Winter of 2007; South Africa; Argentina; Chile

The Winter of 2007 was severe and bitterly cold in the United States and Canada. But the effects were not limited to North America. New cold records have been set in South Africa also, according to the Cape Times:

THE icy weather of snow, hail and heavy rain that has swept across South Africa over the past few days has set 54 weather records.

The South African Weather Service said 34 new records were set on Monday and another 20 yesterday. Almost all records were for the lowest maximum and minimum daily temperatures in towns across the country.

Similar records have been set in Argentina, according to AP:

A cold snap in Argentina led to electricity and natural gas shortages this week, idling factories and taxis and causing sporadic blackouts in the capital.
Beset by the coldest May since 1962, millions of residents fired up space heaters, straining Buenos Aires' electrical grid for three nights and forcing authorities to slash power supply nationwide and briefly cut domestic natural gas provisions and exports to Chile.

The cold snap jeopardized the economies of both Argentina and Chile, as fuel supplies have been rationed - H/T Bloomberg News.

For those who rely on the government for their education and the MSM/DNC for news, South Africa and Argentina are on different "continents" than the United States. That means they are really far away - not only from us, but from each other. The bitter cold has not been confined to the United States or Canada.

The devastating, bitter effects of the Winter of 2007 have been global. It is more important now to remember this as we endure the heat in the United States. We have more to fear from Al Gore's continuing Assault on Reason than we do from "global warming."
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6-11-07 - Update - new cold records in Denver, compilation of data reveals that warmest years in Denver occurred prior to 1955. Notwithstanding the above, new global warming initiative to crack down on individual liberties in Denver.
The more evidence accumulates against global warming, the stronger the crackdown will be.

Winter of 2007 cancels baseball and kills otters

So far the Winter of 2007 has closed airports, disrupted rail traffic, broken records, destroyed buildings, frozen rivers, closed highways, threatened crops and disrupted hearings into global warming.

And now it is disrupting baseball in Cleveland and elsewhere.
Cleveland AP photo 4-9-07









And setting records in Charlotte, NC.

And killing sea otters in Alaska:

An extra-cold winter on the Alaska Peninsula has frozen sea otters out of the bay and pushed them onto the tundra near Port Heiden where they're easy prey for wolves, humans and hunger.

--------------
4-10-07 update
This April is, so far, the coldest April in 113 years.
-------
4-11-07 update
Bloomberg news confirms record cold for April in New York.

Winter conditions prevail throughout the East;

Mother nature continues to make Al Gore her prison bitch, as the Winter of 2007 continues to pile on cold temperatures, unseasonal snow and ice and generally un-global-warming-like conditions:

Just about everywhere east of the Rockies, it's extremely cold for this time of year – with snow in parts of the Northeast and Midwest, and freezing temperatures elsewhere - and it's going to stay this way right through the weekend.

Parts of the upper Northeast are slogging through over a foot of snow which closed schools, tangled traffic and knocked out power to more than 180,000 homes and businesses.

Frost and freeze warnings are in effect for the next few nights throughout much of the Southeast, while the snow continues to pile up across portions of the Great Lakes and the Northeast . . .

The result, says Cullen, is temperatures 15 to 30 degrees below normal, with many record lows likely over the weekend, from the Ohio Valley on down to southeast coast.

At least two deaths – traffic accidents in New Hampshire and Michigan - are blamed on the wintry weather, which began late Wednesday.

Click here for previous stories on the frozen rivers, record cold temperatures, death tolls, collapsed buildings, disrupted air and rail travel and general misery that has been the Winter of 2007.
cattle grazing in Kansas - April 5, 2007 - AP



Today is the 25th anniversary of a record snowstorm and cold spell in the Northeast, while Sunday is the 78th anniversary of a record heat wave. When exactly did global warming begin?

update - 4-7-07
snow on the cherry blossoms 4-7-07 AP

- cold conditions at the Masters in Augusta, Georgia.

- Cold weather threatens crops throughout the East.

