Thursday, July 08, 2010

Has James Imhofe's Igloo Melted Yet?

I spent much of Tuesday going in and out of air conditioning in the course of doing interviews for the expanded second edition of my book. This included a train ride during which it occurred to me as I saw a homeless person frying on a park bench in Philadelphia that global warming denialist and all-around kook James Imhofe must be feeling a bit put out during this the worst East Coast heat wave since forever.

Or not.


You might recall that the Oklahoma Republican senator's daughter and grandkids built an igloo during one of the blizzards that shut down Washington, D.C. last winter and adorned it with signs reading "Al Gore’s New Home" and "Honk If You (heart) Global Warming."

* * * * *
One conclusion from my urban wanderings was that going from air conditioning to the heat -- 104 degrees F in Philadelphia and a whole degree cooler hereabouts -- is harder on the old bod than straight heat. The adjustment from the frigid commuter train I rode on for an hour to walking up stairs to street level and then the short distance to my pied-à-terre was awful.

Another is that if you are in the heat-wave belt, there is no better time to be neighborly.

If you have elderly or infirm neighbors or acquaintances, please take the time to look in on them, especially if they don't have air conditioning.

Meanwhile, StevenD has put together one of the better Global Warming Is a Hoax elucidations here.

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