The Oppenheimer Report - 7/9/12

I love to read the comments posted by readers on the CNN website. Responding to the stories about the latest heat wave to hit the U.S., people weighed in on the largely political debate over climate change. On top of the hugely entertaining flame fest and personal attacks, what was fascinating to me is how many people still believe that mankind is single-handedly responsible for climate change. Admittedly, climate change is a real and serious threat, but from what I’m reading, it’s cyclical. If we kept weather records dating back a few centuries we might see some patterns emerge. No doubt the burning of fossil fuels contributes, the question is, how much? If you want an interesting alternative take on climate change, one that in my opinion is every bit as convincing as the one put forth by the manatee from Georgia, read Bjorn Lomberg’s Cool It: The Skeptical Environmentalists Guide to Global Warming. I was given the book by my nephew who works at NOAA, and who has inspired my disdain for bad weather science. Lomberg’s contention is that the preponderance of scientific misinformation is steering us to bad decisions. He maintains that if we stopped spending the billions  we’re wasting on ineffective, band aid solutions to climate change and re-directed it to research and development, adaptation, and better policy decisions, we’d be much more effective at addressing this problem.

I’m reading two books right now and they are at opposite ends of the spectrum as far as content. On the deep end I have just begun Christopher Hitchens’ atheist manifesto God is Not Great, which should prove to be an interesting read. Having recently read an article comprised of post mortems by Hitchens’ friends and colleagues (he recently died after a long battle with cancer), I was intrigued by the level of respect this man commanded. I always enjoyed listening to the deadpan and somewhat acerbic Hitchens when he was interviewed on talk shows, and while I didn’t agree with everything he said, his views on religion were not far from mine. For the porcelain throne I have Neil Pasricha’s The Book of Even More Awesome. The latter is a stop-and-smell-the-roses list of things in every day life we should remember to enjoy. I have a black belt in negativity and struggle on a regular basis to find contentment in my charmed life. While I can’t stand the much-overused word “awesome,” and while it may seem silly to revel in the joy of popping bubble wrap, or listening to the sound of snow crunching under one’s boots on a cold winter night, the message is a good one. I make a point of reading at least a couple passages per day to remind myself not to be such a boorish oaf. I‘ll let you know how that works out for me. Don’t hold your breath.

Over one hundred are dead as heavy rains walloped in Southern Russia. About 11 inches fell in a short period of time, and the torrent caused flash floods along the Black Sea coast. Fearless leader Putin has been encouraging development in the region ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games to be held in Sochi, and there has been speculation that perhaps irresponsible development contributed to the high number of casualties. They paved paradise, put up a parking lot. Also in the news: actor Ernest Borgnine died Sunday at the age of 95.

OK, this just in from Jasper Bark Lodge … we were about to retire tonight (Sunday) and our dog Jasper ran to the picture window. I figured she was going to scream at one of the countless wild creatures that inhabit our property at night, but that wasn’t what captured her attention. She was looking up at the top of our curtains and growling. I looked up and there was a flying squirrel IN THE HOUSE staring down at me. Of course, Shauna immediately freaked out, and Jasper just kept growling softly. Some ratter she turned out to be! She’s very brave when the animals are on the other side of the window, but somehow her hunting skills evaporate when a genuine threat materializes. I tried to catch it with a butterfly net. Don‘t laugh, it was handy, and I wasn’t expecting to need my flying squirrel artillery! I almost got it, but it was just a little too quick for me. It scampered across the floor and ran underneath one of the ten pieces of furniture where it could hide. I’ve eliminated a few of these things now and they are not easy to catch. For some reason they don’t trip the live trap. I won’t use poison because of the dog, and because it’s inhumane, so I’m down to the pellet gun or the rat trap. I don’t think using a pellet gun would be wise in a house full of glass, but we have a 27’ vaulted ceiling in the living room, and it could be anywhere.

It is now 3A.M. and I just heard the trap snap. 3:15A.M... I have disposed of the problem rodent and can now go to sleep knowing the little bastard is not perched on one of our beams scoping us out. Living in the country is not for sissies.  Written by Jamie Oppenheimer c2012 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED