Global Warming Strikes Again

[SN]

http://www.denverpost.com/extremes/ci_13498572#

Loveland ski area opens today, A-Basin on Friday

Boasting its earliest opening day in 40 years, Loveland officials opened for skiing today. Arapahoe Basin announced it would open Friday.

Loveland is the first ski area in North America to open its season, with $44 lift tickets. Loveland trail crews were able to begin snowmaking operations on Sept. 21.

"We took advantage of the cold temperatures and got an early start making snow this year," said Eric Johnstone, snowmaking and trail maintenance manager. "Now we can move some equipment to other trails and try to open more terrain as quickly as possible

http://www.ktvb.com/news/nearyou/woodriver/ktvbn-oct0509-wood_river_power.1e96b181a.html


BELLEVUE -- Just one week ago, we were bracing for a "cool down" from the 80s to the 60s.

Now, it's getting downright wintry. And in some parts of our viewing area, snow is piling up.

This may be one for the record books, not only how early this heavy fall snowstorm is, but the fact that it appears to have created the earliest snow day in the history of the Blaine County School District.

“We got dumped on last night, you can see that by looking around here. We weren't quite ready for it. It did cause us some issues in the school district," Lonnie Barber, Blaine County Superintendent.

Not just the school district, but throughout the county. At least 3,500 Idaho Power customers in the Wood River Valley were without electricty today. Utility officials blame heavy wet snow for knocking out power in Bellevue and Hailey. Outages were also reported in Fairfield and Carey.

[KidA]

"Global" not local. Some places get cooler, some get warmer. NA would get cooler due to the jetstream effect despite that the "globe" gets warmer.

In theory.

[Mraughh]

our 1st day of snow was Sept 29th in the city. Didn't stick luckily. People keep telling me it's gonna be a bad winter this year. So if you're up for skiing in the Rockies it should be good. :biggrin:

[John6719]

And how much do you think we can impact "global" cycles by driving a Prius?

[Hot Mess]

And how much do you think we can impact "global" cycles by driving a Prius?

Small step in the right direction. And by no means am I endorsing owning, driving, or riding in a Prius, as those cars are a POS in my opinion.

[Snowball]

If anyone still has any questions about anthropogenic global warming, read this:

http://www.middlebury.net/op-ed/global-warming-01.html

[ET1/ss nuke]

And how much do you think we can impact "global" cycles by driving a Prius?

If that was going to work at all, it would seem that people should be driving the Prius in places that are getting hotter than people want to cut down on the warming. On the other hand, if the Prius effect were true, then people should drive smoky diesels in areas getting colder than desired. Thus, Russia, Canada, and the USA could pollute their way to warmth and prosperity, while the tropics should go ahead and invest in overpriced underperforming cars whose batteries are a long-term heavy metal poison disposal hazard waiting to happen. Instead, we are being told to drive the Prius in a place already too cold and getting colder while simultaneously being preached to about not doing enough to stop global warming. At least the Russkies are doing their part, since they live in the most polluted place on earth and have just learned to accept it that way.

[John6719]

If that was going to work at all, it would seem that people should be driving the Prius in places that are getting hotter than people want to cut down on the warming. On the other hand, if the Prius effect were true, then people should drive smoky diesels in areas getting colder than desired. Thus, Russia, Canada, and the USA could pollute their way to warmth and prosperity, while the tropics should go ahead and invest in overpriced underperforming cars whose batteries are a long-term heavy metal poison disposal hazard waiting to happen. Instead, we are being told to drive the Prius in a place already too cold and getting colder while simultaneously being preached to about not doing enough to stop global warming. At least the Russkies are doing their part, since they live in the most polluted place on earth and have just learned to accept it that way.


That pretty much says it all right there.

[KidA]

That pretty much says it all right there.

Nukes, too, but we ain't worried about that none.:biggrin:

[adtexan]

Al Gore is not impressed.

[adtexan]

Al Gore wanted me to tell you that Man Made Global Warming (TM) is a fucking sham.

[John6719]

Nukes, too, but we ain't worried about that none.:biggrin:

Oh but our recent Nobel Peace Prize winner is already on those....

Crossthread points?

[Scholty]

You obviously have not received the memo: It is NOT 'Global Warming' anymore.

