Free Republic

Senate Republicans will bring the Green New Deal resolution to the floor as they try to jam Democrats on the progressive proposal. **SNIP** McConnell blasted the progressive proposal from the Senate floor earlier Wednesday, calling it an example of "garden-variety 20th-century socialism." "Our Democratic colleagues have taken all the debunked philosophies of the last hundred years, rolled them into one giant package, and thrown a little green paint on them to make them look new. But there’s nothing remotely new about a proposal to centralize control over the economy and raise taxes on the American people to pay for it,"...

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s now infamous talking points on the Green New Deal are the most unintentionally honest explanation of the neo-socialism now gripping the Democratic Party. Too honest, apparently. After her office sent the “FAQ” to NPR, The Post and other news organizations, and posted a similar version on her congressional website, they were met with withering criticism — prompting Ocasio-Cortez to furiously backtrack, seeking to disown and discredit documents her office had produced, posted and distributed. Sorry, you don’t get to do that. Ocasio-Cortez told us what is really behind her Green New Deal. Now she, and the Democrats...

Labor unions say they are withholding support for a Green New Deal unveiled by Democrats last week to transition the American economy away from fossil fuels, arguing the loosely-defined plan could kill jobs if its architects aren’t careful. The cool response from unions underscores the challenge facing Democratic presidential hopefuls who support aggressive action on climate change but must also win back the blue-collar voters that swept President Donald Trump to victory in 2016. Democratic presidential hopeful Senators Kamala Harris, Kirsten Gillibrand, Cory Booker and Elizabeth Warren have already thrown their support behind it. The resolution’s backers say the plan...

I think it is very important for the Democrats to press forward with their Green New Deal. It would be great for the so-called “Carbon Footprint” to permanently eliminate all Planes, Cars, Cows, Oil, Gas & the Military - even if no other country would do the same. Brilliant!

It's a question that pops up whenever it's really cold: If there's global warming, why is it so cold? According to meteorologist Ray Wolfe, with National Weather Service Quad-Cities, it's not that simple. "I think a good way to think about it is climate is your personality, and weather is your mood," Wolfe said. "Your personality is who you are over the long-term, and your mood can vary day-to-day for any number of factors that influence it." In other words, climate change is a long-term trend. "Clearly in our part of the world, as well as globally, the temperature has...

Has business finally woken up to the enormous challenges posed by climate change? This year's World Economic Forum provides some hope. Climate was a major theme in Davos, where panel discussions on everything from global warming to ocean sustainability and biodiversity drew large crowds. Talk is well and good, but there was widespread recognition in Davos that real change won't happen without action. For experts here, that means corporate and government policy reforms. Many speakers acknowledged progress won't be made until the economics change. "There are still fossil fuel subsidies from G7 countries - that's ridiculous," said Rachel Kyte, special...

Barack Obama in 2014 told Congress, "The debate is settled, climate change is a fact." Someone with a bit more science knowledge than the community organizer from Chicago, physician and author Michael Crichton, said this about settled science: "There is no such thing as consensus science. If it's consensus, it isn't science. If it's science, it isn't consensus. Period." The latest bit of unsettled science is something few of us are thinking about in the midst of global warming-induced winter storms and piles of snow – namely, sunscreen. A recent article in Outside magazine sums it up: "Current guidelines for...

Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is ripping her fellow Democrats for failing to take up her proposed special climate change committee called the Green New Deal because it was deemed "too controversial." Ocasio-Cortez in a Twitter thread Monday blamed House leadership for rejecting the idea behind the Green New Deal, which aimed to create a plan to get the country on a 100 percent renewable energy electric grid. "A few weeks ago, I joined youth activists in a specific demand for a Green New Deal Committee. It had 3 simple elements: 1. No fossil fuel money on climate cmte 2. Offer solutions...

Storm-driven data-center outages, production disrupted by flooding, forest-fire smoke choking workers at the corporate headquarters — already in 2018, Amazon has experienced at least a half dozen notable disruptions to its operations connected to climate change, according to a group of employees urging the company to be more transparent with its response to the global threat. About 16 Amazon employees, who are also company shareholders thanks to stock-based compensation, have filed a shareholder resolution asking the company’s board of directors to publicly report on how the Seattle-based commerce giant “is planning for disruptions posed by climate change, and how Amazon...

In Wisconsin, a wind turbine farm is being decommissioned and disassembled after only 20 years of operation. It turns out that this is typical. My colleague Isaac Orr explains at Center of the American Experiment’s web site: What’s really surprising about these wind turbines being decommissioned after 20 years is the fact that people were surprised by it. You’d be astonished at how many people I talk to have no idea that wind turbines only last for 20 years, maybe 25. In fact, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory says the useful life of a wind turbine is only 20 years....

