[ExI] "Up against the warming zealots"...hmmm

[Lee Corbin]

Eugen writes

> On Tue, Jul 24, 2007 at 02:53:07PM +0930, Emlyn wrote:
> 
>> So if we are having a warming, maybe it is a good thing. It'll have
>> some problems of course, but I'm willing to buy the idea that this is
>> more complex than warm=bad.
> 
> Rapid climate change -> precipitation shifts -> famine -> conflict/migration. 
> Plenty bad.

Generally speaking, warming has always been of benefit to human populations
(in all the cases I know of). The Medieval Warming period is usually the
suggested example http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medieval_Warm_Period

The article here doesn't say so, but modern Russia was founded, so I've
read, during a period that to some degree circumscribed the extreme
cold of the region.

Each year far more people die from cold than from heat. In general,
winter kills, while summer is a relatively easy time for most species.

The biggest fear is  of change being too rapid, I think. The one or
two degree upward change suggested for this century by those who
believe that a warming trend is occuring, just doesn't seem very 
radical to me.

Lee