Climate Denial Crock of the Week

This week’s news that sea level is rising faster than at any time in the last 3000 years underlined the threat that coastal cities around the world are facing, not in some distant future, but now. No place in North America is this more true than Miami, as my most popular “This is Not Cool” video shows. (below)

The response to the news from Denierville was predictable, but probably summed up in most cluelessly amusing fashion in this tweet from tobacco apologist and climate denial opportunist, “Junk Science” purveyor Steven Malloy, who suggested in a tweet that Miami’s hot real estate market disproved climate change.

Newsflash. Real estate bubbles not always based on reality.

Soon they may be singing a different tune.

UPDATE: Tampa Bay Times:

The facts could not be clearer: Tidal flooding along the nation’s coast is worsening, largely due to mankind’s burning of fossil fuels, which is causing the oceans to rise at the fastest rate since the founding of ancient Rome. New scientific studies released this week underscore what residents of Miami Beach, the Florida Keys and the eastern seaboard already know. Greenhouse gases are threatening our coasts, homes, businesses and way of life. And as tens of millions deal with rising temperatures, the stakes only rise for political leaders and the public to address the changes in a meaningful way.

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The message is clear: Humans caused this mess and now need to fix it. Rising sea levels pose a risk far beyond the coast, as salty seawater threatens the drinking water supplies for millions, just as rising temperatures from a warming climate threaten public health, the food chain and global stability.

That’s why the simplest solution — a tax on carbon — needs to be on the table. It’s why state lawmakers need to quit toying with fracking and look for ways instead to reduce Florida’s need for fossil fuels. It’s why Florida’s congressional delegation needs to be an environmental leader; no place is threatened by rising seas more than this low-lying state, and the third-largest state should carry some clout. And it’s why the world community needs to commit to meet the climate change targets agreed to in December in Paris. If a rich nation like the United States can’t keep stormwater from bubbling up on Ocean Drive in Miami Beach, what hope is there?