Accuweather - 4-7-07

- Top hurricane forecaster says Al Gore is "doing a great disservice and he doesn't know what he's talking about."
---------------------------
update - April 8,2007
From KARE11 Minneapolis-St. Paul:

Easter Sunday's high temperature will struggle to make 40 degrees, barely higher than Christmas day. In fact, we haven't seen April temperatures like this in almost 60 years.

Other parts of the country are freezing, too. Friday's Twins game is canceled in Chicago, and Atlanta could see its coldest Easter Sunday in 120 years.

Al Gore lied - motorists died

From the Philadelphia Inquirer:

The even-nastier-than-expected late-winter storm iced the region with several hours of stinging sleet yesterday, closing roads and schools, and causing innumerable accidents - including a head-on collision in Gloucester County that left three men dead and eight seriously injured.

These deaths are in addition to previous deaths from the bitter cold earlier this year.

Queens 3-16-07




Meanwhile, the story that 2007 has been the warmest winter ever has reached "meme" status. That phrase is beginning to appear in every story about the weather, no matter how unrelated. Check out the chill map from early February, remember that these conditions persisted for weeks, and resolve to immunize yourself from MSM/DNC memes in the future.
-------------------
update - hundreds of travelers stranded at JFK.

Winter of 2007 keeps on going; Winter of 1994

It appears as if the Winter of 2007 is not yet through rebutting Al Gore:

from "Accuweather" today





We are expecting colder temperatures and "a significant late-winter snowstorm in the Northeast."

Also, on this day in 1994, a snowfall record was set:

.9 inches of snow on this day brought the seasonal snowfall total at Binghamton, New York to 123.2 inches -- the city's snowiest winter ever.

--------------
update - 3-16-07
JetBlue has cancelled 215 flights due to the snowstorm. The East is being pounded with another 4 to 18 inches of snow, depending on the location.
-------------------
update - Friday evening 3-16-07
Airlines have cancelled 2,000 flights due to the storm.

Lancaster, PA

Winter fatigue; Winter of 2007

I know you are as tired of this winter as you are of reading my comments about it, but you will be glad to have my chronicle when the global warming drumbeat resumes soon.

These are the temperatures we are dealing with in Pennsylvania today as snow continues to fall:
H/T WHTM










It is snowing in Philly and closing schools and in Central PA.
-------------------------------
update
Drudge has linked to the announcement of today's "global warming" hearings in Washington, D.C. and how today's snowstorm may interfere yet again.
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snow near Pittsburgh this morning

Winter of 2007; Toronto

The Toronto Star reports that February was the coldest February in Toronto since 1979:

If you thought February was particularly cold, you were right. Frigid conditions made the month the coldest February in 28 years, according to Environment Canada’s senior climatologist David Phillips. Not since 1979 has February dished up such bone-rattling conditions.

Toronto 3-1-07

------------------------------------











update

The Winter of 2007 shows no sign of letting up as frigid temperatures continue in Central Pennsylvania:

Strong winds along with some very cold temperatures will make it feel frigid around the Midstate Today; in fact, wind chills will be below zero at times This Morning!

H/T CBS 21 TV

Winter of 2007 - Des Moines/ Iowa blizzard - Interstate 80 shut down

This Winter, we have seen the Eastern and Northern U.S. crippled by the St. Valentine's day blizzard. We have seen rail and airline disruption, frozen rivers, and, even before St. Valentine's day, record cold temperatures. We have seen closed highways and stranded motorists. Buildings have collapsed.

Now, in March, we see a continuation of this bitter weather in Iowa:

Ice and blowing snow continued to cripple Iowa's highways Friday, leaving hundreds of motorists stranded and littering major roads with abandoned trucks and cars.

Hundreds of miles of highway were declared impassable, even for rugged four-wheel-drive vehicles.

State transportation officials said they couldn't remember a blizzard that closed so many roads for so long. This one started Thursday, less than a week after an ice storm caused one of the biggest electricity failures in state history.

