It's still a bit chilly up there

In my first transatlantic blog I made a flippant observation about global warming about which Aliemalie took some exception. It was based on my viewing of the astonishing Greenland Icecap as we were flying over at about 30,000 feet. Of course I am concerned about GW, and there is no doubt that much of the planet is milder and more benevolent than it was when I was a kid a couple of years ago. For example, outdoor ice-skating is virtually unheard of in coastal British Columbia these days, yet when I was a child (a couple of years ago, as I say) we had at least a couple of weeks of skating on a nearby lake virtually every winter. When my grandfather was in his teens (around the turn of the 20th century) the Fraser River in greater Vancouver used to freeze across to the other side, impeding shipping. An astonishing thought today.

Yep, so this tired old planet is getting warmer. I think where I differ somewhat is about causes of this happening, and indeed if there are any man-made causes. This is a mighty tough globe, and it has undergone major cooling and subsequent warming cycles throughout its billions of years. We are, in effect, still emerging from the last great Ice Age. Are hydrocarbons the villains we think they are in this process? Damned if I know. Damned if anybody really knows, or there wouldn’t be any debate on the matter, despite everybody’s protestations to the contrary. Maybe they are. Yet, do we really think that puny us in our great SUVs really have that sort of power? I kinda hope so, in a way. I’d love to see every Hummer-like behemoth blasted into oblivion, but that’s a personal bias. I utterly fail to see why anybody needs to avail him or herself of some piece of metal containing damn near 500 horsepower. But again, that’s my bias.

And now I ramble, but suffice it to say that if global warming really exists (and I believe the evidence is there) then adjustments of various kinds are in order. If our current warming trend is just a glitch, then all bets are off.

Otherwise, but on similar topic. I am yet to see an SUV in this part of France. That is very refreshing. I did see a Cadillac on the street yesterday. It looked vary out-of-place amidst the Peugeots and Citroens.

Finally, last night I actually slept the night through. It was heavenly, and I hope my inner-clock has finally adjusted to this time-realm. Of course, then in a month I have to do it all over in reverse order. Pain in the ass.

I’m enjoying daily marketing. It reminds me of when I lived in England a couple of decades ago. We have no fridge of any substance, so we are making do with the mini-bar in the room. But, it’s fun to pick up little products with which I’m not entirely familiar, and try them out.

No goddamn peanut butter yet, and I am going through withdrawal. Not amusing.

The travel diary will continue.