Perry to announce- scary op-ed at CNN

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Thursday August 11, 2011 · 1:36 PM PDT

2011/08/11 · 13:36

For all those Obama- bashers out there, I get it and I mostly agree. He has been way too conciliatory and has not really shown that he is a true progressive. However, when push comes to shove I will fully support him when the 2012 elections get here, since the alternative is so utterly repulsive- especially after reading (and it is a very sobering and all too-plausible scenario):

Why Rick Perry is headed to the White House

Written by James Moore- who wrote Bush's Brain- so it is no conservative that is saying this.

His Saturday speech in South Carolina will make clear that he is entering the race for the White House and will spawn the ugliest and most expensive presidential race in U.S. history, and he will win. A C and D student, who hates to govern, loves to campaign, and barely has a sixth grader's understanding of economics, will lead our nation into oblivion.

This is just too freaking plausible and incredibly frightening that we may elect another TX dimwit who is actually more of a right-wing nutjob that the Shrub ever was to the highest office in the land. Add to that his "separation of church and state- what's that?" bible-thumping prayer meeting persona this would be a disaster of, yes, Biblical proportions. So despite Obama's many flaws, if "Goodhair" is the nominee, I will certainly support Obama since the alternative is too horrible to imagine.

House budget will gut National Weather Service

mcrowther

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Thursday February 24, 2011 · 11:53 AM PST

2011/02/24 · 11:53

Kind of lost in the shuffle regarding the repubs slashing of numerous programs is the little item of cutting 30% of the budget of the National Weather Service. This includes the Hurricane Center in Florida, who do all the forecasting for tropical systems in the Atlantic basin and the Storm Prediction Center on Oklahoma, where the national forecasting and research into severe weather such as tornadoes is done.

This will result in, according to those in the know:

Joseph Calderone has been a forecaster for the National Weather Service in Charleston, South Carolina since 2002. He's a member of the National Weather Services Employees Organization. Calderone says the House needs to put the deep freeze on the plan.
"There is a very heightened risk for loss of life if these cuts go through. The inability for warnings to be disseminated to the public, whether due to staffing inadequacies, radar maintenance problems or weather radio transmitter difficulties, would be disastrous," said Calderone.

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The snow and cold are actually related to AGW

mcrowther

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Sunday February 07, 2010 · 11:40 AM PST

2010/02/07 · 11:40

I am sure a lot of wingnuts are celebrating the recent "snowpocalypse"
as a sign that climate change/global warming is all a hoax, and the fact it is centered in Washington is the perfect irony. "Hope you enjoy digging out the 3 feet of global warming ha ha" etc. To add insult to injury, there is going to be another snow event in the Northeast this week, with snow in most if not all of the megalopolis- then a potential snow event in the South late next week.

Well, join me after the jump for an explanation why the snowy US patten may actually be related to AGW as opposed to refuting it.

mcrowther

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Saturday January 09, 2010 · 12:51 PM PST

2010/01/09 · 12:51

Being a professional in the media world but also working as a scientist (in weather forecasting) I frequent many geeky science web sites, so when I was perusing one of my faves the Volcanism Blog this caught my eye:

Volcanoes erupt coal – Fox News

mcrowther

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Saturday December 26, 2009 · 12:47 PM PST

2009/12/26 · 12:47

When I heard about the latest attempted terrorist incident on the plane, I had a sinking feeling everyone was going to freak out and overreact- and it looks like I was correct. According to the AP there are already new restrictions on some flights- making a hellish experience that is now air travel even more so.

mcrowther

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Friday November 13, 2009 · 11:49 AM PST

2009/11/13 · 11:49

Digby has a post up now that really resonated with me- I see a lot of diaries here that laugh at how the teabaggers are taking over the Republican party and how that is going to be good for Democrats and progressives as it is pretty much a given that surely we will not hand over the reins of power to that bunch of nuts?

Everyone seems too be applauding the "Palinization" of the GOP. Lou Dobbs may run for president. Wingnut firebrand Marco Rubio may beat moderate Charlie Christ in Florida. Tom Tancredo just threw his hat into the ring for Colorado Governor. Liberals seem very excited about this prospect as if it's self-evident that just as NY 23 laughed off that dead doorknob Hoffman, the country will always think these people are fools.

But what if they don't?

mcrowther

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Tuesday September 29, 2009 · 2:15 PM PDT

2009/09/29 · 14:15

My wife has a chronic case of ulcerative colitis, luckily it is currently in remission, However, her gastroenterologist has deemed it wise to have her undergo a colonoscopy annually to make sure nothing more serious has developed, like cancerous polyps. The procedure was completed successfully and she was given the good news that while her colitis is still present, it is in a very reduced state, and no other abnormalities were detected.

mcrowther

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Thursday November 13, 2008 · 12:11 PM PST

2008/11/13 · 12:11

Over at SadlyNo

I was struck by this post's headline:
Hope the Dems won’t mind losing the House in 2010
The gist of the post is that the economy, and specifically the rocketing unemployment numbers, may derail the gains the Dems have worked so hard to achieve over the past 4 years.