It's now called 'Climate change'.

Please update your records.

Thank you...

/sarcasm off

[Remember When]

Uhm .. if we have man made Global Warming now, but in the 70's it was man made New Ice Age ... why don't we just stop doing what we started doing to stop the cooling?

:rolleyes:

[Polypro]

Al Gore wants to stop the magnetic poles from switching too. There is also a plan to keep the sun from going Red Giant. "Out of toilet paper? Use a spotted owl".

P

[chile]

I'm wondering when algore and his ilk will start taking credit for any cooling, claiming his efforts are starting to show results and that we need to keep the efforts up and even expand on them.

[Princeps Belli]

I work at a think tank right now, and my duties involve the examination of energy and environmental policy. The "Climate change" thing does look like a shame.....Whenever I have an argument of some sort, I try to examine and entertain the best counter-argument, but the whole environmental "climate change" looks like a manufactured idea to influence government takeover of industry. People certainly effect their environment, but to look to government to initiate regulation over industry is absurd. Government agency actors are more likely to be aligned to special interest groups and cater to lobbyists. Science should be science. Political involvement will pollute it.

The human impact upon Global temperatures appears to be less than significant, and curbing economic growth for the advancement of climate change is irrational. I do believe in the protection of the environment, but there are a number of considerations in the execution of such strategies that must be well-thought. Environmental legislation does not lead to control of the environment; it simply controls people, and I tend to enjoy a free market economy. There are those that would use the guise of protecting the environment so that they may grab power over private industry. I think that is clear when one seriously looks at politics or the means to an end.

Let's figure out how to be good stewards of the environment, but things like ethanol, solar power, nuclear power, wind power, and other energy producers, they all have their negative externalities. Such things as land use, waste, water-cooling procedures, and higher food prices have their place in the debate. Are these things truly worth it on an economic scale, when considering scarcity. If anyone has any serious questions about energy issues, please send me a PM, and I can give you links to great sources of information in the scholarly debate. There is not any clear concensus.

[OldSwabbie]

If that was going to work at all, it would seem that people should be driving the Prius in places that are getting hotter than people want to cut down on the warming. On the other hand, if the Prius effect were true, then people should drive smoky diesels in areas getting colder than desired. Thus, Russia, Canada, and the USA could pollute their way to warmth and prosperity, while the tropics should go ahead and invest in overpriced underperforming cars whose batteries are a long-term heavy metal poison disposal hazard waiting to happen. Instead, we are being told to drive the Prius in a place already too cold and getting colder while simultaneously being preached to about not doing enough to stop global warming. At least the Russkies are doing their part, since they live in the most polluted place on earth and have just learned to accept it that way.

Yep. And, the cold weather isnt just local, its "Everywhere". I read tha they called it the year without a summer in the Northeast. Here in South Carolina it can get pretty damn hot in the summer.. it was nice all summer long. We are seeing a global change all right, but in the cold direction. I just read an article on.. (Gasp) the BBC that was titled "What happened to Global Warming". One global warming supporter when shown the Pacific decadal evidence said that its possible we may have a decade of cold weather.. but.. there is STILL going to be global warming!! They just cant let it go.. its like a snarling dog with a bone even when shown the evidence :biggrin:

[sfmedicw9]

Its fun watching the warming nuts squirm as their grand scam falls apart on them. That damn science getting in the way of their BS. I guess their plan to dumb down the citizens with public education wasn't complete yet

Its kinda sad that Al Gores profits are in jeopardy - too bad he didnt patent his internet

[MikeC2W]

"Global" not local. Some places get cooler, some get warmer. NA would get cooler due to the jetstream effect despite that the "globe" gets warmer.

In theory.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8299079.stm


Someone has some 'splainin to do! WTF over?



http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8299079.stm

[M.Pen]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8299079.stm


Someone has some 'splainin to do! WTF over?



http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8299079.stm

When a major media source, like the BBC , FINALLY prints the truth about the so called "consensus" about AGW, it's a clear sign, that the alarmists are losing their stranglehold on climate reporting.

[HighDragLowSpeed]

NYT Times reports that Al Gore has gotten $560M more for one of his Global Warming companies. I'm sure the government grants to the company have nothing to do with any of his contacts. :rolleyes: Looks like global warming, cap and trade, and other issues are singularly profitable for ...well..Al Gore.

