Political Quotes

“Madam President, I am here today for the 267th time to call this Chamber to wake up to the threat of climate change. My chart here is getting a little dog-eared with use. Let me dive right in with a report from over 30 years ago that was presented to a major conference here in Washington, DC. On the very first page of this report it says: Increases in atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide (CO<INF>2</INF>) and other key gases . . . that are opaque to portions of the infrared spectrum result in the ``greenhouse effect'' or global warming. When short wavelength infrared radiation from the sun warms the earth's surface, and this heat is later radiated from the earth, some gases in the atmosphere are not transparent to the longer wavelength re- radiation, the heat does not escape, and the atmosphere becomes warmer, much as does the interior of a greenhouse. That is a flawless description of climate change. I wonder who wrote it. Well, let me continue. After some hedging about the state of the science and the uncertainty surrounding how much climate change could be attributed to humans at that point in time, this same report delves into the expected effects of climate change on our planet. It reads: There is qualitative agreement among prognosticators that sea levels will rise, wetlands will flood, salt water will infuse fresh water supplies, and there will be changes in the distribution of tree and crop species and agricultural productivity. Wow. That is really accurate.…”