The latest storm was blamed for a fatal traffic accident in eastern Iowa and for uncounted school closings and other interruptions.

Many of the worst problems were in western Iowa, where conditions turned so bad Thursday night that National Guard Humvees could not make their way onto Interstate Highway 80. Instead, volunteers on snowmobiles plucked people from their stranded cars, then ferried them up to eight miles to a relatively clear area, said Cass County Sheriff Bill Sage. The rescued motorists then boarded Humvees and local officials' trucks, which were escorted into Atlantic by snowplows.

I hate to be redundant about any topic, but this year's severe weather requires constant repetition because the bad weather will end and the "global warming" issue will heat up conveniently just as the temperatures begin their annual rise in Spring and Summer.

road conditions in suburban Des Moines - Des Moines Register







The Winter temperatures have human consequences that cannot simply be brushed away like so many other facts and issues that fall victim to the MSM/DNC memory hole. The best way to rescue facts from the memory hole is to remember those facts in stark terms, with photographs that evoke images of the bitterness that characterized the events in the first place.

Stranded truckers in Iowa on March 2nd - Des Moines Register






This summer, as the global warming propaganda rages, review these and other photos from the Winter of 2007.

Winter of 1996; New York snowfall record

Eleven years today, New York City set a record for snowfall:

March 2, 1996-
another east coast snowstorm deposited 4.6 inches of snow at Central Park in New York City to bring its seasonal snowfall total to 66.3 inches, breaking the old season snowfall record of 63.2 inches set in 1947-48.

Today, the snow from the St. Valentines day storm is finally starting to disappear as we are seeing mild temperatures and rain for the first time in weeks. The MSM/DNC will undoubtedly resume the "global warming" drumbeat. When that happens, remember the records for snowfall and cold temperatures and the winter destruction from recent years and this year.

Winter of 1987

Twenty years ago this weekend, the Philadelphia area was hit with up to two feet of snow. This anniversary comes as we greet another winter storm in the Winter of 2007.

This Winter (2007) has been a thumb in the eye of those who insist that the sky is falling and the Earth is warming, as airports have closed, highways have shut down, cold temperature records have been broken, buildings have collapsed, rivers have frozen and general misery has lingered for weeks.

Of course, neither the Winter of 1987 nor the Winter of 2007 should be confused with the Winters of 1994 or 1996.

Valentine's Day storm - Winter of 2007

Our survival as an industrialized nation may depend on our ability to resist the calls to shut down our industries by the "global warming" advocates. Much depends on our ability to remember the horrible weather from this Winter, including the Valentine's Day blizzard.

Airports have endured (and continue to endure) delays. Passengers have been trapped on runways for hours. Amtrak has cancelled service in many areas. Many people are without power throughout the Northeast. Temperatures are in the single digits with windchills below zero. Traffic has come to a standstill. Buildings have collapsed. Ten miles of Interstate 78 are closed in PA. **** update - the initial reports underestimated the traffic tie-up. Fifty miles of I-78 were closed, trapping drivers for up to a day. Parts of I-80 and I-81 were closed as of late Friday 2-16*** end update

Gas station collapse in Cleveland


building collapse in York, PA



















My own experience yesterday was somewhat uncommon because I was one of the few people on the road in southern Pennsylvania. Parking lots were inaccessible. Sidewalks were nonexistent, as pedestrians risked accidents walking in the middle of the icy roads.

Buying gasoline was difficult because the pumps were operating slowly. I and other drivers had to pry open frozen gas caps. There were as many snow plows on the road as ordinary vehicles. The plows used the gas station as a turnaround point to get back on the road as I waited with frozen fingers in the bitter wind for the pump to eke out a few gallons.

Driving at night in a snow and ice storm is unique. The snow forms a haze around lighted signs along the roadside. Everything else is dark. When the occassional vehicle approaches from the other direction, one never knows if the vehicle will spin out of control or misjudge the lanes in the absence of visible markings on the road.

