The Smithian

Joe Biden…must be considering a presidential run. There will be too much Obama-era unfinished business—implementing the Affordable Care Act, fighting for climate-change initiatives, for example—for Biden to throw in the towel. His strengths as a candidate are his blue-collar persona, family values, lifetime support of labor unions and farmers, foreign-policy expertise and stouthearted belief that the Obama administration’s record of accomplishment…has been historic. With Air Force Two at his disposal and his two superbright sons, Hunter and Beau, probably working as his chief advisers, Biden can give Hillary Clinton a run for her money. Although she will have an unquestioned advantage among women, it’s not inconceivable to think that labor unions, environmentalists, African-Americans, LGBT voters and small-business owners will prefer the hypercaffeinated, hard-charging vice president. Like Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, a presumed Republican candidate, Biden has learned to turn the sound-bite culture on its head by speaking from the gut. Though he’s been a major political player since the Nixon years, Biden has pulled off the trick of not seeming like politics-as-usual. It could be a mistake to underestimate his populist appeal. And it’s hard to imagine that this highly ambitious man will choose not to pursue the office he’s wanted all his life.

more, plus the talk with Vice President Biden, here.

“Our climate is changing, the weather is becoming more intense…It’s going to cost a lot of money and a lot of lives…The big issue (is) how do we adapt…because it doesn’t look like the people who are in charge are going to do what it takes to really slow down this climate change, so we are going to have to adapt. And adapting is going to be very, very expensive.”

— California Governor Jerry Brown

…in an airplane hangar filled with trucks, airplanes and helicopters used by the state to fight fires.

[President] Obama didn’t change the weltanschauung. He does, however, deserve credit for doing a great deal within its constraints. Climate hawks should not waste their time hoping for a Great Man (or Woman) to save the day in the next election. No one person, no matter how brave or clever, can turn the tide. The impediments to climate action in the U.S. are primarily structural and systemic; systems thinking, not Romantic tales of individual heroism, is what’s needed.

more, here. which is in response to this.

Many…have written about how global warming will damage some of the world’s most treasured landscapes and beloved species. This book aims to lay out exactly how bad it will be for human beings.

more.

“We have always been able to depend upon a constant shoreline. It’s going to be a hard lesson to learn. This is a new planet we are living on.”

more.

Hurricane Sandy raises big questions about how we will live in the future. A city mayor…cannot stand up amid the wreckage and tell people that everything is fine, that it will never happen again. Today we face an ecological challenge of our own making: now that the majority of us live in cities, it is within the metropolis that our future salvation or death warrant will be drafted. For some geographers the future looks bleak.

more.

…in 1988, Hansen was early and aggressive in speaking out about global warming. His opponents dubbed him an “alarmist.” Even some colleagues who agreed with him in principle shrank from taking an aggressive public posture, when the evidence for modern anthropogenic global warming was not as clear-cut as it is today. Nevertheless, Hansen’s bold predictions have proven true.

more.

Named for its high-pitched calls…the coquí is the generic name for some 14 species of frog…Three of the species have gone extinct since the 1970s…scientists fear that the remaining 14 will also disappear unless the authorities take quick action to preserve more land and to slow rising temperatures…Loss of the coquís would be unsettling for Puerto Rico, where the frogs’ image can be found on everything from T-shirts to key rings…Because the frogs feed on mosquitoes, the decline of the tiny amphibians will mean that humans will be more exposed to mosquito-borne diseases…

more.