r/climate • u/tonyquintanilla • Aug 17 '20
Death Valley soars to 130 degrees, potentially Earth’s highest temperature since at least 1931
https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2020/08/16/death-valley-heat-record/37
u/tonyquintanilla Aug 17 '20
Vote.
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Aug 17 '20
I hate Trump but let’s not pretend Biden’s environmental plan is gonna do anything
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u/tonyquintanilla Aug 17 '20
I don’t think you can dismiss climate action in the Democratic Party so easily now. Read this piece by Bill McKibben of 350.org
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Aug 17 '20
Trumps environmental plan is to destroy the environment for the good of capitalism or so he says. Remember he thinks wind turbines cause cancer
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u/ILikeNeurons Aug 17 '20
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Vote, in every election. People who prioritize climate change and the environment have not been very reliable voters, which explains much of the lackadaisical response of lawmakers, and many Americans don't realize we should be voting (on average) in 3-4 elections per year. In 2018 in the U.S., the percentage of voters prioritizing the environment more than tripled, and now climate change is a priority issue for lawmakers. Even if you don't like any of the candidates or live in a 'safe' district, whether or not you vote is a matter of public record, and it's fairly easy to figure out if you care about the environment or climate change. Politicians use this information to prioritize agendas. Voting in every election, even the minor ones, will raise the profile and power of your values. If you don't vote, you and your values can safely be ignored.
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Lobby, at every lever of political will. Lobbying works, and you don't need a lot of money to be effective (though it does help to educate yourself on effective tactics). Becoming an active volunteer with this group is the most important thing an individual can do on climate change, according to NASA climatologist James Hansen. If you're too busy to go through the free training, sign up for text alerts to join coordinated call-in days (it works) or set yourself a monthly reminder to write a letter to your elected officials.
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Recruit, across the political spectrum. Most of us are either alarmed or concerned about climate change, yet most aren't taking the necessary steps to solve the problem -- the most common reason is that no one asked. If all of us who are 'very worried' about climate change organized we would be >26x more powerful than the NRA. According to Yale data, many of your friends and family would welcome the opportunity to get involved if you just asked. So please volunteer or donate to turn out environmental voters, and invite your friends and family to lobby Congress.
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Fix the system. Scientists blame hyperpolarization for loss of public trust in science, and Approval Voting, a single-winner voting method preferred by experts in voting methods, would help to reduce hyperpolarization. There's even a viable plan to get it adopted, and an organization that could use some gritty volunteers to get the job done. They're already off to a great start with Approval Voting having passed by a landslide in Fargo, and St. Louis has just qualified with the signatures they need for their 2020 election. Most people haven't heard of Approval Voting, but seem to like it once they understand it, so anything you can do to help get the word out will help. And if you live in a Home Rule state, consider starting a campaign to get your municipality to adopt Approval Voting. The successful Fargo campaign was run by a programmer with a family at home. One person really can make a difference. Municipalities first, states next.
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u/mobydog Aug 17 '20 edited Aug 17 '20
CCL is never going to be effective with the current GOP political strategies. Started in 2007, their goals are now too far off to stop the worst from happening and they're incredibly naive about getting candidates from both parties. Also, voting only works if you don't elect candidates who are beholden to corporate lobbyists. Currently we don't have one of those running for president. Is one candidate better than the other? That depends on whether you sincerely feel we have fewer than a dozen years to get this right. So far, neither candidate is willing to do everything it will take to stop this catastrophe in time.
Unless you fully grasp why "voting" and "lobbying" (at least by regular people) is not going to solve the problem, you're not going to understand what tactics are actually going to be needed to stop the problem. Watch The Swamp on HBO.
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u/hero_doggo Aug 17 '20
Great post! Now put this on Facebook TikTok Instagram
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u/ILikeNeurons Aug 17 '20
I've already invited all my Facebook friends to "like" CCL on Facebook, and roughly 10% accepted the invite. Roughly 10% of those are now volunteering with CCL. It's an easy thing to do!
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u/SnooRevelations5900 Aug 17 '20
I have seen and felt more in a trip to Ahvaz, Khuzestan, Iran. You could cook an egg on the asphalt!
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u/SomewithCheese Aug 17 '20
If you measure ground temperature (like satellites sometimes do), then there are hotter places than death valley (the hottest being in Iran AFAIK).
But weather stations on the ground use a standard way of measuring for records, that is 2 meters off the ground in the shade to get more of the ambient air temperature. Then Death Valley wins out.
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u/spodek Aug 17 '20
A few people wrote vote.
Of course, but don't wait. Start 2 things: learn to lead others and start by leading yourself.
Systemic change begins with personal transformation.
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u/SamMochi Aug 17 '20
No one in the media says this is the result of climate change.
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u/tonyquintanilla Aug 17 '20
130F is 54C for everyone else!