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from the a-rising-tide-lifts-all-boats-but-not-so-good-for-property dept.
Michael Mishak writes that there are few places in the nation more vulnerable to rising sea levels than low-lying South Florida, a tourist and retirement mecca built on drained swampland. Yet as other coastal states and the Obama administration take aggressive measures to battle the effects of global warming, Florida's top Republican politicians are challenging the science and balking at government fixes. In Miami Beach the concern is palpable. On a recent afternoon, local businessman Scott McKenzie pulled out his iPad and flipped through photos from a 2009 storm. In one, two women kayak through knee-high water in the center of town. "This is not a future problem. It's a current problem," says Leonard Berry, a contributing author of the National Climate Assessment, which found that sea levels have risen about 8 inches in the past century. By one regional assessment, the waters off South Florida could rise another 2 feet by 2060, a scenario that would overwhelm the region's aging drainage system and taint its sources of drinking water. "It's getting to the point where some properties being bought today will probably not be able to be sold at the end of a 30-year mortgage," says Harold Wanless. "You would think responsible leaders and responsible governments would take that as a wake-up call."
Gov. Rick Scott, who is running for re-election, has worked with the Republican-controlled Legislature to dismantle Florida's fledgling climate change initiatives that were put into place by his predecessor and current opponent, Democrat Charlie Crist. "I'm not a scientist," says Scott when asked about anthropogenic global warming during a stop in Miami. Meanwhile, Miami Beach is bracing for another season of punishing tides. "We're suffering while everyone is arguing man-made or natural," says Christine Florez, president of the West Avenue Corridor Neighborhood Association. "We should be working together to find solutions so people don't feel like they've been left on a log drifting out to sea."
(Score: 2) by Yog-Yogguth on Tuesday June 10 2014, @09:22AM
But if one sets the bar for what is considered trolling and flamebaiting low enough then all honest disagreement is suppressed. If most or all comments that are against something get Troll moderated into oblivion then something is very wrong. People should not have to lick boots in order to voice disagreement, nor should they have to adapt some faked academic or politically correct attitude to discourse. They should not have to profess false modesty, humility, servility, or even non-aggression just because they disagree.
By increasing the criteria for "acceptable comments" one feeds ones own bigotry; being a bigot is to not accept that other points of view can have any value. Yes of course I often walk into that trap as well, it might be impossible not to if one has any strong opinions at all.
I think one ought to reserve Troll and Flamebait moderation for the truly obvious stuff (which is rare!) and just leave comments alone if one can't stomach replying to them; I feel pretty sure most people here do that all the time because I certainly do. I.e. there's a reason I haven't commented on TFA but I browse comments because sometimes someone says something truly interesting like the person who posted about small manufactured/artificially grown floating wetland islands.
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