Climate change. Please only serious answers.

Food for thought...

You can be environmentally friendly, and not believe in anthropogenic climate change. I believe we should do what we can to ensure the air is cleaner, that we aren't polluting our waters, etc.

But no one has ever produced real evidence that human CO2 output influences global temperatures. And I do understand the science of how infrared radiation excites the CO2 molecule, reflecting some of that infrared radiation in the form of heat back toward the earth.

Here's the thing...only 0.04% of the Earth's atmosphere is composed of CO2. It's a trace molecule. And human emissions contribute roughly to 3% of that. The collective effect on global temperature is infinitesimal.

The earth is 4.6 billion years old, and has been warming and cooling the entire time. Humans have been around for roughly 200K to 300K years. That's only 0.0065% of the planet's existence...that's the blink of a gnat's eyelash in the grand scheme. An insignificant amount of time to make an evaluation.

But we know the planet was significantly warmer during the medieval era based on agricultural changes. For example, the Romans had wine vineyards in the UK back then, but it's too cold to grow those same wine grapes today. And note, there were far fewer humans. It was a non-industrialized, agriculturally based era. Petroleum as an energy source hadn't been discovered. But there was a period of several centuries when the planet was warmer than today.

Perhaps the most damning evidence are the Vostok ice cores...once the battle cry of the climate change crowd, until the following was discovered.

There is a 400K-800K year span where they studied the relationship between changes in global temperature and atmospheric CO2. What they've found was that the changes in atmospheric CO2 follows the changes in global temperature. Opposite of the entire climate change premise.

And it makes sense when you consider that the greatest source of atmospheric CO2 comes from the ocean (75%-80%). As global temperatures warm the ocean, more CO2 is released into the atmosphere. The correlation between CO2 and global temperatures exists, but the cause and effect is largely backwards.

CO2 is a life enabling compound. If it were to get too low, everything would die.

There is not the political will to address climate change in a significant way in the united states. Even if the USA wanted to do something it would take simultaneous action of other nations —especially China— to reduce GHG emissions enough to reverse the trend we have today.

There will be more global warming because the opportunity to address it passed in 2009, when the Obama Administration made the fateful decision to prioritize health care reform over climate change. I worked for years getting the US House of Representatives to impose a price on carbon (which remains the best most effective policy solution if globally adopted) only to see the Senate lack the political will for action.

The world must adapt to the reality that we are in a warmer world. If the world coalesced today behind a plan to reduce GHGs, we would still see warmer temperatures globally for several years.

None of this is rocket science — it is just the way it is. Sorry I can’t give you a political spin answer — I believe in science and facts and political reality. Others will no doubt respond that climate change is a hoax or blame liberalism or Dems. But that’s all crap.

The best technology solution for the short term is nuclear power and next generation nuclear power which is quite safe. But those most concerned about climate change are also those most opposed to nuclear. How ironic.

You didn't mention what state you lived in. I don't think preferring small towns makes you a tree hugger.
My daughter's job took her to a small town in Wisconsin. She and her husband were glad to get as far away from these Florida hurricanes as possible, since our little town here was in the path of several. (And there's NO FRIKKEN WAY I'll EVER live on a barrier island in Florida.) So their town is small and they are facing -15 degree temps. I miss them.

Climate change is more about fund raising than anything else. The radical environmentalist movement basically runs on fundraising. Scare the public and the dollars flow, (to radical groups like EarthFirst!).

Global warming was a bust. Yeah, Algore gave us that "Earth In The Balance" (which I read cover to cover) and it had some dire predictions for the state of Florida if nothing was done.
Global warming didn't materialize on his timetable, but that's not what dried up the fundraising. It seemed that a threat of "warming" lost a lot of power during the winter time. People would pray for ANY kind of "warming" when they were shoveling show and wearing several layers of clothing in January.

Climate change was the John Carpenter of enviro scares. Make people think killer storms can come at them and they get out the checkbooks. Pay a bunch of scientists to say what you want and it provides plenty of fear documentation. Blame climate change on tsunamis (which are geological events), even the California fires and and it scares the cash out of people who don't pay attention.

What makes the whole argument useless (and what makes the enviro scares easy to see through) is the vastness of the Earth. Assuming all the carbon dating theories are correct, the earth has been through major changes in climate, long before Homo Sape appeared on the scene. Humans may think they're important, but they produce less carbon dioxide than termites.

Also what the left continues to omit is the very definition of the word "Climate." (Yeah, some overly sanctimonious types wag their fingers in your face with "weather is not climate!!!") Climate is defined as prevailing weather conditions in a specific area over a period of time.

The climate of South Florida is generally temperatures from 80s to the low 100s, with what seems like monsoon seasons (except they don't come every summer) and an occasional hurricane that nobody can understand its origins in nature. The climate of north Florida is basically southern Georgia. Both areas are a completely different climate from Alaska. There is no such thing as a planetary "climate" at least not according to the definition of the word.

