White Christmas (Global Warming Version)

White Christmas (Global Warming Version)

By Charles Moffat, December 2014

I'm dreaming of a White Christmas
Just like the ones we used to know
When the treetops glistened
and governments listened
Back when we used to have snow.

They're scheming of a profitable Christmas
When every politician sounds trite
They give you an economic fright
And most of the CEOs are white.

I'm dreaming of a White Christmas
Before the droughts brought the blight
May your kids live to see the light
And learn from our lack of foresight

I'm steaming at the green Christmas
As the earth goes down the latrine
When everyone is so greedy its obscene
And now all our Christmases are green.

I'm dreaming of a White Christmas
Back when leaders were more forthright
And now they're all full of shite.
And now all our Christmases aren't white.

Stephen Harper Vs Climate Change

Everyone knows Stephen Harper thinks climate change is a hoax. He has long espoused this belief, largely because he is on the payroll of the oil and coal industry.

But let us just stop to enjoy some cartoons various people have made making fun of Stephen Harper's hardline stance against even believing that climate change exists and is happening around us, his pro oil (and oil pipeline) stance, and his belief that most Canadians share his views (even though the majority of Canadians hate Stephen Harper). I have also included some additional cartoons that are on related topics.

Hearing damage can be caused by pollutants in drinking water

Did you know that you can suffer permanent hearing damage just from low dosages of barium in your drinking water?

In laboratory tests mice were fed extremely low dosages of barium (a common pollutant) to test how much the dosages effected their hearing.

We already know that high dosages of barium causes physiological impairments in inner ears, but testing was needed to determine how much barium could cause hearing damage - and the test results from the lab mice tell us is that no amount of barium is safe.

The testing on mice involced a tiny dosages of 0.14 mg/kg/day via drinking water for one group of mice and a large dosage of 1.4 mg/kg/day for a 2nd group of mice.

It should be noted that the WHO health-based guidelines for human drinking water limit is 0.7 mg/l.

After two months of exposure the low-dose barium in drinking water caused severe hearing loss in the mice. Inner and outer hair cells, stria vascularis and spiral ganglion neurons all showed severe degeneration, resulting in severe hearing loss.

This means that if you are drinking tiny amounts of barium in your water you could be suffering hearing loss over the longer term. It should also be noted that pregnant mothers should be worried about drinking water and their babies, as exposure to even a tiny amount of barium could cause their baby to be born deaf.

ADVICE

If you are concerned about the quality of your drinking water have it tested for barium, lead and other pollutants.

If you are concerned about your hearing and possible hearing damage get a free hearing test from your local audiologist. eg. If you live in Vaughan or Woodbridge you can get a free hearing test from OmniHearing.

When traveling avoid drinking the local water if you deem it suspicious. Stick to bottled water.

If pregnant have your drinking water tested immediately. No point taking risks with your babies health or hearing - barium, lead and other pollutants in drinking water can cause a host of different health problems for you and your baby.

If you have children have your drinking water tested anyway, because growing children are most vulnerable to pollutants in the drinking water.

If you notice a chemical factory dumping 'stuff' into the local water supply, don't hesitate to warn other people about it. Your vigilance may save the lives or health standards of others.

Climate Change Naysayers - Why no amount of convincing matters

People hate change.

Worse, sometimes people hate change so much that they refuse to recognize when change is happening all around them and they are in a state of self denial. They refuse to recognize the changes they see, because they know if they accept the changes then they will need to make changes in their own lives.

When it comes to the people who refuse to accept change then you can show them hard evidence and they will still refuse to accept the evidence - indeed, they will come up with their own conspiracy theories claiming that the evidence has been falsified.

Take for example the issues of climate change and global warming.

You can write essays and dissertations explaining climate change, global warming, and what must be done to protect humanity's future.

You can show them documentaries that visually show them how climate change is effecting people around the world.

You can show them scientific evidence, research papers and explain how greenhouse gases work to change the temperatures around the globe.

But if they refuse to read, see or believe in the evidence laid before them then no amount of convincing will help these people to understand.