Scare people with pseudo-science mumbo jumbo and then cash in. Given the number of his recent huge government grants (http://socnet.com/showpost.php?p=1215968&postcount=10), it's obvious to me why he didnt run for President again. The hundreds of millions of dollar government grant for one of his companies to produce the "green" $89,000 sports car was the kicker for me.

Gore’s Dual Role in Spotlight: Advocate and Investor

By JOHN M. BRODER
Published: November 2, 2009
WASHINGTON — Former Vice President Al Gore thought he had spotted a winner last year when a small California firm sought financing for an energy-saving technology from the venture capital firm where Mr. Gore is a partner.

The company, Silver Spring Networks, produces hardware and software to make the electricity grid more efficient. It came to Mr. Gore’s firm, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, one of Silicon Valley’s top venture capital providers, looking for $75 million to expand its partnerships with utilities seeking to install millions of so-called smart meters in homes and businesses.

Mr. Gore and his partners decided to back the company, and in gratitude Silver Spring retained him and John Doerr, another Kleiner Perkins partner, as unpaid corporate advisers.

The deal appeared to pay off in a big way last week, when the Energy Department announced $3.4 billion in smart grid grants. Of the total, more than $560 million went to utilities with which Silver Spring has contracts. Kleiner Perkins and its partners, including Mr. Gore, could recoup their investment many times over in coming years.

Silver Spring Networks is a foot soldier in the global green energy revolution Mr. Gore hopes to lead. Few people have been as vocal about the urgency of global warming and the need to reinvent the way the world produces and consumes energy. And few have put as much money behind their advocacy as Mr. Gore and are as well positioned to profit from this green transformation, if and when it comes.

Critics, mostly on the political right and among global warming skeptics, say Mr. Gore is poised to become the world’s first “carbon billionaire,” profiteering from government policies he supports that would direct billions of dollars to the business ventures he has invested in.

Representative Marsha Blackburn, Republican of Tennessee, asserted at a hearing this year that Mr. Gore stood to benefit personally from the energy and climate policies he was urging Congress to adopt.

Mr. Gore says that he is simply putting his money where his mouth is.

“Do you think there is something wrong with being active in business in this country?” Mr. Gore said. “I am proud of it. I am proud of it.”

In an e-mail message this week, he said his investment activities were consistent with his public advocacy over decades.

“I have advocated policies to promote renewable energy and accelerate reductions in global warming pollution for decades, including all of the time I was in public service,” Mr. Gore wrote. “As a private citizen, I have continued to advocate the same policies. Even though the vast majority of my business career has been in areas that do not involve renewable energy or global warming pollution reductions, I absolutely believe in investing in ways that are consistent with my values and beliefs. I encourage others to invest in the same way.”

Mr. Gore has invested a significant portion of the tens of millions of dollars he has earned since leaving government in 2001 in a broad array of environmentally friendly energy and technology business ventures, like carbon trading markets, solar cells and waterless urinals.

He has also given away millions more to finance the nonprofit he founded, the Alliance for Climate Protection, and to another group, the Climate Project, which trains people to present the slide show that was the basis of his documentary “An Inconvenient Truth.” Royalties from his new book on climate change, “Our Choice,” printed on 100 percent recycled paper, will go to the alliance, an aide said.

Other public figures, like Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who have vocally supported government financing of energy-saving technologies, have investments in alternative energy ventures. Some scientists and policy advocates also promote energy policies that personally enrich them.

As a private citizen, Mr. Gore does not have to disclose his income or assets, as he did in his years in Congress and the White House. When he left government in early 2001, he listed assets of less than $2 million, including homes in suburban Washington and in Tennessee.

Since then, his net worth has skyrocketed, helped by timely investments in Apple and Google, profits from books and his movie, and scores of speeches for which he can be paid more than $100,000, although he often speaks at no charge.

He is a founder of Generation Investment Management, based in London and run by David Blood, a former head of Goldman Sachs Asset Management (the firm was quickly dubbed Blood and Gore). Mr. Gore earns a partner’s salary at Kleiner Perkins. He has substantial personal finances invested at both firms, officials of the companies said.

He also serves as an adviser to high-profile technology companies including Apple and Google, relationships that have paid him handsome dividends over the last eight years.

