Back-to-back killer storms in NW; Huge cache of 'rare earth' elements discovered in U.S.; Climate change worsened every hurricane; PLUS: NY revives congestion pricing...
Trump nominates fracking CEO, climate denier to head Dept. of Energy; Winters warming quickly in U.S.; PLUS: Biden heads to Amazon Rainforest to offer hope...
THIS WEEK: Pyrrhic Victories ... Cabinet Clowns ... Blame Games ... Sharpie Shooters ... And more! In our latest collection of the week's sleaziest toons...
NY, NJ drought, wildfires; GOP wins House, power to overturn Biden climate action; PLUS: Very high stakes as U.N. climate summit kicks off in Baku, Azerbaijan...
Felony charges dropped against VA Republican caught trashing voter registrations before last year's election. Did GOP AG, Prosecutor conflicts of interest play role?...
State investigators widening criminal probe of man arrested destroying registration forms, said now looking at violations of law by Nathan Sproul's RNC-hired firm...
Arrest of RNC/Sproul man caught destroying registration forms brings official calls for wider criminal probe from compromised VA AG Cuccinelli and U.S. AG Holder...
'RNC official' charged on 13 counts, for allegely trashing voter registration forms in a dumpster, worked for Romney consultant, 'fired' GOP operative Nathan Sproul...
So much for the RNC's 'zero tolerance' policy, as discredited Republican registration fraud operative still hiring for dozens of GOP 'Get Out The Vote' campaigns...
The other companies of Romney's GOP operative Nathan Sproul, at center of Voter Registration Fraud Scandal, still at it; Congressional Dems seek answers...
The belated and begrudging coverage by Fox' Eric Shawn includes two different video reports featuring an interview with The BRAD BLOG's Brad Friedman...
FL Dept. of Law Enforcement confirms 'enough evidence to warrant full-blown investigation'; Election officials told fraudulent forms 'may become evidence in court'...
Rep. Ted Deutch (D-FL) sends blistering letter to Gov. Rick Scott (R) demanding bi-partisan reg fraud probe in FL; Slams 'shocking and hypocritical' silence, lack of action...
After FL & NC GOP fire Romney-tied group, RNC does same; Dead people found reg'd as new voters; RNC paid firm over $3m over 2 months in 5 battleground states...
After fraudulent registration forms from Romney-tied GOP firm found in Palm Beach, Election Supe says state's 'fraud'-obsessed top election official failed to return call...
Watching network television news, you'd think the entire Earth had entered an Ice Age just because it's been cold in Manhattan.
While February was unusually cold in the Northeast and Midwest, what's not being mentioned on TV is that records have been falling on the high end of the temperature scale for the entire winter across a broad swath of the West and Pacific Northwest:
Weather.com reports that more than 20 cities out west, including San Francisco, Sacramento and Las Vegas had their warmest winters on record, adding, "In case you're wondering, few if any cities in the East will have their coldest winters on record despite a series of high-profile blizzards and record cold waves - mainly because December was relatively mild."
And The Salt Lake Tribune reports Salt Lake City had both its warmest and least snowy winter on record, the latter being the bigger concern as the West heads towards fire season. "Things are much more dry and, frankly, more ready to burn … than in [recent] memory," Jason Curry, spokesman for the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands, told the Tribune.
Sometimes you have to wonder: If our media were actively trying to stifle public knowledge of climate change impacts and suppress support for climate action, how would that be different from what we have now?
Miles Grant is a progressive blogger and environmental communicator, writing about everything from global warming to smart growth to organic beer. Read more at TheGreenMiles.com and follow him on Twitter at: @MilesGrant. Miles lives with his wife and daughter in Fairhaven, MA.
READER COMMENTS ON "Warmest Winter Records Shattered in West, But Reporters Still Won't Say 'Climate Change'" (15 Responses so far...)
COMMENT #1 [Permalink] ...
Larry Bergan
said on 3/3/2015 @ 12:41 pm PT...
I can personally vouch for the weather report in Salt Lake. Today was the first snow storm we've had. The one on Christmas day didn't even qualify as a snow storm.
I took a walk this morning and passed by two others who were freezing their buts off, but we were all smiling widely.
It's been really nice because the temperature inversions have been absent for weeks and the air isn't competing with or surpassing Beijing, China in the contest for the worst air quality on earth, but we really need a break from spring right now.
COMMENT #2 [Permalink] ...
4earth
said on 3/3/2015 @ 1:50 pm PT...
I can vouch for the weather in Seattle, Brad. It's been the mildest winter on record. We are in the middle of an early spring with cherry blossoms all blooming in mid-February. The crocus in my yard are practically OVER now. Here is the latest US weather map: https://twitter.com/4ear...tatus/572876459192107009
COMMENT #3 [Permalink] ...
Dredd
said on 3/3/2015 @ 2:39 pm PT...
Well said Miles!
COMMENT #4 [Permalink] ...
Soul Rebel
said on 3/3/2015 @ 4:38 pm PT...
@4earth... I'm in Marysville, our cherry blossom's are beautiful, and a good two weeks early, you beat me to it. Also, I hear the Skagit Valley Tulip festival will be a few weeks early.
COMMENT #5 [Permalink] ...
