Hillary Clinton and Al Gore are wrong to suggest that global warming causes more extreme weather.

By Tom Harris —— Bio and Archives October 14, 2016

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Re: Hillary blaming Donald Trump for the weather: ‘Thar She Blows’ Hillary Clinton and Al Gore are wrong to suggest that global warming causes more extreme weather. In 2012 the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change asserted that a relationship between global warming and wildfires, rainfall, storms, hurricanes, and other extreme weather events has not been demonstrated. In 2013 the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change explained, “in no case has a convincing relationship been established between warming over the past 100 years and increases in any of these extreme events.”

If extreme weather events actually were on the rise, then Clinton and Gore should be boosting the most affordable and reliable energy sources to prepare for and cope with these hazards. After all, more electricity would be needed to handle greater demands for air conditioning and heating. More power would be required to irrigate lands, build dikes, strengthen public infrastructure and relocate populations living on flood plains or at risk from tornados and hurricanes. Yet, in discussing their solutions to these dangers, Clinton and Gore promote wind and solar power, the least reliable and most expensive options available. Moving away from the inexpensive, steady power that coal and other hydrocarbon fuels provide because of forecast weather extremes is analogous to a ship captain ordering his crew into lifeboats when a severe storm is approaching. It would be suicide to abandon ship exactly when the protection of a sturdy vessel is most needed. It is also suicide to try to provide our base-load energy needs with flimsy sources such as wind and solar power. Sincerely, Tom Harris, Executive Director International Climate Science Coalition (ICSC) Note: ICSC is not right wing (our participants come from across the political spectrum) and are not lobbyists or ‘shills’ for industry of any sort.