My defroster was essential last night, but with frozen fingers, the temptation to redirect the heat toward myself was very powerful.

This story is mundane and easily forgettable, but that is why we must commit such stories to writing now before we are confronted with the left's falling-sky-global-warming scenario as soon as the temperatures start to rise. Write down your own stories of shoveling snow, driving, missing work, etc. Re-read them this Summer.

Winter of 2007 - winter storm receives priority coverage over Anna Nicole Smith

Matt Lauer's teleprompter this morning used the term "winter smackdown" to describe the storm that has blanketed an area from the midwest to Virginia to Maine. Some areas are expected to receive several feet of snow, while other areas are enduring ice and sleet. Air traffic is disrupted ("hundreds and hundreds of flight delays"). Vehicle deaths ("hundreds of accidents")have occurred. Schools, businesses and government offices are closed throughout much of the country. Power outages are creating havoc. Temperatures throughout the country remain well below normal.

Indianapolis Star photo -idle airplanes at Indianapolis Airport - 2-13-07

This is not news to any of you, as you have either looked out your own window or have seen the news coverage. I repeat the story here because the global warming meme will eventually resume. We have heard little of the hysteria-mongering for almost two weeks, but the hysteria will be back when the sun returns. We will need to review the events of the Winter of 2007 when that happens. Memory is the greatest enemy of leftist propaganda.

See the coverage in Philadelphia, Virginia, Buffalo and Indianapolis.

Previous - frozen rivers, death toll.

Winter of 2007 - another irony - Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality

On Saturday, SNL invented an ironic situation for laughs regarding global warming and the events of this winter.

Today, Congress one-upped SNL by cancelling a "global warming" conference due to the winter storm that now is pounding the east coast.

The following notice and weather report appears tonight on Drudge:

HOUSE HEARING ON 'WARMING OF THE PLANET' CANCELED AFTER SNOW/ICE STORM

HEARING NOTICE
Tue Feb 13 2007 19:31:25 ET

The Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality hearing scheduled for Wednesday, February 14, 2007, at 10:00 a.m. in room 2123 Rayburn House Office Building has been postponed due to inclement weather. The hearing is entitled “Climate Change: Are Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Human Activities Contributing to a Warming of the Planet?”

The hearing will be rescheduled to a date and time to be announced later.

DC WEATHER REPORT:

Wednesday: Freezing rain in the morning...then a chance of snow in the afternoon. Ice accumulation of less than one quarter of an inch. Highs in the mid 30s. Northwest winds around 20 mph. Chance of precipitation 80 percent.

Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy. Lows around 18. Northwest winds around 20 mph.

I think Will Rogers once commented that his little jokes never hurt anybody, but everytime Congress makes a joke its the law.

By the way, where is the Constitutional authority for a Congressional "Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality?"

Winter of 2007 - Susquehanna River freezes over

I have written previously that the Allegheny River in Pittsburgh was "frozen over" last week, with commercial traffic stopped for the first time in a decade.

Here are pictures of another river that has frozen over as a result of the bitter temperatures this month. The white area in the photos below is not an empty snow covered field, nor is it whitewater rapids. The white area is the frozen Susquehanna River near Harrisburg, PA.

Susquehanna River - Sunday - February 11, 2007


2-11-07

Western half of the river - the eastern half is on the other side of the island near the middle of the photo


All of these photos were taken on February 11, 2007.


another photo of the Western half -



The broken bridge in the middle of the photo was destroyed by floating ice chunks during the Winter of 1996 - not to be confused with the Winter of 1994.

another photo of the broken Walnut Street bridge taken the same day - 2-11-07


It would be nice to have a catalogue of all of the rivers that froze over during the past ten days. But the MSM/DNC does not keep track of such things, as that would not support their story of "global warming."

The Susquehanna freezes over more often than the Allegheny, so it is not an earth shattering event. But in this era of "global warming" I am shocked that it freezes at all.

