When Nature Roars

Sweden: fires rage north of the Arctic circle: Source: CNN

I thought this blog post from Tamino (Open Mind) was so important and so heartfelt that I should include all of it here on my blog.

A new voice has taken center stage in the argument over what to do, if anything, about man-made climate change.

Although clear for decades, the science is easily obscured by clever propogandists. But thanks to this new advocate, things have changed; hers is a voice powerful enough that we’re nearing the point where climate deniers simply won’t be taken seriously any more. An unimpeachable source, impervious to politics, we cannot help but listen, by the millions, from New York to California, from Alaska to Florida, women and men, liberal and conservative and independent, Christian and Jew and Moslem and atheist alike.

The children hear her loudest.

Nature has been telling us for decades, but in that quiet, achingly slow way that speaks volumes to scientists and those few living close enough to nature, but escapes the mass of modern society. When scientists began ringing alarm bells, the clever propogandists swung into action. The subtlety and complexity of nature’s changes made it easy for them to paint twisted pictures of what was happening and what was likely to happen. Human behavior, wrapped in the flags of ideology and tribal identity, saw scientific truths as conspiracies. Beliefs were burned into place, indelibly so it seemed, and no argument or reason could be entertained, let alone considered; it would fall on deaf ears.

Then she raised her voice.

Truly ferocious heat waves in Europe, in Russia, Australia, India, Pakistan. Tremendous wildfires in the western U.S. Unprecedented flooding worldwide. Coastal flooding on a sunny day with no wind or rain or storm. And the hurricanes! Just to list them almost seems excessive.

This year, she didn’t just raise her voice. She roared.

Killer heat waves all around the northern hemisphere. Temperature in the 90s (°F) in the Arctic circle no less. Wildfires raging out of control, in Greece, in Sweden of all places, and of course in the U.S. where one fire destroyed the entire city of Paradise, California. And the hurricanes! In Florida, the one called “Michael” wiped another American town off the map.

We heard. This is bad

At least, we heard the main message: this is very bad. It’s not a nuisance, not just an annoyance, these changes we’re seeing are the things that kill people. They cost — in dollar terms, beyond billions to hundreds of billions and trillions. In human suffering, in lives destroyed, beyond imagining. And no one, no where, is safe.

The deeper messages are in all of nature, and among them are subtle but sometimes crystal clear messages that speak to scientists. They’ve been saying them for decades, but now perhaps, maybe, those so long blinded by ideology or ego, will finally start to take them seriously. For the human race, the important scientific messages are:

Climate change is because of us.
It’s going to get worse.
How much worse depends on what we do.
If you think 2018 was noisy, wait until nature roars really loud.

[Read more of Tamino's informative posts here]