A sign of global warming? Budgies hanging out with House Sparrows in rural South Dakota. I feel sorry for the guy actually, given his anticipated life span here.
As a scientist, I don’t have much patience for global warming “skeptics”. The science, like most science, has uncertainties, but there’s no doubt that 1) the climate is warming overall, and 2) man is to blame. I do get a little upset though with news stories that attribute specific events to climate change. For example, overall, yes, models indicate there will be increased frequency of severe weather events, but it’s hard to specifically attribute the current California drought or an individual hurricane to climate change.
With that said…for people who have been in the same geographic area for decades, I would imagine there are many astute folks who have noticed changes in the climate, be it more precipitation, an earlier spring, or milder winters. For us here in South Dakota? There are CLEAR signs of global warming. In fact, the climate has warmed so much here, that Australian bird species are setting up shop in the state.
This photo is of a Budgerigard (“Budgie”) hanging out on a fence post. This is just east of Brandon, the town where I live, near Beaver Creek Nature Area. I had to do a double-take when I saw him, but it’s hard to miss that bright green color that no other bird around here comes close to matching. This was at a small rural home, where the Budgie was hanging out with a bunch of House Sparrows.
An escapee? Or a sign of climate change? CLEARLY it’s the latter. It’s only a matter of time before other Australia species begin showing up in South Dakota. Koalas munching on invasive Eucalyptus trees on the plains? Kangaroos hopping around the Black Hills? Dingos prowling through city streets? THIS is the future we face as South Dakotans, thanks to climate change. The budgie sighting is just the beginning…
Seriously? You are a scientist? Bless your heart. I guess you haven’t been paying attention to the fact that: a. The Sun is responsible for all weather. (First paragraph in the aviation meteorology manual I taught from at the Naval Aviation Training Center at Whiting Field, FL.) And now it is predicted by other “scientists” to be in a dormant phase which could cause a new ice age in twenty years. b. We have been in a cooling phase for the last 20 years. c. CO2 is not responsible for anything but healthy plants. The largest source of CO2 on the planet is animal breath, including humans…we exhale CO2, the plants inhale it and exhale O2…it is called, in a manner of speaking, a symbiotic relationship. Eliminate CO2 or reduce it severely and the plants start to die. d. One volcano or wildfire puts more carbon in the air than the entire country’s artificial output for the equivalent of ten years. e. The level of carbon output in North America is a fraction from 30 years ago. f. NOAA, NASA, et. al. have been caught fabricating data to make it fit the political demands of “Climate Change/Global Warming affectionados/politicos, when we are actually setting winter records for cold and duration of winter…ad infinitum.
Australian animals living in South Dakota is only going to happen if humans bring them here from there by boat or plane…which leads me to believe that you are, in the final analysis, either cleverly poking fun at the global warming hoax believers who remember nothing from sixth grade science class (as taught decades ago, not now) or you obtained your “science” degree from a box of breakfast cereal.
Wow Doug…that was an entertaining read! All wrong…EVERY little bit!! It takes some mad skills to write that much and not have a single fact correct. You’d fit in well in South Dakota though, where our idiot legislators once passed a bill declaring CO2 was the “Gas of Life”, and thus couldn’t possibly cause warming! Brilliant…you could run for office here, and likely win, given the level of scientific awareness of the average voter. Meanwhile, real scientists like myself have to deal with…brilliant analyses like yours.
As for Australian animals living in South Dakota…well, let’s just say that sarcasm is a skill best shared among those of equal intellect. I’m not surprised you missed it…
On The contrary, I gave that charitable option at the end, since again on the contrary, the entire global warming hoax is just that: a vehicle for extending government control by plying the ignorance of the low information voter. Too bad the religion of Gaia is as false as that of the Druids. And by the way, my information is actually the truth which is something that seems to be an anathema to those who find it to be inconvenient to their agenda.
I’m curious as to what you find lacking in veracity: that plants don’t need CO2, that the sun doesn’t affect our weather? That with the demise of our smoke stack industries, coal for home and building heating, with EPA regulations which over the last 30 years have reduced emissions of every type compared to 50 years ago? Did I mention the arctic is is growing, not receding, we aren’t having ever increasing violent storms as Katrina was predicated to multiply on global warming and the scientific principle of Bush supposedly disliking black people? Our entire southern third of the country was supposed to have been laid waste by mega hurricanes, the coastal cities under water, and the interior fried to a crisp, according to the high priest of climate catastrophe, ALGORE. All that was to have been consummated four years ago. But, ALGORE now is about one hundred million dollars richer and many “scientists” have pocketed a nice sum of grant money for jumping on the wagon like cheap camp followers. It seems now that we must now place “scientists” in the same category of those inclined to mendacity such as politicians and local weather forecasters.
Just like the wacko cults who have some leader who has found a “secret” Bible code predicting the end of the world on a certain day, the global warming cultists keep hoping it will all come true. Since it hasn’t, and the mitigation of data to fit the premise has been admitted by the culprits doing so, it seems your team is now down to blaming Islamic jidahists’ bad behavior to global warming since nothing else is working out as predicted.
Just as the ozone crises was bogus (acknowledged by the originators in a very small mea culpa never to be seen again in the media) the global warming/climate change/catastrophic climate change crises is manufactured out of…dare I say it…thin air…for the likes of those making tens of millions of dollars to enrich their ever expanding “carbon footprint” and to bring forward to the “glorious world of next Tuesday”. It seems that the legislators are less of idiots than the low informed voters you seek to influence with fabricated data.
And it would appear, since snark seems to be the tone, that my alternate conjecture may have been accurate as well.
Bless your heart…sincerely. You may wish to confer with your fellow “scientists” who are predicting an ice age in the next twenty years and work together to get your stories straight. Hanson can’t seem to remember if his charts are right side up or upside down.
Dude, all I gotta say is…leave the science for the scientists. Stop…just stop…you’re embarrassing yourself. It’s not even worth getting into any kind of a debate with someone who is so clearly misinformed (yes, ozone depletion too must have been some major scientific conspiracy, right?).
Climate change isn’t politics (love the AL GORE in caps multiple times…oh so relevant). Climate change isn’t a hoax.
Yes, I’m raking in millions on this “hoax”. BUW-HA-HA-HA!!!! The LUXURY I live in as a government scientist who deals with climate change…it’s incredible!! Me and my fellow scientist conspirators have it made.
Now pardon me while I get back to my luxury lifestyle…