USA Today, December 12, 2003: "UN: 2003 Third Hottest Year On Record"
USA Today, December 15, 2004: "2004 is the Fourth Hottest Year For World Since 1861, Says UN"
Washington Post, October 13, 2005: "New international climate data show that 2005 is on track to be the hottest year on record, continuing a 25-year trend of rising global temperatures."
MSNBC, July 18, 2006: "First Half of Year Warmest On Record In US"
Bottom line: The heat you’re experiencing right now isn’t some sort of freak weather anomoly. It’s the way things are going to be every year. For the rest of your lives. Unless…
UPDATE: The science editor for Time asks and answers the same question — is this a trend or not?:
So while it’s true that 1944 was one of the 20 hottest years on record, the other 19 have happened since 1983. That’s clearly a trend. And if the vast majority of climate experts are right, it’s only the beginning. Next summer may not be especially hot–but over the next several decades, expect more and more heat waves like this one–and a few that are even worse. Expect them to show up more often, last longer and affect larger areas.
MORE THOUGHTS: Is it time to do something about global warming? Of course. But these guys don’t get it:
Continued Republican House and Senate majorities would likely mean more of the same on climate. House Majority Whip Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) said he would oppose global warming mandates if Republicans control the 110th Congress. “I think the information is not adequate yet for us to do anything meaningful,” he said.
Another guy who doesn’t get it:
"I cannot imagine any objective finding that CO2 is a pollutant . . . If that’s true, God is a polluter." – Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), chairman of the energy panel of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Got that? Science and evidence be damned. There can’t be global warming, because that would mean that, um, God is a polluter. Or something.
That statement would be amusing if it had come from the drunken ramblings of a mentally-disturbed psychotic roaming the streets of any major metropoplitan area. But it didn’t. It came from an important man whose daily tasks include setting this country’s energy policy.