# Drought woes in the age of global warming denials **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 12, 2011, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701 "2011-07-12T01:18:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![armedmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@armedmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/armedmonkey)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2011, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/41 "2011-07-12T23:36:45Z")
**Foolsguinea** , you don’t have to convince me of Climate Change. I’ve already read the science and I agree with it. What I am arguing is that YOU do not understand the science, or even the concept. How do you know that global warming is causing your drought? Rising temperatures can just as easily cause [increased precipitation](http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science_and_impacts/impacts/early-warning-signs-of-global-3.html). Hell man, here’s a quote from the linked article: > [@](#): > > For the United States, precipitation since 1970 has averaged about 5% more than in the previous 70 years So let me state this again. Do not blame your local weather patterns on climate change. You can’t scientifically make that connection. Local weather is too unpredictable and there is just too damn many variables to consider before you try to tie the death of a couple of flowers to global warming. ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/42 "2011-07-13T00:09:50Z")
> [@A Monkey With a Gun](#): > > Do not blame your local weather patterns on climate change. Just to follow up on this, there’s a theory that global warming will in fact make the UK, where I live, cooler on average, due to interrupting the Gulf Stream. Nottingham, where I live, is north of Calgary, and almost 10 degrees north of Rochester, New York. The reason I mention the latter is I have a friend who’s lived in both, as well as in Aberdeen in Scotland, and says Rochester was far colder than either.Climate change, of whatever cause, will have far more complex effects than simply warming everywhere up. ---
**Author:** ![Linguini](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3ab097/32.png) [@Linguini](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linguini)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/43 "2011-07-13T00:36:33Z")
Never run into anyone denying that climates change. Global warming. Global cooling. It changes - live with it. ---
**Author:** ![Sierra\_Indigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Sierra\_Indigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sierra_Indigo)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/44 "2011-07-13T00:41:46Z")
> [@Buck\_Godot](#): > > Given that global warming is y’know global, I guess the question to ask it whether other places outside the US are also experiencing unusual weather. I know that there was a heat wave that destroyed the wheat crop in Russia. Any other foreign dopers want to complain about the weather? We had an extremely mild and slightly damp Summer here in South Australia (and a very damp Autumn). Winter WAS shaping up to be quite mild, but in the last couple of weeks we’ve had a cold, wet snap that’s made it more traditionally wintery here. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/45 "2011-07-13T03:55:33Z")
> [@Steophan](#): > > Oh, and if global warming theories are right, there’ll be plenty more coastline to go round. **Less** coastline to go around. ---
**Author:** ![HookerChemical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/278dde/32.png) [@HookerChemical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HookerChemical)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/46 "2011-07-13T16:23:53Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > [Whoosh.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Effect_of_Gamma_Rays_on_Man-in-the-Moon_Marigolds) I should have known. It’s an issue I see confused too frequently and it really sets me off. I really want to shout “Shut up! You clearly don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about. You are an idiot.” It turns out that in this case, I am the fool.:smack: ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/47 "2011-07-13T16:38:17Z")
Well, speaking from experience, the first hundred times that happens, its a real drag. After that, not so bad. ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/48 "2011-07-13T16:46:58Z")
Not that I don’t feel for your flowers (the ones I planted in March all wilted through a dry April and May, when I couldn’t water them) - but you do know that right now, [East Africa](http://plan-international.org/about-plan/resources/news/vital-aid-for-east-africa) is experiencing one of the worst droughts of the last 60 years, after two years of no rainfall (Considering that the last 60 years include the 80s disaster in Ethiopia, that’s saying something). They expect millions of people to starve. > [@](#): > > Severe drought has gripped East Africa, leaving more than 10,000,000 people - many of them children - in desperate need of food and water. > > Poor rainfall has caused crops to fail and endangered livestock across Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Uganda. Just sayin’. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/49 "2011-07-13T16:59:09Z")
What, again? Now what? Man, East Africa has really lousy weather patterns. You’d think they’d get rain just from Indian Ocean moisture, but noooo, they have to wait for monsoons to come over from the Atlantic. Just freaking bizarre. ---
**Author:** ![MysteryFellow63427](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e4f/32.png) [@MysteryFellow63427](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MysteryFellow63427)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/50 "2011-07-13T17:59:08Z")
> [@Buck\_Godot](#): > > Given that global warming is y’know global Funny enough, it ain’t. Lots of places are affected differently as they deviate from the average trend(s). > [@GIGObuster](#): > > Well, lets start with some reality, remember the much maligned Dr. Jones from CRU? The deniers had a field day when in 2009 he was sincere and acknowledged that there was no significant warming trend from 1995. What the deniers forgot to mention to all their followers was that he explained that it was just barely under what statisticians would call a significant trend, deniers forgot to tell their followers also that now that 2010 is over the data can be looked at Dr. Jones reported now that now there is **a demonstrated significant warming trend from 1995**. > > Having said that, please do learn that for more recent dates one has to wait longer to report that the warming is continuing, but looking at the data and taking the past into account, is a good bet that the trend is still up. The warming trend goes way back beyond '95… I’m looking at you, little Ice Age. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/51 "2011-07-13T18:41:34Z")
> [@neuroman](#): > > The warming trend goes way back beyond '95… I’m looking at you, little Ice Age. The '95 was mentioned because it became a huge meme on denialist sites, on the BBC interview of a few years back, a question was made regarding if there was a significant warming trend since 1995, Dr. Jones made the mistake of answering just like the denialist expected, he explained on the same interview that it was not, but just barely (there was still warming, but statistically speaking, not significant between the time frame questioned). As it turned out, the denialist knew that also, but that was the answer that was expected and the answer that was pasted in dozens of denialist sites (Physicist in email scandal now says there is no warming!). Now that time has marched on and we can see if statistically speaking there was warming since 1995, the answer is yes. Do not hold your breath expecting the denialist sites to mention that to all their followers. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/52 "2012-10-10T00:53:08Z")
people are believing in larger numbers Global Warming Spurs Extreme Weather, Most in US Believe > **[Global Warming Spurs Extreme Weather, Most in US Believe](https://news.yahoo.com/global-warming-spurs-extreme-weather-most-us-believe-180527218.html)** > > The majority of Americans think global warming is not only affecting weather but is also worsening extreme weather events, including record-high summer temperatures and the Midwest drought, a new survey released today (Oct. 9) finds. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701/53 "2012-10-10T02:33:44Z")
> [@Steophan](#): > > It will be countries with no coastline that will have to worry. Yes, desalination is expensive, but a lot cheaper than going to war… > > Oh, and if global warming theories are right, there’ll be plenty more coastline to go round. No, there’ll be plenty less. Think about it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drought-woes-in-the-age-of-global-warming-denials/588701.md?page=2)