Climate Lynx

Unequivocal.   Is this a good word for scientists to use to communicate their scientific confidence and consensus? I had a good idea of what it means but, to be sure, I looked the word up, starting with “equivocal.” Equivocal means uncertain or doubtful. Un means “not.” Thus, unequivocal means “without doubt” or “certain.” Scientists tell us climate disruption is unequivocally caused by humans and will cause immense destruction. This is how scientists express certainty. Here is another word for us to ponder, “safety.” As a retired pilot looking back it means a way of thinking. It counters mine, and most humans, basic nature to make decisions based on short term gain and convenience. Safety is baked into the aviation equation by the government because if you disregard safety, the FAA will take your license away. Never underestimate the role of governmental adult supervision. The army has safety professionals to make sure aviators think, always, with safety in mind. They ...

Sometimes you get into telling a history story you thought you knew well, but then it blossoms into something bigger. I was going to tell you about the history of the greenhouse effect.   The first person to suggest the earth is comfy and warm because of the insulative properties of air was Joseph Fourier, a French mathematician and scientist in 1820.  It wasn’t until 1861 that an Irish Scientist, John Tyndall, proved him correct. Tyndall was able to identify   the insulative gasses, the major ones being carbon dioxide, water vapor, and methane. Fourier and Tyndall were intellectual giants of their time. For example, Tyndall held 5 honorary doctorates and was a member of 35 scientific societies. Today, at the prestigious “University of East Anglia” the department that studies climate science is respectfully named in his honor; the Tyndall Centre.  This was quite the accomplishment for a man who started his career as a surveyor, but then gave into his pa...

If you are reading my column you may be wondering if I will ever touch on the chemical and physical “facts” regarding climate change. Fair question!! If you want to get ahead of me, you can download a booklet written by the two top scientific organizations in the galaxy. The booklet is called, “Climate Change Evidence and Causes”. These two are our National Academies of Science and the Royal Academy. * But, why do I not give you facts right now. Quite simply I must convince people that facts are important. If you are committed to an opinion based on an inflexible political position, our scientist’s facts have been painfully gathered in vain. It is called the “ Backfire Effect ”. The backfire effect simply states that if you have an opinion based on a tribal/political principle, the more facts I present you, the more inflexible you become.   This, as you might guess, makes my work difficult. So, I am trying very hard NOT to give you facts. This goes against my military a...

Climate Protection and Pandemic Preparedness need Smart Citizens. America is First. Sadly, we lead the world in COVID-19 deaths. This is despite the warnings of pandemic scientists many weeks before it arrived here. In fact, general warnings were made years ago. In fairness, previous administrations could have done more but when the Trump Administration eliminated the pandemic and bioterrorism teams in 2018, they demonstrated a terrible lack of scientific vision. Tragically, we have done nothing to address the much bigger threat, the climate dragon.  We have a history of letting things get out of control. In the 1960s swimming in the Mississippi River near my home was discouraged because of pollution. As an Air Force Cadet, we visited Southern California where, during the day, the sun was nothing more than a bright spot in a smoggy night-time.  Acid rain was killing forests and lakes. Poorly regulated pesticides poisoned animals. Our national bird, the Bald ...