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February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
August 31, 2005
/ 26 Av, 5765
Are we to blame for hurricanes?
By
Rich Lowry
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
If cable TV had existed in 1886, everyone in the U.S. might have
been whipped into a hurricane panic. A record seven hurricanes made
landfall that year, including a Category 4 storm that hit Texas and
would have had on-the-spot cable newscasters dramatically fighting
the wind to deliver their reports. All during the 1890s, reporters
could have done the same along the Atlantic seaboard, as it was
hammered by more powerful hurricanes than it would be in any decade
except the 1950s.
Hurricane Katrina, which slammed the Gulf Coast and got
eyewall-to-eyewall media coverage, is sure to increase the sense
that there is an epidemic of hurricanes (along, of course, with an
epidemic of shark attacks and missing blond girls). Which inevitably
raises the question: "What can we do about it?" For some scientists
and activists working on the assumption that anything they don't
like must be caused by industrial emissions the answer is stop
global warming.
There is hardly an undesirable natural event, from wildfires to
hurricanes, that former Vice President Al Gore hasn't blamed on
global warming. As if it weren't for fossil-fuel emissions, the
weather would always be predictable and pleasant. An outfit called
Scientists and Engineers for Change put up a billboard in Florida
before last year's presidential election stating it starkly: "Global
warming = Worse hurricanes. George Bush just doesn't get it." Ah,
yes: Why are Bush and the neocons focused on the war in Iraq, when
there is a very real threat to the U.S. they should be addressing in
the waters of the Atlantic?
Has global warming increased the frequency of hurricanes? One of
the nation's foremost hurricane experts, William Gray, points out
that if global warming is at work, cyclones should be increasing not
just in the Atlantic but elsewhere, in the West Pacific, East
Pacific and the Indian Ocean. They aren't. The number of cyclones
per year worldwide fluctuates pretty steadily between 80 and 100.
There's actually been a small overall decline in tropical cyclones
since 1995, and Atlantic hurricanes declined from 1970 to 1994, even
as the globe was heating up.
It seems that Atlantic hurricanes come in spurts, or as the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration puts it in more
technical language, "a quasi-cyclic multi-decade regime that
alternates between active and quiet phases." The late 1920s through
the 1960s were active; the 1970s to early 1990s quiet; and since
1995 as anyone living in Florida or Gulfport, Miss., can tell you
seems to be another active phase.
But if hurricanes aren't more frequent, are they more powerful?
Warm water fuels hurricanes, so the theory is that as the ocean's
surface heats up, hurricanes will pack more punch. An article in
Nature after questionable jiggering with the historical wind data
argues that hurricanes have doubled in strength because of global
warming. Climatologist Patrick Michaels counters that if hurricanes
had doubled in their power it would be obvious to everyone and there
would be no need to write controversial papers about it.
Indeed, if you adjust for population growth and skyrocketing
property values, hurricanes don't appear to be any more destructive
today. According to the work of Roger Pielke of the University of
Colorado, of the top five most destructive storms this century, only
one occurred after 1950 Hurricane Andrew in 1992. An NOAA
analysis says there have been fewer Category 4 storms throughout the
past 35 years than would have been expected given 20th-century
averages.
None of this data matters particularly, since proponents of
global warming will continue to link warming with hurricanes. It
generates headlines in a way that debates about tiny increments of
warming don't. And it feeds a conceit that is oddly comforting: that
whatever is wrong with the world is caused by us and fixable by us.
Alas, it's not so. Mother Nature can be a cruel and unpredictable
mistress, and sometimes all we can do is head for the high ground.
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Rich Lowry Archives
© 2005 King Features Syndicate
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