Global warming might have been more believable, since we have this belt of greenhouse gasses that prevent our planet's surface from resembling that of the moon. Thing is, 97 percent of those greenhouse gasses is water vapor, (probably because 71 percent of the earth's surface is water.) Carbon Dioxide makes up a fraction of those gasses and human production of CO2 makes up a fraction of that fraction. So human activity is not affecting the planet. That's the science.

As far as finding a rural town where you can be guaranteed NO new development, NO Walmarts, NO new planned communities with endless road construction, you might need to look at a place where people would not want to live. Real estate transactions are mostly based on the concept of "Situs." (Translation: LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION.) Maybe an Arizona desert. The eastern section of California will be emptying out pretty soon, because of the fires. What you might try is putting yourself in the shoes of the Walmart exec who has to look for locations to put those super centers. It costs millions to do that, so those execs have to be able to predict the future.

(Give you a major example: You'd think hundreds of acres of Florida orange tree farms would be sacrosanct as far as maintaining rural status. The orange farms in Central Florida (Lake and Polk Counties) were a beautiful sight. You could drive up rt 27 in February, open your window and be intoxicated by the sweet aroma of orange blossoms. In 1988, a major freeze came through and destroyed hundreds of acres of trees. What did Lake County do? It rezoned all those orange tree groves to single family housing. Today, ALL those new houses put THOUSANDS of cars on Interstate 4, heading into Orlando, which is one of the reasons why traffic by the Disney resorts is pretty horrible most of the day.)

As far as trying to figure out Make America Great conservatives, that would be a bigger headache than a month of margarita hangovers. Conservatives are all over the map because we are the most independent thinkers on the earth. A LOT of diverse groups who were traditionally Democrat wound up supporting Trump in the last election (Blacks, Latins, Jews, etc) basically because he did a better job than Biden. So you might have a MAGA who has concerns about climate change. Our tent is pretty large.

I wonder about the non-understanding of this big issue too. Yes, climate change has always happened so it's natural but there's more. Take Greenland. If the ice of Greenland melts too quickly then then there's no turning back making this planet into another Mars. I'm not going on into the details but there should be much more explaining to be done how our present climate system actually works instead of dreaming of making Mars back into a green planet. It's mindblowing how much ignorance and unwillingless to understand there's about now. And yes, I'm conservative. Save the existing trees and plant many more!

You're asking the wrong question. Whether or not there's climate change is irrelevant, the real question is do I believe that "if we outlaw gas stoves and force everyone to drive electric cars whether they can afford one or not, and even if it doesn't work in their situation, can we really dial back the global temp some fraction of a degree, and in doing so prevent the oceans from rising some fraction of an inch per century, etc etc,etc. thus "saving the world"" The answer is no, I don't believe these clowns have a clue what's happening and how to "fix" anything.

The problem is no one really wants to count the cost (or for that matter knows how) of all the climate policies the government wants to implement, and some percentage of those policies are just downright stupid. For example,apparently there's two different types of instant (tankless)gas water heaters, one being slightly more efficient than the other. I recently read about a bill that would tax the less efficient but more affordable instant water heater. The problem is the less efficient type is still way more efficient than the typical tank kind. Given a choice between a not so efficient water heater and a more efficient but slightly more expensive tankless a lot of people would pick the tankless. Adding a tax that pushes the tankless price up even higher encourages people to keep their less efficient tank type.

Good post.

Climate change and conservatism are not incompatible. A true conservative can accept climate change as a reality, but disagree on the politics of what to so about it.

Most of the MAGA folks deny it, but also ridicule, harass, and stymie those who do climate research or make efforts to combat it.

I can say most of the “classic conservatives” I know are resource minded people who dislike waste. For them climate change can be addressed by being less wasteful instead of throwing out their gas car for an electric.

Mine is perhaps a more philosophical answer. Conservatives are predominantly reactionary and are more likely to see the world as fixed and unmalleable, in the sense that what they (as human beings) do to it will have little impact on diminishing the effects of climate change. They view any progressive idea as suspect, whether it be the rights of the LGBTQ community, the "threat" of the Trans movement, the attack of "woke" ideology on good old family values, etc. It's psychological. Believing in man-made climate change affecting us on a planetary scale is just too much of a leap for their evangelical worldview, which means everything is in God's hands and things happen by His will. Of course, the wealthy oil industry lobbies manage to sway conservative opinion in favour of fossil fuels because, well, it's just capitalism in action and oil means money. Perhaps society coming together for a common purpose that doesn't pursue financial profit smacks too much of communism.

The answer to your question is inherent in the definition of "America": Americans (the country) are not satisfied with status quo. I'm sorry, but you're stuck with an ideology that 'Bigger is Better' and that nothing but bigger will do.
"Bigger and Better" are a part of "The American Dream" and this attitude persists despite the overwhelming evidence of poverty and illness (mostly due to 'bigger and better' non-nutritious foods) that American people suffer.
It's a CULTURAL 'thing' and it is not going to change any time soon.
We have it to a degree in Canada, but we temper it with an attitude of sharing wealth (not the same dream) where we (more or less) look at our poor instead of looking over-top of them to the next rung on the ladder.

