Climate deniers in denial

During the week of April 17, newspapers were reporting on the severe flooding in Houston caused by a storm with 18 inches of rain. The same week the Herald-Leader printed several letters from global warming deniers saying that none of the predictions of global warming models are correct and that there are no massive floods and droughts. Texas has had a series of devastating floods in the last two years after years of droughts.

In 1997 the average annual temperature made a big jump. Since then the temperature has been steadily climbing but not at the unprecedented rate seen in 1997. Global warming deniers have tried to spin that into proof the temperature is not increasing. Another big jump occurred in 2015, by far the warmest year on record. The winter of 2016 was the warmest ever. Even deniers must have noticed the spring-like weather, so 2016 probably will be another big jump.

The Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets are melting at unprecedented rates. Rising sea levels are already affecting cities like Miami. Yet the deniers cite a bogus online petition in support of denial as proof that nothing is happening. It’s mind boggling.

This story was originally published May 9, 2016 at 7:11 PM with the headline "Climate deniers in denial."