Hello, Fall! ????I slept with the windows open last night (yes, I know, the temperature dropped down to the 40s) and it was a glorious 61 degrees in my house when I woke up. I’m always going to be the person who’d rather be chilly and put on a sweater. You know, like Jimmy Carter! (The similarities probably end there…)
This week’s must read: Asking the right question on climate change (The American Interest) “Since we can’t be certain that the globe is warming, and we can’t be certain that it isn’t, we are in the position of a homeowner deciding whether to buy fire insurance,” Irwin Stelzer of the Hudson Institute writes. “Ask yourself whether your home will burn down, and you will be asking the wrong question. Ask yourself whether there is a possibility that your home will burn down, and you will be asking the right question, the answer to which is ‘yes. From this it follows that buying insurance against the probability of such a catastrophe is a good idea.”
This week’s must watch: Our own Bob Inglis appears in this MSNBC segment on the politics of climate change. (Bob appears around the 2:45 mark.) “I think there are more groups like ours messaging on the right and helping conservatives to enter the conversation in a language they know,” he says about how the ground has shifted on climate disputation. “We’ve long been about conserving and keeping our resources good…this current disputation of the science is not something we conservatives are used to. We think it’s an aberration…you bet it’s conservative to figure out a way to use market principles to fix climate change.”
Climate week (month, year, decade): In a joint House Foreign Affairs Committee and House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis hearing yesterday featuring young climate activists, American Conservation Coalition founder and president Benji Backer testified EcoRight style. “With global carbon emissions rising 1.7% last year, an important American election on the horizon, and more youth demanding action than ever before, we’re at a crossroads in history,” he said in his written statement. “Without bipartisan solutions on climate change, nothing can be accomplished. Most importantly, our conversations related to climate change should focus on cutting global greenhouse gas emissions, not pandering to a political base or scoring political points. This conversation needs to be about the most efficient and comprehensive ways to cut global emissions. My generation doesn’t care about the politics around climate change. We just want productive discussions, realistic answers, and sound policy solutions. I urge every elected official listening to put partisan politics aside and collaborate on this pivotal issue. It is my belief that history will look kindly on those who worked across the aisle to find solutions.”
The poweron climateis with the youth. Let’s keep fighting for bipartisanship and common-sense reforms???????? pic.twitter.com/kSyVKOHSDp
Benji Backer (@BenjiBacker) September 19, 2019
“Climate science is real. It’s not a hoax,” Backer said. “As a proud American, as a life-long conservative and as a young person, I urge you to accept climate change for the reality it is and respond accordingly. We need your leadership.” Backer shared the stage with Swedish 16-year old Greta Thunberg, who submitted the last IPCC report as her written statement.
Let’s roll: Republican EcoRight crusader Rep. Francis Rooney continues to call for decarbonizing the economy by imposing a carbon tax. Appearing on First Coast Connect with Melissa Ross, the Florida lawmaker said he hopes a carbon tax will slow down fossil fuel production. “Let the free market price coal out of existence,” he said. “Price carbon sequester in and incentivize people to reduce the carbon footprint and use the cleanest fuels possible and ultimately, more and more renewables. Rather than a cap-and-trade regimen, which is bureaucratic albatross, or this Green New Deal, who nobody really knows what it is, but a carbon tax would be a good first start.” Last week, Rooney was published in Politico with a piece warning fellow Republicans: “If we don’t change our party’s position soon, our voters will punish us.” The former Ambassador has two carbon tax proposals with his name on them, the Stemming Warming and Augmenting Pay (SWAP) Act of 2019 and with Illinois Democrat Rep. Dan Lipinski, the Raise Wages, Cut Carbon Act. He is also (thanks to super member Larry H. for pointing this out) a cosponsor of the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act.
LTE of the week: We’ve noticed an uptick in Americans writing their opinions on climate change. Here’s another from Utah praising Rep. John Curtis. “It will take leaders like John Curtis to get beyond politics and on to solutions, the writes says. “Constituents in Utah’s 3rd Congressional District are fortunate to have a representative who understands the scientific evidence, listens to his constituents and works for their best interest.”
Amplifying the science: When big storms hit, the debate resumes: are they caused by climate change? We let Professor Katharine Hayhoe field that one in the below tweet thread.
The question is not, did climate change cause a specific extreme event? but rather, did climate change exacerbate or amplify it?” (short thread) https://t.co/XJJUkB5Zgl
Prof. Katharine Hayhoe (@KHayhoe) September 19, 2019
Enjoy the ????autumnal equinox???? on Monday and sweater weather now and always!