Winter of 2007 - a retrospective

The bitter temperatures seem to be subsiding. To put it mildly, we [in the Eastern U.S. and Canada] have seen nine days of below normal temperatures. Six of those days have been more than bitter, with temperatures below zero and will chills ranging from 20 to 50 degrees below zero. Records have been set, pipes have burst, electricity usage has increased, the Allegheny River has frozen over, people have died.

I have written about the MSM/DNC technique of relying on images, emotions and feelings instead of facts. I have tried to respond by focusing on the pain and bitterness of this Winter so that we will remember the cold weather long after the bitterness has eased.

I present here some additional mental impressions and images from this month. Last week, I had occassion to drive for some distance along Pennsylvania highways shortly after a brief snowfall. The temperature was so cold that the snow could not melt, even in the bright sunlight. The frozen snow clung to the highway in places where salt crews had not yet arrived. Road crews had to use much more salt than usual. The highway appeared to be bleached in the wake of the salt crews. The excessive salt not only removed the snow, but bleached the pavement. The frozen snow had the consistency of sand. The bright sun, bleached highway, sandy grains of snow and desolate nearby fields gave the appearance of a desert or some strange arctic salt mine. By the time I had driven thirty miles, the salt had turned the front of my normally black car white. The sound of high winds whistling past my car windows reminded me that this was not a desert, but a bitter winter day during which I and the rest of the world would rather be comfortable inside.

Is this the image of a warming world, in which we need to shut down our industries and destroy the livelihoods of millions of people? The answer is obvious. I hope it will remain obvious in four months when the MSM/DNC tries to tell us that none of this ever happened.

Quote of the day - Amy Poehler

"This week, in an ironic twist, while making a speech on global warming, Al Gore froze to death."

Amy Poehler - SNL - 2-10-07 [the joke was followed by a round of applause from the audience]

Winter of 2007 - death toll

Matt Lauer's teleprompter (as well as other sources) reported this morning that the death toll from the arctic weather the past few days has risen to 16. I am not sure if that includes Canada or just the Eastern and Midwestern United States.

Chicago endured its sixth day in a row of below zero temperatures today. According to Al Roker, that hasn't happened since 2000.

I have also heard numerous stories of frozen and burst pipes damaging residential and commercial buildings this week.

In the case of both the death toll and the building damage, the Winter of 1994 exceeded the numbers we now endure. But the numbers and the comparison show that this weather is far from a fluke even though we supposedly live in an era of "global warming."

For the first time in a decade, commercial traffic on the Allegheny River has been shut down.

more ice on the Allegheny h/t Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

ice related crash in Alabama last week H/T Fox News










I continue to drone on about this arctic weather because one day it will end and Spring will arrive. When that happens, we will forget the pain and inconvenience that are so real to us now. The MSM/DNC will rush in to fill the void with more fear mongering about "global warming." We have to steel ourselves for that onslaught before it begins.

Previous - Allegheny River freezes - chill map - February 4, 2007

Winter of 2007 - bitter temps continue - Matt Lauer's teleprompter admits the obvious - Allegheny River freezes over - PP&L sets new record

This morning the Today show finally acknowledged the Winter of 2007 in a big way. The bitter weather was the top story. Meredith Viera's teleprompter used the word "unrelenting" to describe the cold. The correspondents' reports focused on Wisconsin, Chicago and Pittsburgh (among other places).

The reports noted that the Allegheny River had frozen over in what was described as an unusual event.

H/T Wtae TV
















Other correspondents noted the bitter temperatures throughout the Midwest and Northeast.

