Absolutely Ghoulish.
The neglect of the American Society to the one eminent danger that cannot be controlled by borders or defended against by the military is now at our doorstep and there is STILL nothing we are doing about it.
Welcome to the first web site in America dedicated exclusively to raising awareness about the connection between hurricane Katrina and global warming.
Currently there are a few 'hot spots' on Earth. The one in the Caribbean Sea, another The Indian Ocean. There is one that is plaguing Antarctica and that is the 'hot spot' between Darwin, Australia and Tahiti called the Southern Oscillation Index. The trend in all these areas have been toward intense disruption and in the case of the SOI there is every indication Australia is in chronic drought.
The reason the Caribbean Sea and Indian Ocean are heating relentlessly is that they are smaller bodies of water but still large enough to accommodate large storms. The circulations of these 'seas' is such that they can hold onto heat for a longer time as they remain undiluted by colder and deeper waters. Much of the surface waters of the ocean do not combine with the deeper seas. As a matter of fact there are density differences due to pressure that set up layers of water. So while the surface waters are heating the deeper layers of ocean water remain unchanged as they have for millenium with minimal circulation around the basin. Not to say there is no change at all in them but not to the extent of the surface oceans.
It is the surface waters that are causing enormous storms and it is the surface waters where most of the ocean life exists.
There are species that 'dive' deep and even live deep but once passing 1000 feet down the oceans take on mostly a barren characteristic. To demonstrate how the ocean is layered so there is a clear distinction between what we can expect of our planet in the way of 'cooling' there is a layer of ocean water called 'The Sofar Channel' whereby a sound made at 1000 feet down can be picked up around the world at that same depth. There is no mixing of waters at these deeper waters due to pressure and density.
The point as always is that we cannot keep doing this to Earth if we intend to live on it.
The time has arrived to stop looking the other way in hopes that Global Warming will go away. The use of fossil fuels is destroying our planet and we haven't got anywhere else to go. There needs to be a real conscienceness setting understanding that "Katrina" occurred because Earth is getting far to hot to live on and to over 1200 people, with the greatest concentration of dead in New Orleans, along the Gulf Coast now know that for a fact.
"Katrina" should have been an awakening to the USA. It should not have been glossed over by continued landfall storms and measuring how well the response by FEMA and Homeland Security improved each time the storms reoccurred including the latest to cross Florida, "Wilma."
We need to return to conservation and environmental priorities. We need to do this now.
New Orleans has profound issues that is not the fault of it's current mayor or governor. It is a result of societal neglect of one of the most valuable ecosystem in the country.
The Louisiana Wetlands.
At a time when monies are being spent on tunnels suchas 'The Big Dig' in Boston when that city will remain regardless of the success of that particular tunnel; there is no movement toward resolving the issue of the Mississippi Delta. Not one time since "Katrina" has George Walker Bush after visiting New Orleans and the Gulf Coast eight times mentioned one word regarding the wetlands OR the monies to restore it. The cost of restoring the wetlands of the Mississippi Delta is only a small percentage of the monies spent on war in Iraq but yet there is no indication by anyone in DC the progress to restoration is taking on serious tones. The cost would be about the same as 'The Big Dig" but would carry a much higher benefit to the country as the levee system supports a full two thirds of the USA transportation network and economy. Restoring the levees and more than that the health of the wetlands of the Mississippi Delta is not an option regardless of the fact they tend to work in opposition to each other. It is very possible to establish both and continue to inhabit New Orleans IF the country makes that committment. It needs to do that.
In addition, the USA has to set aside it's hunger for fossil fuels. There is every indication the east coast of the USA will continue to experience severe and damaging storms due to the high concentration of CO2 over the Atlantic. The West Coast is still experiencing a trending toward drought. What follows drought inevitably with the next rainfall are landslides. Neither of these scenarios are livable and the heating of Earth without abatement is unconscionable yet with the most corrupt administration, Congress and Senate in the history of the USA that is exactly what is occurring.
It is time to bring our best interests home and develop current technologies to serve our society without the interference of industry that has no reason or desire to change but only to exploit the good will of the citizens of this country.
An interesting set of events happened this week in DC. A judical nominee was found out to be underqualified to accept the post she desired more than any other in her career and a high Executive Branch official was found to have 'outed' a CIA agent with the assistance of the Vice President for the purpose of promoting an illegal war in Iraq. Dick Cheney had/has a continued interest in that invasion and subsequent war in that he was facing liability with Halliburton stockholders and has an interest in promoting his constituency of cronies including Carlyle and it's military/communication business.
Those events along with the glossing over of these severe weather patterns should be speaking loud and clear to the people of this nation and the state of it's current government. It is time the people of this country reclaim it's priorities and replace those in office with people who sincerely are qualified to be there with good intentions for this country rather than exploitation of it.
I am not advocating any one party or person but there are people speaking out in a way I would expect my president to but doesn't.
I listened to a speech by John Kerry regarding Iraq today on C-Span. He was more than impressive. He had answers. He only returned a few weeks ago from a trip to Iraq. It's worth listening to.
Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) on Iraq. Senator John Kerry (D-MA) talks about Iraq at Georgetown University.10/26/2005: WASHINGTON, DC: 1 hr. CLICK ON FIRST OPTION
Dems Criticize GOP Over Energy Prices
The reason high oil prices aren't changing the face of Energy in the USA is because there is no incentive to change. These companies are registering record profits and it isn't from alternative fuels. It is from the sale of oil and gas at inflated prices. The corruption of the government will not see any changes in energy policy as it works out well for them and their constituency. It is up to the people of this country to take back their government, demand far higher CAFE standards for automakers who are fully capable already of achieving those goals while demanding a vast change in energy infrastructure and transportation options and infrastructure. Those priorities alone will generate an economy that won't require immoral pork barrel spending. A return to sound American values will return this country to the moral use of money rather than using our treasury in a war designed for Halliburton stockholders that kill and maim and cause the same of others.
This country and it's very security today and in the future could not be in worse hands set on a path of self-destruction. We cannot continue to sustain this type of assault nor morally should we.
