Global climate change. Sure, it’s a subject that has been discussed extensively, probably to the point of monotony or nausea, revived again, and then killed once more, but I think it’s still certainly a topic worth discussing.
While I certainly lack the scientific credentials necessary to discuss such a subject in the “language of science,” I might be able to rely on the observations I’ve made in the past few weeks, drawing attention to a fall semester of wacky weather.
The Great Binghamton Flood certainly turned many heads, so much so that the little town that we call home (at least for four years) received plenty of attention from the national press spotlight, attention which didn’t revolve around large scale busts of basketball players, deranged shootings, professors who were stabbed to death and other recent instances of infamy.
Then, last week, as I was ready to suave up in costume, something chillingly familiar began to fall. As I raised the blinds on my window so as to get a better look of what I initially perceived to be but a figment of my imagination, it became clear that what I saw was, in fact, snow. Snow? Before November even began? Certainly I recall Halloweens in years past that were cold or perhaps frigid to the point of bodily numbness, but never snow.
Snow before Thanksgiving I can recall occurring a few times, but before Halloween, never.
Then, the other morning, just a few days after the momentous fall of snow, as I walked outside, my car was covered in frost — what a nuisance, I might add.
During the afternoon, however, the weather was vibrantly warm, so warm that the rays of the sun had tempted me to put shorts on and go for a much-needed jog. Consistency anyone?
Now, now, I don’t think it would be fair to say that these few instances of drastic weather alone demonstrate that global climate patterns are indeed changing, but I do believe that they provide some reason for concern, or at least acknowledgement.
Perhaps I’m drawing parallels that do not in fact exist, and if that is the case, I shall be glad. Unusual weather doesn’t necessarily correlate to drastically unusual weather, but slight changes in expectations, in traditional patterns, likely implies that there may be a reason to raise a brow.
With record debts, warfare, unemployment and international instability, among other issues of major concern, it’s unlikely that climate will appear as a legitimate issue in the upcoming election. However, I would like to see it brought back into the conversation, perhaps give another nod of the head to Al Gore, and perhaps recognize that such issues are legitimate and not merely fanciful liberal jargon.