This one has been sitting at the back of the shelf for a while. But when we found it there doing our annual cleaning of the mental fridge whether it needs it or not we couldn’t resist trotting it out. In its “climate solutions week” NPR said back in September “Eating less beef is a climate solution. Here’s why that’s hard for some American men”. To which we borrow a line from Jackie Mason: “Tastes good!” Arguably, at the risk of causing controversy on several fronts, better than turkey even at Christmas dinner.
Also from behind the expired yogurt, that same month Canada’s “Privy Council”, part of the bloated bureaucracy supporting our Prime Minister, polled Canadians on their willingness to go vegetarian to save the climate. Apparently a quarter claimed they’d “occasionally” tried to eat more plants. But 27% said they “never” ever “talked with family or friends about climate change or its impacts,” and another 23% “once in the last two months”. So another item not about to be carried triumphantly in on Dec. 25: climate tofu.
Speaking of chestnuts that instead of roasting appetizingly on an open fire are just sitting there, stale and arguably moldy, Scientific Climate Obsession in a piece warning against loose talk of tipping points before engaging in it, starts predictably with:
“Unstoppable ice loss in Antarctica. Irreversible permafrost thaw in the Arctic. The shutdown of a gigantic Atlantic Ocean current.”
That again?
It then goes on to say that a big problem with tipping points is that we don’t know what the term really means or how likely any of them are. Which might almost inspire some humility in lesser mortals. But they don’t have such, and so instead they rant:
“Instead, the authors argued, more tangible and immediate climate emergencies – such as extreme weather events, which are worsening around the globe as temperatures rise – may be more likely to inspire a greater sense of urgency among policymakers and the public.”
Or not, if they aren’t happening. Still, they must be:
“That doesn’t mean tipping points can’t still be a useful concept in public messaging about climate change, the authors added. But scientists should communicate more clearly about their definitions and uncertainties. That’s because climate tipping points are still a major threat – even if their exact thresholds are still uncertain.”
We ourselves would rather have last year’s Christmas cake than this reheated tripe.
P.S. One more, this time from the freezer: According to The Telegraph, intermittently sensible and silly, researchers have discovered “Why polar bears have been left unable to walk”. Not that, why. And you guessed it, or part of it. “Polar bears are struggling to walk because climate change” was the part you guessed. But not, we imagine, this bit: “is causing ice blocks to form around their feet.” And to all a “good grief”.
On the subject of virtue signaling,we have had Green Bins where I live for a year or so.The person in charge,or at least the spokeperson is a DEI hire,for starters.A woman,and a visible minority.And in her public statements,she actually touted the expected greenhouse gas reductions that this program could achieve MORE than the reduced organic waste.First anno comes around,and the news release proudly announces that our community has reduced our organic waste by 2500 tonnes!Great,eh?Well,I asked the city what was the goal for one year of Green Binning?Answer:5000 tonnes!So they get a 50% mark,which in high school lit or math is barely a pass by the skin of your teeth.I use my Green Bin,but on my block less than a third do so.And now it's far less than that,some are complaining about racoons and maggots.It's very expensive virtue signaling.