I am absolutely convinced there is climate change. It is undeniable. Can you point out any time when climate wasn’t changing? Measured over the last hundred million years we actually less CO2 than at many points in earths history.

Another issue for me is there is still a quite open question as to whether CO2 is causing climate change or whether is is being released by naturally occurring climate change. Lastly blaming humans for climate change when the record shows that the climate has always been changing is a bit daft.

One Volcano spews out more toxic gas and debris into the atmosphere than all of mankind throughout history. Recent NASA photos indicate the Ozone layer is nearly wholly intact again (no thanks to anything Mankind has done). ALL of the lib claims of disasters have proven to be false. Anthropogenic climate change is a hoax. Only "paid" lib scientists will claim it is accurate. I have spoken to many biologists who believe it is a hoax. China and India do nothing to control their emissions, yet the world ends at midnight without our dollars. It's all a crock. Nothing has changed. The sea level is as it always was.

Climate change is two-pronged - firstly climate change is natural and is why the earth has magnetic pole reversals, ice ages, etc. Secondly - human industrialisation does have a very real effect on the climate, but most people do not understand the causes and effects properly.

Trump is a climate change denier, just like he is a covid plandemic denier.

He's not the brightest bulb.

5 below zero and 18 inches of snow worth of global warming at my place this morning.
Meanwhile, in back...the birds are still singing, the fish are still swimming, and the trees are still growing.

Of all the values emerging from the right these days, this one makes the most sense to me. Obviously it's pretty irrational to stick one's fingers in one's own ears and sing the Can Can while world is crashing down around us, but the huge upheavals that fighting climate change is going to cause is going to drive a lot of people into denial. Especially with us being on the wrong side of the sexual revolution, which told us that any consequences more than 5 minutes away aren't worth worrying about

The US can't change the climate on it's own. All countries need to do their part. Therein lies the real issue, many aren't and have no plan to start.

Climate change is real. Its been going for millions of years. It the height of stupidity to think sending money to some organization like the Paris agreement will change the climate.
Its only been since the 1850s that consistent reporting has taken place. But i didnt say it is accurate.
There was little to no temperature recording in Africa and zsouth America before the 1950s. No temps were recorded in Antarctica until about 1957.
An example: Temps in chicago were recorded next to Lake Michigan ( lake effect). In the 1950s the official temp was taken at Midway Airport, a couple of miles fro. The lake. It is a concrete heat source. Now it is at O'hare Airport, another concrete heat source.
Has nothing to do with CO2.
Stop listening to the doomsday reports.
The EXPERTS will agree with whoever pays them

I say this to you respectfully, if you seriously consider yourself a tree hugger I suggest you check out this post that lists all the environmental protections that Trump disabled his first term in office.
Nobody has less respect for trees than he does.

https://similarworlds.com/nature-outdoors/parks/5153353-The-Enironment-Public-Land-and-Trump-ALT-NATIONAL-PARK

Who said the population has dropped?

And why do you think it’s OK for ICE to go into churches and schools to round up people who have jobs and families to deport them?

Of course there is climate change. Always has been and always will be. People who accuse others of being "climate change deniers" are liars. However: no-one knows how the climate will change in future; measures designed to influence climate change are of doubtful utility and have undesirable side effects; and even if the US, UK and other western countries took such measures, China, India and others would not. Better therefore, in the view of those who oppose the pre- Trump orthodoxy, to do nothing or very little and wait and see what happens.

It's been estimated that the co2 from wildfires in california have completely cancelled out all of their pollution reduction plans over the last 20 years

maybe they should ban wildfires next?... 🥴

It's simple. The climate changes, the 1% noticed this and cooked up a scam to blame it on people. That's what the environmental movement has been about from the start. Power and control. Take away people's cars, foce them into 15 minute cities where they can be controled or exterminated. Grab land, strip mine it later. Its all about a global dictatorship worse than north Korea.

Climate change is true, for millions of years. But to change it, never.!

Joe Biden: "We need to follow the money in order to discover science"

My being convinced about climate change deals with the Pacific Northwest, a once mildly temperate climate for as long as weather has been tracked, since the mid 90's there has been steady rising temperatures, where anything above 85F during the hottest two weeks of the year, the past decade has seen near daily record highs all summer, the hottest two weeks now seeing desert southwest temps. The worst deniers are actually self professing christians who always votes for the very politicians that protect the industrial polluters, despite the book of Revelation god is telling us NOT to destroy the earth because of his creation of it, that woe to anyone that does. Because of this christians should be up front and center protesting DuPont, Dow Chemical, Union Carbide, and the oil refineries, and backing Greta Thunbergh.

funny how global warming/climate change was a non issue until democrats figured out how to monetize it...