Freaky February? Tornadoes, Daffodils & Santorum


© John Laumer

Here is it February 2012 and my yard has daffodils and other early spring flowers in full bloom. I’ve had daffodil leaves pop part way out of the ground in past Februaries, but never had them go into bloom this early. It’s weird – and might be “Natures’ way of telling you something’s wrong.


© John Laumer

People I speak with in SE Pennsylvania say they are happy that it is Spring-like. They don’t even miss the natural winter and the contrast of seasons. That’s equally weird.


© John

I bet the older survivors of this week’s tornadoes in the US are wondering what’s happened to the Mother Nature of childhood memory? Well, it turns out that February tornadoes are not that unusual: bad February tornadoes occurred early in the period of record (which started in 1950). NOAA reports (pdf file) that an outbreak similar to this week’s tragedy happened on Super Tuesday of 2008.

During a 12-hour period in the evening and early morning of February 5-6, 2008, 87 tornadoes occurred in nine states with 57 fatalities in four states. This is the second largest February tornado outbreak since 1950 (beginning year of official tornado database) in terms of fatalities and the largest since May 31, 1985

I’m not discounting the possibility that early tornadoes have something to do with a changing climate.

Flowers in February and a very freaky East Coast winter in general do, however, make it feel like something’s wrong. Not quite a Black Swan Landing In The American Consciousness yet, but feeling closer.

Santorum in bloom
Now that the Republican primaries are moving to big coal mining states like Ohio and Pennsylvania, Rick Santorum is sure to play the coal miner’s grandchild card. He’ll be attacking EPA and the Obama Administration for requiring the very largest US stationary greenhouse gas emitters to report what they release.

His rants will get news-play and election-covering anchors will let it go unchallenged. Think they’d invite a published climate scientist to sit on a panel discussion of the campaign? Not a chance.

What can be done?
Register to vote.

Get every kind of photo ID you can well before the next election.

When November comes, help get out the vote.

Vote out the crazies.

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