Pierce: "Meanwhile, hurricanes are lined up like the Rockettes. Let's check in on the president*.

[babylonsister]

https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a23063097/rio-grande-drying-up-hurricane-season-climate-change/

Soon Enough the Rio Grande Won't Be a Rio Anymore
Meanwhile, hurricanes are lined up like the Rockettes. Let's check in on the president*.
By Charles P. Pierce
Sep 10, 2018


This episode in our continuing series, Water: How Does It Work Anyway? brings us to what used to be the Rio Grande River, the third-longest river wholly contained in the United States. It is of intrinsic environmental, cultural, and historic value. It is one of those natural wonders with which the imagination can conjure, as author Richard Parker pointed out in a column in The New York Times two days ago.

The Rio Grande is so long that when Europeans first arrived they didn’t realize it was all the same, roiling body of water. It sustained tens of thousands of Native Americans: The Pueblo people populated the basin to the north, while tribes such as the Manso lived easily off the fish, ducks and bounty of the middle river, according to accounts by Franciscan monks in 1598 who accompanied the conquistador Juan de Oñate when his expedition forded the river.

Downstream, wrote the historian Paul Horgan in his book on the Rio Grande, “Great River,” published in 1954, “The river at Presidio came among willows, cottonwood, lilacs, mountains with attendant clouds, emerald green fields and pink sand, through a sweetness in the air made from all these together.” Some Native Americans called the river P’soque, or big river. The Spanish named the lower stretch Rio Palmas, for its thickets of palms.

The problem is that, between overuse and the climate crisis, which has reduced the upland snowpack that has fed the river for millennia, the Rio Grande is ceasing to be a river. The Times has published several stories about the slow death of the Rio Grande—one in 2015, and one last May. The situation, as the newspaper pointed out last May, has passed dire on its way to catastrophic.

snip//

Meanwhile, out in the Atlantic, tropical depressions, tropical storms, and hurricanes are lined up like the Rockettes from here to Africa. Florence is scheduled to drop in on the Carolinas some time on Monday or Tuesday. Much of their power derives from the work of those crafty Chinese climate hoaxers. Luckily, however, the president* is right on top of the nation's serious environmental threats.

Link to tweet

The ways we are so very screwed increase by the hour.

[steve2470]

1. he's going to drop the ball on Florence...

Hopefully the governor(s) of NC and SC will not.

[lisby]

4. He is capable of doing nothing *but*

dropping the ball.

[PaulX2]

11. He Doesn't Know What A Ball Is Unless It Says Titleist or Calloway

Or something else related to golfing.

[Auggie]

15. +1

[dchill]

19. They probably say "Trump" ... In gold.

[Hortensis]

6. With the midterms coming up, it would be very strange

if even he did not listen to advisers and put on the greatest show since Christie's authoritarian bellowing on the beach. Now, a week later after most media coverage moves on to his next performance, expect him to start backtracking on his promises. He knows most people won't be paying attention.

[maryellen99]

7. Don't forget though the Governors of NC and VA are Democrats

I expect trump to screw up and screw up BAD.

[Hortensis]

9. Best guess he'll instead claim their actions as his own.

Remember, neither governor is up for reelection this year.

But, of course I hope you're right.

The more trumpism exposed before November 6 the better.

[sandensea]

12. +1

The Orange Bastard will botch it, and then blame it on Roy Cooper.

[DAMANgoldberg]

21. NC is OK

at least at the Governorship level, same with VA.
The current UN Ambassador, for all of her other faults, did well enough with state emergency matters. That is more than I can say for Gov. McMaster.

[Scurrilous]

2. K&R

[greatauntoftriplets]

3. I'm sure he's busy ordering paper towels to throw at the victims.

[malaise]

5. Look after yourselves folks

Don't trust this fool in a crisis

[Hortensis]

17. Looking after ourselves is always the best advice,

even with the best government. It's our duty even. We're not really helpless and shouldn't be expecting everyone else, through government, to provide us with water and paper towels..

From our fellow citizens we should expect first responders capable of swooping in and lifting collapsed houses off of us and providing world-class medical care and hot soup in the midst of disaster. And, later, our own taxpayer-paid programs to help those in trouble rebuild what their own insurance won't cover because it really can happen to anyone and this is how we all take care of ourselves.

I'm guessing everyone here has at least of week of basic needs all covered, plus maybe at least some to share with neighbors who don't. Water, food, first aid, medicines, duct tape all stocked up. A place to go in our pocket so to speak if needed. And, of course, our own paper towels. This isn't hitting an island a thousand miles off shore, and I'd use leaves before I'd catch one of those rolls.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

8. Does he own any golf resorts on the Carolina coast?

If so, plenty of help will be available.

If not, look to Puerto Rico as an example of help.

[gtar100]

10. If we were smart, we would treat all rivers, streams, lakes and oceans, as international treasures.

Protected from contamination as if our lives depended upon it.

[heaven05]

13. yep, no doubts

the latter part of the kids' life, their 50's, 60's, 70's are going to be fubar. I am saddened about the impending environmental and other catastrophes that are going to make life difficult for multi-billions.

One of my deepest wishes, always, was to not be here when the shit hits the fan in an unmistakable manner that cannot be denied as climate change/global warming. Sorry I'm being selfish here, but at 70 I don't want to see the systems that sustain human and animal life breaking down, mother earth turned into a wasteland of misery for the poor and struggling. Don't get me wrong it seems mother earth is fighting back in the manner of your OP and in other ways. Still, we are running out of fresh water and on and on it goes. The Connecticut size glob of plastic of all types floating in the s. pacific. Containers ect .

And a potus and administration that does not care how everyday people will be impacted. Like someone said here, somewhere, maybe we'll get a roll of paper towels thrown to us. And the'lucky' ones will be able to score an "I don't care, do U" coat.

[NCjack]

14. Jebus is unhappy with the Orange F'stick. So, the hurricanes at the

mid-term campaigns are a test for him -- does he love Jebus enough to give up his whores? We will know on Nov. 6th.

[world wide wally]

16. We have become slaves to idiocy

[Brogrizzly]

18. I wonder if his paper towel tossing has improved? Just saying n/t

[Uncle Joe]

20. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread babylonsister.