And what doesn't help is when oil companies and the coal industry try to convince people that global warming / climate change is a hoax.

I have come to the conclusion that climate change is happening and due to humanity's refusal to do anything that we now have to reap the consequences.

The most obvious of which will be Rising Sea Levels.

By 2030 (possibly sooner) many coastal cities are going to be flooded. Including New York City, Boston, San Francisco and many others.

In Canada the cities most effected will be Vancouver, Montreal and Halifax. Cities like St John Newfoundland will be less effected because of its high cliffs along the coast.

Vancouver and Montreal will see significant problems as they are two of Canada's most populated cities and the people living there will need to go somewhere. There will be massive shifts in Canada's real estate industry and unemployment rates.

In the USA there will be civil unrest. Possibly even civil war as many people from coastal states move inland - to regions which will be suffering a different problem: Droughts.

Not enough rainfall in some regions of the USA will make farming almost impossible. Droughts means that food prices will skyrocket, and in a country where many people are also abandoning their homes and moving further inland they will find themselves between a dry rock and a very wet place.

Some cities are already making plans for what happens when rising sea levels threaten their city. New York City for example could build a series of barriers around the city to protect it from rising water levels.

But the financial costs will be severe and it will take decades to build.

Which means that if NYC doesn't start building sea barriers now it is going to be too late by the time the city starts flooding.

Plus even if they do build it, in typical American fashion they will likely argue about the best way to save money building it and then mess up the designs during the process - and the city gets flooded anyway.

But whatever. All of this is science fiction writing according to any naysayer who simply chooses not to believe in the facts laid before them. They won't believe it is possible for NYC to flood until it actually happens.

More Fruit Trees = Cleaner Air + Free Food

If you plant a fruit tree in your garden, backyard or even your front yard you reap a number of benefits.

#1. Like all trees, fruit trees purify the air by taking in CO2 and reducing air pollution.

#2. Fruit trees require very little yard maintenance / gardening skills to take care of. They get watered from rain, which means you don't need to worry about watering them, and at most you might need to prune them once in awhile so the tree looks attractive visually.

#3. Free fruit. Regardless of whether you plant an apple, plum, pear or cherry tree you are going to get free fruit off of it. The trick to picking the fruit is to do so when it is ripe and has not yet been attacked by insects. (One of the plus sides of living in a major city, not many insects to worry about.)

#4. You can even plant your fruit tree indoors, next to a window. Just get yourself a big clay tree pot from a gardening centre, set it near a very large window, get a big bag of soil and fill the clay pot with the soil. Buy a fruit tree from a local gardening centre (eg. Home Depot), plant it in the pot, water it, and then remember to water every few days / once per week, depending on the type of plant you purchased.

#5. Unlike farm raised fruit which are sprayed with pesticides and need to be washed off, you won't need to wash the fruit you grow yourself as much. A little water will do. (So called "organic" fruit has a different problem, they're genetically modified to contain their own pesticides so no amount of washing gets rid of the pesticides.)

Note 1: CBC Radio has a weekly show that has gardening tips. Listen to Ed Lawrence, Ontario Today's Gardening Expert. People can call in to the radio show, get expert gardening tips or even contact him via his website: gardeningwithed.com 

Note 2: A recent Canadian Daily article even pushed the idea of the next mayor of Toronto planting more fruit trees in public places across Toronto. Assuming a mayor who gets elected (replacing Rob Ford) is friendly to the idea, we could see a lot more fruit trees across Toronto.

#6. You don't have to grow fruit trees. You can also grow berries, nut trees, or even coffee plants. Or you can even have a windowsill herb garden like in the photo below.

#7. Other locations for growing fruit trees / etc. include Rooftop Gardens, local community vegetable gardens, some churches have community gardens, and there are also garden sharing communities you can connect with online whereby you use someone else's backyard to grow fruits and veggies and you share the results.

Every Leaf Traps CO2

Every Leaf Traps CO2 - Plant for the Planet tree donation campaign ad.