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Nov

Traveling to reality: Australia Part 3.

This story is adapted from a BBC report dated 9 November 2019. THE PRESENT. In early November 2019, concurrent wildfires were raging in eastern Australia and California. This is unprecedented because its Spring in Australia and Fall in California – the wrong seasons for wildfires, let along wildfires that are this intense.

I was in Australia in August 2019 and reported on a massive drought that stretched from Sydney west into the state of South Australia. We saw no blade of green grass for two whole days of four-wheeling in the northern Flinders Ranges. We saw dozens of dead kangaroos by the roadside.… More

May

Climate change: Part 7. Science and faith

I WAS IN STARBUCKS IN LUBBOCK, CLOSE TO TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY. Waiting for a woman I had never met. I told her I was tall and with a gray beard. After sipping a decaf mocha frappe, she tapped me on the shoulder and I stood and shook hands.

She was young (at least compared to me) with brown hair, attractive, and her face held a perpetual smile. Her voice and movements were filled with enthusiasm. She had just flown in from Wisconsin, where she had given a talk about the intersection of faith and climate change.

She opened her laptop and showed me a picture of Science in one circle and Faith in a second circle.… More

Mar

Fracking and Global Warming: What’s the Connection?

I gave a talk this past week called Fracking and Global Warming: What’s the Connection? I appreciate the invite by Dr John Korstad who teaches two different courses on Sustainability at Oral Roberts University (ORU).

Sustainability is getting to be a hot subject: it implies conserving the present environment for our grand-kids, to use a simple definition. For businesses the application is People, Planet and Profits: People meaning quality of life and employee retention, Planet being environmental stewardship and waste reduction, and Profit meaning responsible economic growth. At ORU, staff like Dr Korstad are leading the way.

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The world-class lecture room at ORU, where I was video’d automatically. … More

Jan

Record heatwave in Australia

WHATS IN THIS BLOG? Text from Australia: 71 wildfires burning. Bats and flying foxes killed by the thousands. Where was the heatwave the worst? Australia has been getting warmer.

TEXT FROM AUSTRALIA.“Heat wave in eastern Australia. 71 wildfires in New South Wales and Victoria. It’s a bit different to your part of the world in USA.”

This text was sent by my brother Clive just a few days ago – 17 January 2019. Less than a week before that I had sent him a video of a three-inch snowfall I experienced here in the USA. What a contrast!

Some of the following is excerpted from BBC News.… More

Nov

Climate Change: Part 6. Deadly serious now.

WHATS IN THIS BLOG: • Wildfires in California. • Greenhouse gases reach new high. • New US government report – what does President Trump think?

There is a reason for Part 6 in this series on Climate Change. I am concerned that the world is on the cusp of a pretty big crisis. And I sense that events of the past couple months are moving USA opinions to a tipping point.

Part 5 and Part 6 here present information to support this tipping point. As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts – please use the Comment box at the bottom of the blog.… More

Oct

Climate Change: Part 5. New IPCC report – scary or not?

WHATS IN THIS BLOG: • The situation is worse than we thought. • Between 70 and 90% of coral reefs expected to die off, including Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. • Individuals can do something about it. • Being aware of what we eat, where it comes from, how we travel, how we heat our homes, can impact energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. • Drastic action is required but will require global political engagement.

NEW IPCC REPORT OUT IN OCTOBER 2018. I live in the southwest USA. Seeing more pine trees killed by pine-bark beetles is sad. The huge numbers of wildfires in the west got to me this past summer.… More

Dec

Climate change: Part 4. Wildfires in California

WHATS IN THIS BLOG: • The devastating wildfires close to Los Angeles: story and pics. • The fires are fanned by Santa Ana winds. • Man saves wild rabbit from burning. • Are the wildfires really caused by global warming? • Postscript: Conversation with a skeptical professional.

This is part of a series on climate change. In this article we look at the terrible wildfires ravaging California right now.

IF YOU DON’T LOOK AT ANYTHING ELSE, look at the very short video below of the man saving a rabbit from the fire. Have your tissues handy !!!

My next blog will be about teenage girls and smartphones, especially the negative and dangerous side of this issue, including suicide.… More

Nov

Climate changes: Part 3. The Stakes are high

WHATS IN THIS BLOG: • Rising sea levels. • Severe heat waves. • Political instability. • Deterioration of ocean life.

This is part of a series on climate change. Information in this article is taken from the book Climate of Hope by Bloomberg and Pope. See pic of book cover below.

CLIMATE CHANGE AND FIRES. Hurricanes Harvey and Irma were in all the news in my last two blogs on this subject (click HERE and HERE). Soon after, California was beset by the Napa Valley fires – the most destructive in the state’s history. The numbers are 41 people dead, 220,000 acres burned, and 2,800 homes burned.… More

Sep

Climate change: Part 2. Unable to escape hurricane Irma

WHATS IN THIS BLOG: • Ducking under the eye of hurricane Irma. • A terrifying night crouching in a bathroom. • Avoiding looters and robbers. • The islanders on St Maarten have lost everything. • Things are not okay, and the oceans are angry.

Just to clarify: this group of three blogs (Part 3 still to come) will center on Science and Energy. The next series will be on Inspiration and Hope. This blog is a long one, but I know it will add value to your perspective.

THIS BLOG IS A STORY ABOUT A FRIEND OF MINE, CALLED BETSY, who was crouching in the bathroom of a hotel in St Maarten, an island in the Caribbean, when the eye of hurricane Irma came right though there.… More

Sep

Climate change: Part 1

WHATS IN THIS BLOG: • Climate change versus hurricanes and forest fires. • A new book on climate change. • What causes climate change? • Can we predict climate change effects? • Should the USA buy insurance against climate change?

Just to clarify: this blog and (I hope) the next one will center on Science and Energy.

CLIMATE CHANGE IS CONTROVERSIAL, but recent events in September of 2017 force us to think about it once again. I’m referring to hurricane Harvey which went through Houston and hurricane Irma which hit Florida, both causing billions of dollars of damage within the past month.… More

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