Too Hot To Handle
Category Earth & Environment
This time it’s the much-vaunted U.S. National Academy of Sciences that’s harking the onset of global warming, and its negative effect to our environment. 
It concluded in a study that the earth’s climate is hottest nowadays in almost 2,000 years. Commissioned by the U.S. Congress to determine the legitimacy of widespread allegations that earth’s temperature is heating up, the members of the academy came up with a chart that shows a sudden rise in global temperature. Graphically, the said chart resembles a hockey stick that now its slowly gaining popularity as the “hockey-stick chart”.
I’ve seen a hockey stick before and we all know how it looks like. It’s like a check mark in our examination papers, or like a Jai-Alai racket. Therefore, this sudden up-tick in world’s temperature is so sudden that I have never seen a chart like that before, suddenly going up in such a short time-frame. Maybe, if we can only see the income charts of oil companies like Petron or Shell, then maybe we can actually witness such fantastic graph.
Al Gore was saying this all along---that the Earth is heating up and the United States of America should be signing the Kyoto Protocol the soonest time possible, otherwise, catastrophic changes in the earth’s climate may occur in the next fifty or hundred years that we’d be seeing deserts expanding at a deadly rate, jungles disappearing like bunnies in a magician’s hat, super-destructive storms (like Katrina) and humongous smogs smoldering the cityscapes from New York to Ulaan Bator. I heard a CNN report yesterday that says New York has had the hottest weather this year.
But President Bush and Dick Cheney continues to be so adamant, citing loss of millions of American jobs if America signs the Kyoto Protocol. Al Gore belched at this, and had repeatedly accused President Bush of unduly protecting the interest of oil and coal companies in America, an industry to where he had once belonged to a Texan oil magnate before he went into politics.
The U.S. National Academy of Sciences mainly lays blame on “human activity” for the onrush of global warming, like industrial pollutions, fuel emissions and continued use of prohibited chemicals like chlorofluorocarbons in air-conditioners. I bet its time we take this warning more seriously. I think President Bush should stop being a “war president” for a moment, and give global environment a much needed attention.
Many scientists have reiterated that if global warming goes on at the present rate, ice in the North Pole would melt gradually causing the global sea level to rise by 6 to 8 meters in a hundred years. If that happens, coastal cities like New York, Manila, and Tokyo (note that 80% of the world’s population live in coastal areas) would disappear on the face of the earth.
I think this is an environmental threat not to be taken lightly.
Not signing the Kyoto Protocol is the most selfish act ever done by the US President. The so-called job losses is all BS, they are just protecting their own interests.
Comment by snglguy — June 24, 2006 @ 7:32 am
To snglguy: That' also how I think sngl. I don't even see where the job cuts would come from. To be sure, carbon dioxide emissions may be effected by artificial interventions like equipments that cleans industrial smoke before it is let go towards the atmosphere. I have read something about that actually sometime in the past. It doesn't always have to mean loss of jobs...
Comment by Major Tom — June 24, 2006 @ 3:45 pm
who took those pictures on the right side of your blog? they're very good.
Comment by atticus — June 25, 2006 @ 12:33 pm
From what little I know of this subject, continued but more aggressive efforts to work out all hindrances involved is absolutely necessary. Also, more effort should be expended to depoliticize it, and exempted countries (especially China) should reevaluate their positions. A monumental task, indeed, (much like taking some candy away from incorrigible toddlers) but workable.
As for the current US position, if the Bush administration remains indifferent, perhaps a new administration in the offing (Hilary's?) will bring a more auspicious perspective to the table, so to speak.
BTW, the mass unemployment repercussion is a poor excuse.
Comment by erisac — June 26, 2006 @ 12:32 am
To atticus: Thanks for noticing the sharp photos. I felt the same way too bout them. They're actually part of the design package of Nautica 1 by the designer named Aran. You can download that thru the links in my footer. In my mind, they are not only great photography but superb art. I plan to take away though sometime in the future for a crispier presentation. But I am still thinking about it.
To erisac: That candy analogy seems to be the most apt of all since major industrial countries like China and America are very adamant at their position. Perhaps, they are very afraid to lose some economic advantage, especially China, since a large part of the manufacturing process is mostly connected with use of heavy fuel, crude and unrefined.
Likewise, I also believed that these big countries won't really have to worry much about losing economic advantage since the reductions would be general and comprehensive that there'd still be no difference in the status quo if ever such reduction would be effected throughout the globe.
Comment by Major Tom — June 26, 2006 @ 6:20 am
nice major... here in dubai it's damn hot! everyday it's like 45ºc - 46ºc. maybe that's natural climate during summer
Comment by penovate — June 27, 2006 @ 1:03 pm
To penovate: At that temparature (45 degrees), it must be real sizzling down there.
I heard from friends who had worked in the Middle east that drying up your laundry is not really that much of a problem coz they'd be ready for ironing after just an hour of drying up.
They also said that the desert wind there is very cool and windy at night, even cooler than the air down here in the Philippines.
Comment by Major Tom — June 27, 2006 @ 3:45 pm
Tokyo is damn hot now..today is 30 degrees here ,i think the hottest too...actually were still in rainy season but it's like summer now. And it sucks for migrainers like me *sobss* migraine will attack me severe for sure...sigh!!!
... Anyway,off topic Major, who's your bet now? Germany or Argentina?? hehe...or you're still hoping it will be England ??
goodluck!!
..whoever wins now im not excited anymore ^_^ but happy if host country Germany wins!
Peace....
Comment by kathy — June 29, 2006 @ 7:18 am
To kathy: Oh, I never thought that Japan could be that hot. That must be just like in a tropical country.
'Bout the World Cup, if i have some good money of course I'd bet on Brazil---they look to be stronger than I ever initially thought, and that's damn fearful. But Germany has very good chance. They've been in the finals the last time out and if they reach there this time, the crod factor could play in their favor in a very huge way.
Comment by Major Tom — June 30, 2006 @ 6:00 am
Test product microsoft
Comment by Major Tom — July 6, 2006 @ 4:32 pm
I've just seen the movie, "The Day After Tomorrow." I know it's just fiction but it's very alarming just to think what might happen if we don't do anything about global warming. I don't want to live in a world of tornadoes and storms much more go back to the Ice Age.
Comment by niceheart — July 25, 2006 @ 1:14 am
Oh,...I miss that movie completely even if I had really wanted to see it niceheart. But I bet, some fiction nowadays---especially about doomsday climate scenario---could be fact in decades to come.
Comment by Major Tom — July 25, 2006 @ 5:26 am