The reason- most voters are still in that "squishy middle"- where the phrase "what have you done for me lately" overrides almost all other considerations. They may easily not realize that the Bush disaster will take a long time to repair and decide to "throw the bums out" once again in 2010. Regardless of whatever measures Obama and the legislature take over the next year, all indications are that the economy is headed for an iceberg and we all know the old saw about trying to turn a battleship on a dime- probably will not happen in two years or probably longer.

I really hope I am off base here and somehow a miracle occurs with the economy...I am certainly no expert in that area. And maybe my lack of faith in the electorate is misplaced. We will find ut in two years....

What will the weather do on Tuesday? A forecast

mcrowther

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Saturday November 01, 2008 · 12:54 PM PDT

2008/11/01 · 12:54

Since GOTV seems to be the most critical aspect of the outcome of the race, as a professional meteorologist I thought I would give everyone a heads up on a factor that can affect turnout- the weather.

Overall it looks very good nationwide, especially in the "battleground" states. There is not going to be any really cold weather anywhere in the central or eastern part of the country- the only snow will be in the mountains of the West and Rockies. In fact, a lot of the nation will have average or above average temperatures.
More specifics after the jump:

mcrowther

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Wednesday April 16, 2008 · 11:53 AM PDT

2008/04/16 · 11:53

The Incomparable GG sums up the one overriding reason Obama (I am assuming he is the nominee) may easily lose to grandpa McCain in November.

The entire article is good as usual, but this quote really struck me:

By all rights, John McCain -- leading proponent of one of the most unpopular wars ever and tied at the hip to one of the most unpopular administrations in modern American history -- should be 20 points behind in the polls, at least. But he isn't. He is typically tied or even sometimes ahead. Why? Because the Cult of Personality constructed around him -- just as was true for George Bush -- remains largely unchallenged, while the right-wing/media monster demolishes the personality and character of the Democratic candidates. Until that changes, it doesn't matter how enthusiastically voters embrace the position papers of Democrats. The Right will continue to dominate our national elections irrespective of how vehement Americans reject their political positions and ideology, because these vapid themes predominate instead. Drudge Rules the Media World. Ignoring that reality or wishing it weren't so doesn't make it go away.

The entire article is here:http://www.salon.com/...

Critical Drought Situation in the Southeast

mcrowther

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Tuesday October 16, 2007 · 8:04 AM PDT

2007/10/16 · 08:04

One of the consequences expected due to global warming is drought, but most scenarios have focused on the western part of the U.S. However, right now there is a looming crisis in a part of the country that most people would not think of as vulnerable to this type of problem. Well no more. This story has been a big deal locally here in Atlanta and the Southeast over the past several months- first there was the heat wave of historic proportions- in August Atlanta had its warmest month in history, along with other cities in the Southeast. But there was also a severe lack of rainfall during the summer and now we are close to paying the piper. From the NY times:

In North Carolina, Gov. Michael F. Easley asked residents Monday to stop using water for any purpose “not essential to public health and safety.” He warned that he would soon have to declare a state of emergency if voluntary efforts fell short.

This is exactly the type of scenario that will be repeated in other areas not just here, but worldwide as well. Drought and water availability are not sexy like hurricanes, but may ultimately be just as costly and dangerous as other aspects of AGW.

If the Global Warming news was not already bad enough

mcrowther

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Wednesday September 06, 2006 · 11:36 AM PDT

2006/09/06 · 11:36

Yes, there is yet another study just out about global warming- but this one is even more alarming than most- because it involves methane as opposed to CO2

AP story

Methane trapped in a special type of permafrost is bubbling up at a rate five times faster than originally measured, the journal said.
Scientists are fretting about a global warming vicious cycle that had not been part of their already gloomy climate forecasts: Warming already under way thaws permafrost, soil that had been continuously frozen for thousands of years.

If this study is correct, then the current rate of GW forecast by computer models which mainly use CO2 in their computations might be too low.

I wonder how the GW skeptics and deniers like Inhofe etc will spin this, if they even acknowledge it.

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Perry to announce- scary op-ed at CNN

House budget will gut National Weather Service

The snow and cold are actually related to AGW

Fox News Web Site "Science" Reporting- Hilarious!

Life has risk, deal with it

Do we laugh at them at our peril?

Best health care my a&&!

How much patience will the American people have?

What will the weather do on Tuesday? A forecast

Greenwald expresses my fears about the GE perfectly:

Critical Drought Situation in the Southeast

If the Global Warming news was not already bad enough