase will help support environmental responsibility."

Environmental responsibility is all the rage these days, whether due to midsummer celebrations or scientific fervor or global government aspirations. The White House science advisor has just released a 200-page report detailing the results of several studies on the change of the earth's climate during the past 50 years. The studies are not new, but the report repeats the warnings that climate change is man-made and will result in heat waves, flooding, wildfires, insect infestations, and rising ocean temperatures if it's not dealt with. The report predicts that there will be more droughts in the Southwest and more intense hurricanes in the Southeast. The UN is predicting great "megadisasters" that would affect millions of people in major cities if something is not done soon to halt global warming.

John P. Holdren, the White House science advisor commented:

"[The report] tells us why remedial action is needed sooner rather than later, as well as showing why that action must include both global emissions reductions to reduce the extent of climate change and local adaptation measures to reduce the damage from the changes that are no longer avoidable."

In other words, the hammer is going to come down on the producers of emissions. The worst culprits in China or India may not be affected for awhile, but Americans will surely feel the upcoming regulation pinch. The policies to lower emissions will put an additional burden on already struggling businesses, and it is therefore very important to know how good the science on climate change really is.

It isn't just the economy that is at stake, though. A "global" problem is always going to warrant "global" solutions, and climate change is a great excuse to push for a larger, more powerful global government to get the problem under control.

Of course, a significant number of people believe that global warming is more hype than real harm. A collection of global warming skeptics - scientists who disagree with the alarmists on the danger of climate change – gathered in Washington DC last week to debunk the science behind climate change panic. They argued that the global warming we do see is caused by the natural cycle of the earth's weather patterns, and is not something that curbing carbon dioxide emissions is going to change. Others argued that carbon dioxide is not a pollutant, and is actually beneficial to plants and sea life.

"How do you control the weather?" asked Bob Carter, an Australian scholar from James Cook University. "For us to assume we can somehow control nature and regulate weather patterns, when we cannot even predict them correctly, is patently absurd."

According to a Gallup poll, only 34 percent of Americans worry "a great deal" about climate change, and 41 percent of Americans think the problem is being exaggerated. Unfortunately, getting at the precise truth on the matter is difficult when the issue is thoroughly smothered in politics.

Congress is currently debating a White House-backed climate change bill that would use a "cap and trade" program to reduce US greenhouse gas emissions 17 percent by 2020 and 83 percent by 2050. The bill could be considered by the entire House within a couple of weeks, and promises to put extra burdens on already struggling US businesses.

In the meanwhile, summer is just around the corner. We look forward to enjoying it… as soon as it stops raining.

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