The Today show segment never mentioned last week's fawning coverage of the UN "global warming" conference. In fact, the MSM/DNC has been somewhat muted on global warming for the past few days. The MSM/DNC relies on imagery, feelings, and emotions to make its points. The entire discussion of global warming is based on fear and feelings - not facts. The MSM/DNC can capture the hearts of the ladies who watch "The View" with its global warming stories so long as the temperatures are mild or hot. But that same tactic won't work if the nation is gripped by bitter cold. The pain of the cold air will override the fear emanating from the television. In fact, any attempt to promote the global warming agenda will create such an emotional disconnect in the hearts of the MSM/DNC faithful that the global warming meme will lose all credibility for the future. Global warming is like a bubble that will burst if its peddlers try to discuss it while the patsys are suffering from bitter cold. So the MSM/DNC carefully shelves this global warming snake oil until the bitter cold spell passes. The only problem is, the cold spell is taking its time in passing.

PP&L reported yesterday an alltime record for electricity usage for a single hour. The previous record was set during a recent summer. In other words, this cold spell has exceeded the electricity usage of any heat wave.

Meanwhile, parts of Pennsylvania endured their third straight day of school delays caused by the cold weather.

We are enjoying a weather-induced reprieve from the global warming hysteria as long as the cold spell lasts. I was hoping for the temperatures to warm up, but I can enjoy the cold a little longer if it means that the Today show teleprompters must shut up about global warming for a few more days.

Bitter Winter of 2007 continues

As I sit in front of my TV just before dawn, I hear weather reports from around Pennsylvania and the Northeast. Most cities endure temperatures in the single digits or even below zero. Schools delay their opening for the second day in a row. There is no snow - the cold temperatures are solely to blame for the school delays. The temperatures are not as bad as they were during the Winter of 1994, but they are severe and they have endured without letup for days.

The time is long overdue for more of us to ignore the MSM/DNC orthodoxy regarding global warming.

Even Hawaii is enduring colder than normal temperatures.

In order to overcome this brainwashing, we have to remember this cold snap long after this winter is over. Especially this summer when the weather is hot and the MSM/DNC is pushing the global warming refrain without letup. Try an exercise. Stand outside as long as it takes for your fingers to feel the pain of the bitter cold. As your fingers endure the discomfort, remind yourself of the MSM/DNC story regarding global warming. This exercise may help steel you for the onslaught that will continue long after this winter is over.

Global warming and the ice age of 2007 - Twilight Zone

This week's frigid weather throughout most of North America comes on the heels of the UN conference on global warming, at which the UN bureacrats repeated the official story that (1) the Earth is getting warmer and (2) that western countries must surrender their basic industries.

The global warming faithful display no shame or remorse no matter how much bitter weather the world must endure.

The sequence of events the past few days remind me of the Twilight Zone episode (Midnight Sun) in which the Earth was careening toward the sun, causing temperatures to rise, water to dry up and the people of the Earth to panic and resort to violence. By the end of the episode we find out that it was all a dream and that the Earth was not, in fact, careening toward the sun. In fact, the Earth was careening out of orbit away from the sun. The world was growing colder instead of hotter. The main character was delirious from the crisis and had dreamed up an imaginary warming scenario, much like the scenario that the UN dreamed up last week.

dreaming of unbearable heat - this is either the Twilight Zone character or a UN bureacrat



We all listened dutifully on Friday as Matt Lauer's teleprompter repeated the UN's global warming story. We woke up the next day to discover that a near ice age had descended on the United States and Canada. Wind chills are predicted to remain below zero. Schools are contemplating closing or delaying their opening as the week begins. Numerous schools have shut down throughout the Plains, Midwest and Northeast. Amtrak has curtailed passenger service in certain places.

Rochester Democrat and Chronicle






Not only is the week significant for its extreme cold, this week and this winter will become a target for the MSM/DNC 's memory hole, as the MSM/DNC strives to make us forget the bitter cold that we experience so that we can get on with the business of solving "global warming."

I believe that much of life will begin to seem even more like a Twilight Zone episode, as the MSM/DNC attempts to make us forget significant events and believe things that contradict our own senses. The surreal world of the MSM/DNC lacks only the voice of Rod Serling narrating our nightmares and telling us that some strange fantasy is about to begin.

see previous - Winter of 1994

update - Alicia and the thickening icebergs.