Several years ago, a fellow environmentally conscious friend asked me for answers to the following Global Warming questions. I sent my answers to her, posted them in a bulletin that went to thousands of readers, and posted them in my old blog. Here’s my updated post, “My Position on Global Warming,” on the new iSupportSolar site.

Chris May
Founder, iSupportSolar

1. What is causing global warming?

I always refer to Global Warming as Global Climate Change (GCC). Referring to the crisis as Global Warming gives the Fossil Fuel Industry (Big Oil) marketing ammunition, especially when it is cold outside.

The Global Climate Change crisis is happening due to the Industrial Revolution Technology and from the genius of man. Mankind’s relentless burning of fossil fuel (oil, gas, and coal) in combustion engines is loading the Earth’s atmosphere with Greenhouse Gases (GHG). The GHGs are preventing heat from radiating back out into space, which is in-turn, warming the Earth and changing global weather patterns.

2. What do we see towards the future of global warming? Like, as it continues, what will happen to the earth leading to effects on mankind? or will the continuously 4 season a year be cut down to fewer seasons? possibly eliminating seasons such as spring, and winter will become a 2nd autumn?

Unfortunately, the future of GCC looks very bleak. Even if we were to stop all burning of fossil fuels today, the GHGs we’ve added to the Earth’s atmosphere will continue to bio-accumulate for the next 100 years. Global Warming will continue for 100 years even if we stopped all burning of fossil fuels today.

I don’t think we’ll lose a season, but the seasons as we know them are definitely changing. Summers will be hotter on average, Falls will be hotter and colder, Springs will be hotter and colder, and Winters will be hotter and colder. It depends on what part of the globe you live in. We will continue to see more and more intense extreme weather events such as droughts, floods, blizzards, heat waves, cold waves, tornadoes, and tropical cyclones because of the increased water vapor in the atmosphere and the shifting global weather patterns.

3. What can we do to help slow it down?

To help slow down GCC, we need a fundamental shift in the status quo, i.e., business as usual. Burning Oil, Gas, and Coal for energy is and has been obsolete for a century. Our global economic addiction to fossil fuel energy is directly responsible for Global Climate Change.

Technology transfer is urgently needed on a global scale. Big Oil has suppressed the scaling of the green energy infrastructure for decades through its marketing efforts. Education at the consumer level is vital at this point to make change happen faster. We need to expose to the public the campaign contributions Big Oil makes to our elected politicians. We need to promote champions of stewardship, making them examples of how to act sustainable. In turn, we need to expose inefficiency, and how being a contributor to the Global Climate Change problem is disgraceful.

Ultimately, the only alternative to living in a sustainable manner is extinction. Think about that for a minute.

4. Are the recent natural disasters really the affect of global warming? i.e. Hurricane Katrina, the 2004 Tsunami, etc.

Yes, the intensity of floods, droughts, cyclones, and other natural disasters is definitely influenced by GCC. With more water vapor in the air, combined with higher temperatures and shifting weather patterns, natural weather disasters will continue to intensify on average.

The 2004 Tsunami was caused by an earthquake and cannot be attributed to GCC.

5. What is the most important thing the public should be aware of about global warming?

The most important thing the public should be aware of about GCC is that each and every one of us are connected to each other. Everything we do has an impact on everyone else. You are either a part of the GCC problem, or a part of the GCC solution.

In the United States, we are funding both sides of WWIII… we are funding our Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines to fight terrorism with our tax dollars. We are funding Al Qaeda, Islamic Jihad, Hezbolla, and other radical Islamic Terrorist groups with our Oil purchases. How smart is that? We are funding both sides of WWIII. It is vital for us to transform our Transportation Infrastructure from burning Fossil Fuels to utilizing Electricity and Bio-Fuels as rapidly as possible.

It is the goal of Big Oil to delay and suppress the technology transfer within our global economy from Non-Renewable Fossil Fuel energy to Perpetual Energy (solar, wind, geothermal, ocean/tidal, and biomass) for as long as possible. Big Oil seeks to keep the quarterly profits rolling in for their own greed and for the greed of their shareholders. Do your part to expose the marketing tactics of the Fossil Fuel Industry.

Whenever you see an individual doubting that Global Climate Change is real and that it is not an urgent issue, you need to know that the individual saying those things is either directly or indirectly paid by Big Oil to say so, or the individual is a victim of Big Oil’s brainwashing marketing tactics.

At this moment, public grassroots education is critical. Uneducated people will not act to slow Global Climate Change until they are ultimately forced to. The educated minority must bring the uneducated majority onto the educated side as quickly as possible. Business as usual is leading to the collapse of mankind.

Chris