Dear GOP: Please Stop "Bring 'Em On"ing Mother Nature

Posted by The Green Miles

You just had to do it, didn't you, Republican Party of Virginia? Couldn't let last weekend's Snowmageddon go by without a taunting video the snow backed up your belief that global warming didn't exist? And national Republicans giddily joined in.

Never get in all up in Mother Nature's grill and sneer, "Bring 'em on."

Just five days later, the DC area is waking up to intense snowfall & 60 mile per hour wind gusts, creating whiteout conditions. Is this "normal," RPV? We here in DC would kill for some of those placid, bucolic scenes featured in your video. Instead, we're getting, simply put, a winter hurricane:



Which is exactly what climate scientists have been warning to expect as our climate continues to change unchecked. Just last week, the National Wildlife Federation issued a report on Global Warming & Oddball Winter Weather that warned, "Global warming is bringing a clear trend toward heavier precipitation events."

And there are signs that even the national media, which can't even be trusted to publicly state that trying to insure the uninsured is a good thing, is finally willing to call out Republican climate ignorance. Here's TIME:

Brace yourselves now — this may be a case of politicians twisting the facts. There is some evidence that climate change could in fact make such massive snowstorms more common, even as the world continues to warm. As the meteorologist Jeff Masters points out in his excellent blog at Weather Underground, the two major storms that hit Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C., this winter — in December and during the first weekend of February — are already among the 10 heaviest snowfalls those cities have ever recorded. The chance of that happening in the same winter is incredibly unlikely.

And that's before today's Snowstorm #3.

The facts of global warming are more clear than ever:

• 2009 was the 2nd-hottest year on record & the 2000s were the hottest decade on record.
• We risk major, costly impacts if we don't act to curb global warming by cutting carbon pollution now.
• The transition to clean energy & efficient technology could not only avert billions in climate costs, it could create 1.7 million jobs.
• The only question is the political will of our elected officials (i.e. Sen. Jim Webb).

But hey, if you're tired of the snow, global warming is here to help! Spring is now arriving 10-14 days sooner. We'll be back to record heat waves before you know it!

Full Disclosure: While I work for the National Wildlife Federation for my day job, I blog for Blue Virginia on my personal time.

VA GOP Mocks Bob McDonnell's Position on Global Warming

Psoted by The Green Miles

Here's Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell on global warming:

"I think it's a real concern, and we need to find ways to be able to reduce (carbon dioxide) emissions," [McDonnell] told reporters after a rally with Sen. John McCain in Virginia Beach. "Well, there's some debate that various scientists are going on. I think the temperature of the earth, from the science I've seen, has gone up and what we need to do is promote reductions" in carbon dioxide.

Well, the Republican Party of Virginia is out with a new video sticking it to that Al Gore-loving, treehugging Bob McDonnell by mocking the whole concept of global warming. Why? Because it's snowing! Get it? HA! Never mind that 2009 was the 2nd-hottest year on record, or that the '00s were the hottest decade on record.

I wonder what that science-listening Bob McDonnell's position on evolution is? Hey RPV, I smell a web video ...



UPDATE 2/9: The original video was mysteriously deleted. We here at Blue Virginia have helpfully found the re-posted video for you:

Virginia GOP Goes With "You Lie" Guy

I've got just one word for this: pathetic.



P.S. Click to "embiggen."

DPVA Response to RPV Disowning Catherine Crabill

Excellent response by the DPVA to the Republican Party's denunciation of Catherine Crabill.

DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF VIRGINIA RESPONSE TO GOP STATEMENTS ON CATHERINE CRABILL

Why did it take 29 days?

Ha, I like it! The only thing I'd add is, why did they put it out late Friday in the dog days of August when they knew almost nobody would be paying attention? Didn't want to piss of their tea-bagging, "birther," "deather," "don't tread on me" base? LOL

Sounds Like Someone Needs A Diaper Change

Another day, another pointless e-mail from the RPV about Creigh Deeds, once again alleging that Creigh is refusing to take a position on several national issues. The e-mail also makes some juvenile allegations about Creigh and Gov. Kaine that are laughably idiotic and internally inconsistent, for example, both accusing Deeds of “keeping mum” about Kaine’s travels for the DNC and “throwing his mentor under a bus.” He couldn’t have done both now, could he?

More to the point, is this really what the RPV wants to discuss with the voters? If so, why?

I don’t know what they talk about at the McDonnell residence over dinner, but in my house and in my family, we worry about trivialities like, well, keeping my job. We worry about whether our public schools will have enough funding next year to provide a full-time nurse to take care of our diabetic son at school. We worry about the cost of health insurance and, even with insurance, the cost of health care. We worry about paying for college for our three children.

Honestly, in our house we don’t care about where Gov. Kaine goes on behalf of the DNC. We do wonder, however, where the Hell Bob McDonnell, Ken Cuccinelli and the rest of the RPV will be when it comes to serious issues like stem cell research that might help our son? Will they support finding a cure for his diabetes, or will they pander to extremists for whom it is more important to make an ideological debating point than help secure a healthy and long future for a nine-year-old child.

Instead, all we get from the RPV is schoolyard name-calling and taunting. Do they really think this is acceptable?

Actually, I think McDonnell is a pretty smart fellow, so I presume he knows this tactic is pretty lame. In fact, that is what makes the rationale behind this nonsense clear enough.

The truth is that Republicans are out of ideas and have been for some time. The public is no longer buying their snake oil that tax cuts are the panacea for every problem, and unlike the Republican Party’s spiritual and ideological leaders like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and Michele Bachman, most people, Conservative, Moderate and Liberal, do not see their own government as their enemy, but as their ally in tough times.

Virginians, for the most part, seem to me to be seeking thoughtful, realistic and pragmatic policies to lead us into the future, not childish partisan sniping, but Pat Mullins, Bob McDonnell and the Republicans have nothing to offer but the same old negativity and divisiveness. So Republicans peddle paranoia about the census, they fantasize about a terrorist attack that in their sick imaginations will jumpstart support for their campaign of violence and hatred against immigrants, and here in Virginia, they level irrelevant and pointless charges against their political opponents in order to distract voters.

The RPV’s tactics amount to nothing more than Pat Mullins and Bob McDonnell acting like spoiled brats that no one will listen to, so they are now stomping their feet, crying and holding their breath till they turn blue. And as with watching a toddler throw a temper tantrum, it isn’t fun and it isn’t interesting. As a matter of fact, as anyone who has witnessed such a fit being pitched, more than anything it is an uncomfortable and humiliating experience not only for the child involved, but also for the unfortunate adults unlucky enough to witness the spectacle.

For goodness sakes, will someone please change these guy’s diapers and burp them, if only so they will shut up and let the adults talk to one another.

Crossposted from The Virginia Democrat.