Yes, there really is a climate crisis

Is there a climate crisis? (Crisis: a crucial point at which corrective measures must be taken.) 

If a person's area of concern is limited to Bonner County, the answer might be “no.” However, if the rest of the country and the world are taken into consideration, the reasonable, informed answer is “yes.” Only if a person is oblivious to the world-wide increases in extreme weather events (droughts, floods, heat waves, storms, etc.) and the deleterious impacts they are having on health, economics, and food production could the answer be “no.”

It's inconceivable that a person could be aware of the current, global, record-breaking, adverse weather conditions and logically conclude it should be business as usual. (“Climate breakdown 2024: 6 months of climate chaos since COP28”)

Although the climate has experienced cyclical changes in the past, the rate at which the global temperature is increasing is now some ten times faster than any time in the geological record. (“Global Warming: How does today's climate compare to history and the future?”) The rate corresponds to the increased production by humans of the greenhouse gasses carbon dioxide and methane. These rising temperatures are responsible for the weather extremes now devastating much of humanity.

There are some who deny the situation has reached crisis proportions. But how narrow-minded and uncaring must a person be to ignore and/or downplay the plight of others so long as they personally remain largely unscathed? Must deniers suffer directly from the harmful effects of climate change before they show concern?

JACK DeBAUN

Dover