Mr. Gore’s spokeswoman would not give a figure for his current net worth, but the scale of his wealth is evident in a single investment of $35 million in Capricorn Investment Group, a private equity fund started by his friend Jeffrey Skoll, the first president of eBay.

Ion Yadigaroglu, a co-founder of Capricorn, said that Mr. Gore does not sit on the fund’s investment committee, but obviously agrees with the partners’ strategy of putting long-term money into promising ventures in energy, technology and health care around the globe.

“Aspirationally,” said Mr. Yadigaroglu, who holds a doctorate from Stanford in astrophysics, “we’re trying to make more money than others doing the same thing and do it in a way that is superior in ethics and impacts.”

Mr. Gore has said he invested in partnerships and funds that try to identify and support companies that are advancing cutting-edge green technologies and are paving the way toward a low-carbon economy.

He has a stake in the world’s pre-eminent carbon credit trading market and in an array of companies in bio-fuels, sustainable fish farming, electric vehicles and solar power.

Capricorn holds a major stake in Falcon Waterfree Technologies, the world’s leading maker of waterless urinals. Generation has holdings in Ausra, a solar energy company based in California, and Camco, a British firm that develops carbon dioxide emissions reduction projects. Kleiner Perkins has a green ventures fund with nearly $1 billion invested in renewable energy and efficiency concerns.

Mr. Gore also has substantial interests in technology, media and biotechnology ventures that have no direct tie to his environmental advocacy, an aide said.

Mr. Gore is not a lobbyist, and he has never asked Congress or the administration for an earmark or policy decision that would directly benefit one of his investments. But he has been a tireless advocate for policies that would move the country away from the use of coal and oil, and he has begun a $300 million campaign to end the use of fossil fuels in electricity production in 10 years.

But Marc Morano, a climate change skeptic who until recently was a top aide to Senator James M. Inhofe, Republican of Oklahoma, said that what he saw as Mr. Gore’s alarmism and occasional exaggerations distorted the debate and also served his personal financial interests.

Mr. Gore has testified numerous times in support of legislation to address climate change and to revamp the nation’s energy policies.

He appeared before the House Energy and Commerce Committee in April to support an energy and climate change bill that was intended to reduce global warming emissions through a cap-and-trade program for major polluting industries.

Mr. Gore, who shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for his climate advocacy, is generally received on Capitol Hill as something of an oracle, at least by Democrats.

But at the hearing in April, he was challenged by Ms. Blackburn, who echoed some of the criticism of Mr. Gore that has swirled in conservative blogs and radio talk shows. She noted that Mr. Gore is a partner at Kleiner Perkins, which has hundreds of millions of dollars invested in firms that could benefit from any legislation that limits carbon dioxide emissions.

“I believe that the transition to a green economy is good for our economy and good for all of us, and I have invested in it,” Mr. Gore said, adding that he had put “every penny” he has made from his investments into the Alliance for Climate Protection.

“And, Congresswoman,” he added, “if you believe that the reason I have been working on this issue for 30 years is because of greed, you don’t know me.”

from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/03/business/energy-environment/03gore.html

[M.Pen]

NYT Times reports that Al Gore has gotten $560M more for one of his Global Warming companies. I'm sure the government grants to the company have nothing to do with any of his contacts. :rolleyes: Looks like global warming, cap and trade, and other issues are singularly profitable for ...well..Al Gore.

Scare people with pseudo-science mumbo jumbo and then cash in. Given the number of his recent huge government grants (http://socnet.com/showpost.php?p=1215968&postcount=10), it's obvious to me why he didnt run for President again. The hundreds of millions of dollar government grant for one of his companies to produce the "green" $89,000 sports car was the kicker for me.



from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/03/business/energy-environment/03gore.html

Well that's some good material to bring to the debate whenever a warming fanatic accuses - again - the sceptics of being involved in a conspiracy with big oil.

[John6719]

Watching Al Gore on David Letterman. This is PAINFULL!!!

So, we are causing the CO2 level in the ocean to rise, which is killing the coral. Thought I would let you all know.:rolleyes:


Watching Letterman is like staring at a fat chick. You know it's wrong, and it may make you vomit in your mouth, but you just can't turn away.