Greg J
said on 3/3/2015 @ 4:54 pm PT...
I'm in Calgary, Alberta, and I don't know whether we broke any records in February or not, but I have buds and at least one new green shoot coming out on a Mayday tree in front of my house as of last week - normally no trees bud out here before mid-April at the earliest, and cherry-family trees not usually until early May. However, we had weeks of weather in January and most of February where temps rarely dropped below freezing, or only slightly below - average overnight lows are in the range of -14C in Jan-Feb, or low single digits Fahrenheit. We've had a couple of more seasonally cold days over the weekend, but by tomorrow, we're expecting to be back in the double digits (C) - not uncommon here on any given winter day, but very unusual for such long stretches anywhere from Nov. through March.
COMMENT #6 [Permalink] ...
stumptownhero
said on 3/3/2015 @ 8:58 pm PT...
Brad,
Here is a Summer of 2015 headline that I don't have to be clairvoyant to write...Oregon is burning. Our snow pack is at historic lows and I predict SUBURBAN wildfires that will burn down tens of millions of homes ala the Oakland hills fires of the early 90's.
Maaaaybe then the Manhattan media will pay attention maaaaaybe.
Maaaaybe then the Manhattan media will pay attention maaaaaybe.
Doubt it. Now, when Manhattan floods again, then we'll have a story about global warming. Until the waters recede anyway.
COMMENT #8 [Permalink] ...
greg
said on 3/4/2015 @ 10:55 am PT...
Yes the weather changes , yes records are set, yes the climate changes, so what , Its funny to watch people go bananas over the normal process of our world. History Book in 2154 " in the later part of the 21st and beginning of the 22nd century may people were told that humans were changing the climate ...... it turned out that the shifting climate was a natural process ...
COMMENT #9 [Permalink] ...
stumptownhero
said on 3/4/2015 @ 12:51 pm PT...
Greg,
You have not ben paying attention to the SCIENCE and the historical record. The amount of carbon in the air has not ben at these levels for hundreds of millions of years. While long and short term weather cycles have always existed in MAN will have created one of the wildest and fastest swings in the history of the planet.
Stick your head in the sand but without immediate and meaningful changes the oceans are going to displace 50+ % of the worlds population and wipe out an equal value of the worlds total real estate. I guess you think that is unavoidable because China or India are not going to participate in the solution but you are talking about not even trying. You should also know that even the mildest models show that fresh water for another 50% of the worlds populations will be eliminates.
History Book in 2154 " in the later part of the 21st and beginning of the 22nd century may people were told that humans were changing the climate ...... it turned out that the shifting climate was a natural process ...
Heheh. Got any evidence to support that contention? Cause so far, legitimate scientists who once might have agreed with that theory --- including the Koch-funded scientist Richard Muller, as seen below --- completely disagree with you. But I'll look forward to your scientific evidence to support your assertion, in any event. Thanks in advance!
It is almost a given, at this point, that every article published by The BRAD BLOG that addresses the science of climate change will attract at least one inane comment from someone, like Greg @8, who has been thoroughly brainwashed by or is a paid troll for the fossil fuel industry.
In most instances, theirs is a hit-and-run rant. They don't return to see comment-after-comment in which their rants are demolished. In a few instances, they return to repeat some other fact free fossil fuel industry canard. In those instances, they are either too brainwashed or too dishonest to concede the reality of human caused global climate change even in the face of mountains of scientific evidence.
No doubt, one day, after a misinformed comment is thoroughly debunked, the person who posted the particular piece of fossil fuel industry propaganda will have the integrity to admit error and thank the many at this site who tried to steer him or her to the hard scientific facts. Sadly, that day has yet to arrive.
COMMENT #12 [Permalink] ...
Archie1954
said on 3/4/2015 @ 1:38 pm PT...
I live at in the premier ski resort on the West coast of North America and while there was snow on the tops of the mountains, there was none, absolutely zero, in the village. I actually went walking with my wife while in shirt sleeves in the middle of February. This is beyond an anomaly, it is a portent of more to come. It is unbelievable but it is occurring right now.
COMMENT #13 [Permalink] ...
Francis Xavier
said on 3/4/2015 @ 3:09 pm PT...
Brad -
Thanks for the Dr. Muller clip. I have absolute respect for those scientists who have mastered and then utilized their knowledge of statistical analysis - very impressive fella, he just lets the facts speak for themselves.
COMMENT #14 [Permalink] ...
Ralph Crown
said on 3/6/2015 @ 3:39 pm PT...
The radio ran a story today on a documentary called "Merchants of Doubt." If you haven't heard about it, it links the current climate change "debate" to the whole professional debunking industry, which cut its teeth on tobacco (so to speak). They're mostly the same people, using the same dirty tricks, to convince the gullible that cigarettes don't cause cancer.
Or by Snail Mail Make check out to...
Brad Friedman
7095 Hollywood Blvd., #594
Los Angeles, CA 90028
The BRAD BLOG receives no foundational or corporate support.
Your contributions make it possible to continue our work.
About Brad Friedman...
Brad is an independent investigative
journalist, blogger, broadcaster, VelvetRevolution.us co-founder,
expert on issues of election integrity,
and a Commonweal Institute Fellow.