HERE'S Something That'll Scare People into Evacuating

Your first responders for the next disaster.

Well, Blogger's finally working again...I think...or maybe I should say we'll see when I hit the publish button.

To be honest, all this week I've had a bit of writer's block, but today is definitely a case of Blogger working about as well as FEMA last August and September.

Anyway, The NY Times reports on the scare 'em strategem:

Convinced that tough tactics are needed, officials in hurricane-prone states are trumpeting dire warnings about the storm season that starts on Thursday, preaching self-reliance and prodding the public to prepare early and well.

Cities are circulating storm-preparation checklists, counties are holding hurricane expositions at shopping malls and states are dangling carrots like free home inspections and tax-free storm supplies in hopes of conquering complacency.

But the main strategy, it seems, is to scare the multitudes of people who emergency officials say remain blasé even after last year's record-breaking storm season.

Now, maybe it's just me being cynical as time marches...a little faster on my clock than Oyster's (and why not stop by and wish him a happy birthday today?)...but I'm thinking the next region unfortunate to suffer the effects of a major storm--while certainly NOT being "lucky"--might benefit, albeit ever so slightly, from a desire on the part of Team Bush to "prove" they're not complete and utter boobs. Of course, it also helps that this is a special year, as it were: one divisible by the number two. And the "help" will almost certainly be contingent on whether the region is...or isn't...a "swing" state.

Still, if confronted by the picture above, I'd hightail it at the first sign of being potentially in harm's way. Thinking about Shrub handling an axe and telling the National Weather Center to "bring it on" would be plenty enough...without waiting around for Big Time to tell us that any storm is in its "last throes" as it reaches the Loop Current. Besides, Michael "the living skull" Chertoff and Turd Blossom would be blaming the victims regardless of what actually happened...

Oh, and speaking of things actually happening--The Gray Lady has another report about the effect of global warming on tropical cyclones/hurricanes that's well worth a read. And here's an interesting and somewhat related item: during an interglacial warm period some 55 million years ago, the Arctic was much warmer than scientists realized. But, nobody rides for free:

Skeptics of man-made causes of global warming have nothing to rejoice over, however. The researchers say their studies appearing in Thursday's issue of Nature also offer a peek at just how bad conditions can get.

"It probably was (a tropical paradise) but the mosquitoes were probably the size of your head," said Yale geology professor Mark Pagani, a study co-author.

Yeah, they're plenty big in the Gret Stet right now, but not that big.

On the other hand, if we could only get these giant mosquitoes to start buzzing in and around the White House...or the Capitol. Or both...