Carmine

The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has made several determinations of late confirming what most of us already knew, 2006 was the hottest year on record and 2007 is proving to be hotter yet. Global Warming activists and environmental groups have latched onto he sudden climate change since 2004 as proof that global warming is accelerating and that human generated greenhouse gases are the cause.

The evidence for global warming is irrefutable, the planet is warmer. The increase in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases is also well established. What is not in evidence is that the greenhouse effect is responsible for the sudden change in global temperatures over the past 2 years. The greenhouse effect ignores several important factors, planetary axis shift and oceanic carbon dioxide sequestration.

Planet earth has undergone several axis shifts over human history. The best documented are the axis shift following the eruption/explosion of Krakatoa and the 2004 axis shift following the indonesian earthquake and tsunami. The most recent of these shifts is responsible for changing the latitude of the Northern hemisphere by 1/2 to 1 degree relative tot he incident angle of the sun's rays. In plain English, everyone in the Northern Hemisphere moved south 200 miles that day. I live in the Orlando area, now I have Miami weather.

Oceanic carbon dioxide sequestration is more difficult to explain. Imagine that the deep ocean floor is a "carbon dioxide battery." Under the right water temerature and salinity, the ocean water "charges" the "battery" by pulling massive amounts of carbon dioxide out of the air. As a result, greenhouse gases are reduced and global tempertures drop. Under different ocean conditions, the "battery" releases carbon dioxide which bubble or even boils to the ocean's surface.

This sudden and explosive release of carbon dioxide has been documented on film as early as the 1930's when a US Navy freighter sank suddenly as the ocean around it foamed and lost bouyency. It has been estimated that in the time it took for the ocean to engulf the freighter and the release to end that the equivalent of 1 year worth of human and domestic animal carbon dioxide production was released.

What does all this mean to global warming?

It means that the problem is far more complex than simply decreasing fossil fuel use. There are global factors that move in cycles set in geological time. Events that we can no more predict than we can control have a far greater impact than all human endeavor and domestic animal cultivation combined.

On the other hand, the entire global climate system is like a household budget. In my home, I am the long range planner, infrequently spending large sums of money on large family purchases. My wife is the short range budgeter, spending smaller amounts daily to keep the household going. We both negatively impact cash flow. I have big effects, but they are rare, just like planetary axis shifts and oceanic sequestration. My wife has a constant effect, but it is sustained and if just slightly over budget, will have a large negative impact.

Our human effect on global climate change is incrementally small, but if excessive, will yield a global catastrophe equal to the 2004 axis shift or Krakatoa.

Dr. Maurice A. Ramirez is the founder and president of the consulting firm High Alert, LLC.. He serves on expert panels for pandemic preparedness and healthcare surge planning with Congressional and Cabinet Members. Board certified in multiple specialties, Dr. Ramirez is Founding Chairperson of the American Board of Disaster Medicine and serves the nation as a Senior Physician-Federal Medical Officer in the National Disaster Medical System. Dr. Ramirez has a new book: You Can Survive Anything, Anywhere, Every Time. His website is http://www.High-Alert.com