Scoring Political Points at our Climate’s Expense
I’m doing my part to convey an important 2026 climate message to the general public. The gist of the message is “climate change is real”.
By contrast, US President Donald Trump tweeted last week before a major US winter storm, “Could the Environmental Insurrectionists please explain - WHATEVER HAPPENED TO GLOBAL WARMING???”
In as many words, Mister Trump is asking his public, if “Global Warming” is real, how is it possible that today it is colder outside where I stand than it was yesterday?” [ed., Amiright?]. Since he knows that such terms are too straightforward, he is cleverly telling his political base not to investigate further, in a subtle, manipulative way.
Mister Trump is a master manipulator, and I’m certain he knows good and well that man-made climate change is real. Recent and longer-term events show he is attempting to bolster the United States’ position as the dominant fossil fuel economy in the world, and he wants to squelch all competing narratives. He knows how to manipulate the opinions and beliefs of millions of people. Therefore, serious people need to take this disinformation seriously.
So how should one answer this question, if posed by a neighbor or friend? I think the answers lie in asking people to spread out their current experience to a lifetime of multiple experiences, like how it used to be that more snow fell, or that in April it used to be pleasant outsider. Scientifically, this means relying on Data, Averages, and Planetary Science.
Data in this context is a difficult term for many, but a possible way to describe it, is that millions of people around the world have millions of thermometers, and they have been carefully recording temperature readings for hundreds of years. Over that time they have gotten better and better at ensuring these readings are more and more reliable. Changes in air temperature readings over time is the foundation for climate change claims. Everyone can get behind that, right?
Averages are a way to figure out what’s happening over a long period of time. Using daily, weekly, monthly, and annual averages from all the thermometer readings out there. These averages show that temperatures are different now than in the past. Mostly they are getting warmer. These readings seem hard to dismiss.
Planetary Science can mean a lot of things, and I think these three are the most useful and comprehensible when discussing climate change with your friends and neighbors.
The Planetary Tilt is responsible for the seasons and varying length of days.
Variable and seasonal winds and currents are responsible for varying weather conditions day to day, and at any given moment.
Weather conditions like a Polar Vortex may be more common when arctic air is warmer (though not yet widely agreed by scientists). Warmer arctic air has been proven by all the thermometers and averages out there.
Another useful planetary science concept for Americans and Europeans is the Gulf Stream, which has weakened and moved closer to the US coast over recent decades. It is well established that the weaker stream is a result of melting Greenland ice due to warmer air. As the Gulf Stream continues to weaken, it will have profound effects on weather patterns around the North Atlantic.
Keep talking to your neighbors. Don’t divorce your friends. Help them think more deeply about what is happening. We’ll all be glad you did.