I grew up in California’s Ventura County and have family in both southern and northern California. Right now, the most deadly fire in California’s history is racing across northern California. The Camp Fire has already killed at least 56 people, burned down 7,700 homes, and destroyed the entire town of Paradise. A brush fire is also wreaking havoc on southern California. The Woolsey Fire has destroyed 98,362 acres, killed two people, and damaged several Hollywood landmarks such as the set of “MASH” and the Reagan Ranch. Article after article blames two things for California’s frequent fires: global warming and human...

California Gov. Jerry Brown blamed climate change Sunday for the California wildfires, despite a complete lack of evidence — a day after President Donald Trump was widely criticized for blaming poor forest management. According to the Associated Press, Brown, described as an “evangelist” for climate change, also blamed climate change deniers for the deadly fires, saying they were responsible for the deaths of California residents. “Managing all the forests in everywhere we can does not stop climate change,” he said. “And those who deny that are definitely contributing to the tragedies that we’re now witnessing, and will continue to witness...

How “green policies” are burning the Golden State to a crisp. As huge wildfires continued to devour forests, homes, and businesses across California over the weekend, President Trump lashed out at the destructive, deadly policies long pushed by environmentalists that set the stage for the Golden State’s now-routine fiery catastrophes. “There is no reason for these massive, deadly and costly forest fires in California except that forest management is so poor,” President Trump tweeted Nov. 10 at 3:08 a.m. “Billions of dollars are given each year, with so many lives lost, all because of gross mismanagement of the forests. Remedy...

The growing backlash against plastic waste has a new target: paper coffee cups. Paper cups sourced from sustainable forests have for years been hailed as a more environmentally friendly option than plastic foam, with Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. and McDonald’s Corp. recently pledging to switch to paper. But paper cups are attracting new scrutiny, because they contain a tightly bonded plastic lining that needs to be separated before the paper can be recycled. The process requires specialist facilities, meaning most cups, even if put in the recycling bin, end up as trash. The issue is gaining attention as consumer awareness...

There are multiple subjects that currently divide us.  If you choose to challenge the conventional wisdom on one of these topics, in any regard, that the Earth is warming (now referred to as “Climate Change”) you are accused of being a heretic.  Some of us believe there is no such thing as “settled science” thus we are always open to arguments from both sides as to what has occurred in the evolving knowledge.  Recently, I was presented with a completely different argument.Anytime I have written on this I have always referred to climatologists as my source of information.  These are...

Former Vice President Al Gore compared the Trump administration to an experiment that’s “terminated early for ethical reasons,” in an interview with MSNBC anchor Andrea Mitchell that also touched on the upcoming election and man-made global warming. On global warming, Gore repeated to Mitchell the line he uses in nearly every speech: “Every night on the television news is like a nature hike through the book of Revelation.”

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam is poised to implement a new regulation without legislative approval to join 10 other states in a climate change agreement based on restricting carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants.But lawmakers, policy analysts, and tea party activists in Virginia who oppose what they consider costly regulations of industry are raising questions about the economic and scientific arguments underpinning the proposed rule.They say the Virginia General Assembly should have a straight up-or-down vote on Northam’s plan, in part to ensure that any revenue the governor raises from “carbon trading” is collected and dispersed in a manner consistent...

A warmer world makes for nastier hurricanes. Scientists say they are wetter, possess more energy and intensify faster. Their storm surges are more destructive because climate change has already made the seas rise. And lately, the storms seem to be stalling more often and thus dumping more rain. Study after study shows that climate change, in general, makes hurricanes worse. But determining the role of global warming in a specific storm such as Hurricane Florence or Typhoon Mangkhut is not so simple — at least not without detailed statistical and computer analyses.

Climate change is here now, and it’s time to urgently ask ourselves: What kind of future do we want to work toward? The air we breathe is key to answering this question. Global warming is not just manifesting in devastating fires, floods and heatwaves; its causes are impacting nearly every breath we take. A recent World Health Organization report said that nine out of 10 people on the planet breathe dangerous air, and an estimated 7 million premature deaths a year are caused by air pollution-related diseases, including stroke and heart disease, respiratory illness and cancer. The most vulnerable people...

"...It was no surprise that Gov. Jay Inslee was promising the state would take the feds to court over a proposed change in the Clean Power Plan rules regarding coal-burning generating facilities. "...The real surprise was one of Inslee’s reasons for challenging the proposed rule to allow states more control over emissions from coal-burning power plants, a reason that suggests either an unfamiliarity with geography or meteorology. (1st money quote - from the village idiot): "...“We’re breathing smoke from Mississippi,” he told reporters. “We’re breathing smoke from the rest of the United States.” "...Weather patterns generally go from west to...