When Will the Records Break?
Most people believe in global warming, and think we should try and prevent it. So why do we forget about it when the weather is nice?
As I write this, it is extremely hot in the UK. Not necessarily hot compared to places typically associated with a warmer climate, but certainly hot by all British standards. In fact, today, as I write, the BBC is reporting record temperatures in the UK of 38.1C (or 100.6F).
I detest talking about the weather, largely because it’s a favourite pastime of the British yet our weather is rarely anything other than grey (I am reminded of an Albanian colleague, after arriving in the UK, was amazed at how little the weather actually deviated from this colour). But it is curious to note, with global warming becoming ever-more noticeable and the UK supposedly in a state of, “climate emergency,” quite how this record-breaking event is being reported.
I want to be clear: I understand that one anomalous day is not in itself evidence of global warming, and given this, why would a logical person seek to discuss the anomaly in the context of the whole? I’m not saying this one day is because of global warming. But I do think there is a very valid conversation to be had about the pathology of the language used to describe this…
